Smartphone releases have become increasingly iterative, with major changes only landing every other generation or so. However, many expected the iPhone 15 series to fall in the latter category as it packs a USB-C port in lieu of the long-standing Lightning connector. USB-C has now become the go-to charging port on all Android smartphones and even many Apple products like the iPad and Macbook. With that in mind, you may also be wondering if Apple has improved battery life or brought faster charging via USB-C to the iPhone 15 series. The answer’s a bit complicated, so let’s break it down.
iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro battery life: What you need to know
Let’s start with the vanilla iPhone 15, as it’s the first and most affordable choice for many smartphone buyers. Apple never discloses the exact battery capacities of its devices at launch, but it does provide estimates on how long they will last.
From the spec sheet, we know that the iPhone 15 will last 20 hours while playing back a video file, with that figure dropping to 16 hours if you stream video over the internet instead. The larger iPhone 15 Plus packs a larger battery, so Apple says it will last up to 26 hours and 20 hours, respectively.
How do these numbers compare to last year’s iPhone 14 series? Unfortunately, there’s little to no improvement to speak of. The number of rated hours hasn’t changed, so you may not see a material change in battery life going from the iPhone 14 to the iPhone 15. We’ll know for sure once we conduct our full suite of tests for our review, but Apple doesn’t leave us very optimistic at the moment.
The same disappointing story holds true for the Pro models as well. The iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max, for example, should last up to 23 hours and 29 hours during local video playback. While impressive, those are the same figures as the previous-gen iPhone 14 Pro models.
That said, it’s worth noting that the iPhone 15 Pro series has lost a lot of weight compared to its predecessor. Apple has transitioned to a titanium frame, which makes both higher-end phones roughly 10% lighter. That may not sound like a big deal, but most people will definitely notice the difference in their hands.
Even with the weight reduction, Apple has kept battery life constant on the iPhone 15 Pro models. Still, it’s a bit disappointing that Apple couldn’t leverage the efficiency of its new 3nm processing hardware to improve runtimes. Likewise, early rumors indicated that the company would spring for cutting-edge stacked battery tech to improve capacity. That sadly didn’t materialize, so we may need to wait and watch next year’s presentation.
iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro charging speed
The iPhone 15 series has finally brought an end to the Lightning connector and cable. In its stead, we get the universal USB Type-C or USB-C port. Samsung, Motorola, and other Android phone manufacturers use the same port to achieve charging times of under an hour. Even Apple has adopted USB-C Power Delivery to push 100W to the Macbook Pro. However, it seemingly hasn’t budged on charging speeds moving from the iPhone 14 series to the iPhone 15.
Starting with the base iPhone 15 models, Apple still recommends a 20W or higher adapter. That will net you a 50% charge within 30 minutes, exactly the same as the last-generation iPhone 14. And if the power delivery remains identical throughout the charging process, you’ll have to wait well over an hour to reach the 100% mark. Initial rumors suggested that Apple would move up to recommending 35W adapters, but the spec sheets we’ve seen so far do not indicate any such change.
Apple’s latest smartphones will still take over an hour to go from zero percent charge to full.
Unfortunately, even the iPhone 15 Pro models do not charge any faster than last year. That said, you do still get 50% charge within 30 minutes despite the larger battery compared to the base model.
As for wireless charging, many expected the iPhone 15 series to become the world’s first Qi2 certified smartphones. However, the Wireless Power Consortium told The Verge that it isn’t ready to begin certification yet. So with the lack of a new standard, iPhone 15 will continue to support 15W MagSafe charging and just 7.5W of power via the standard Qi protocol. It’s possible that the iPhone will charge at 15W via future Qi2 chargers, but only time will tell.
iPhone 15 charging speed vs. the Android competition
Robert Triggs / Android Authority
When compared to some of the fastest-charging smartphones on the market, the iPhone 15 series doesn’t exactly impress. The iPhone 13 Pro Max and 14 Pro Max charged at higher than 20W for brief periods of time, so it’s safe to assume that the iPhone 15 Pro will continue that trend. But the end result is still a total charge time of around 100 minutes. Here’s a quick table showcasing what you can expect from rival Android smartphones.
| Smartphone | Peak Charging Power | 0-50% charge time |
|---|---|---|
| Smartphone
iPhone 15 |
Peak Charging Power
~20W (expected) |
0-50% charge time
30 minutes |
| Smartphone
iPhone 15 Pro Max |
Peak Charging Power
~27W (expected) |
0-50% charge time
~25 minutes (expected). 30 minutes with 20W adapter |
| Smartphone
Galaxy S23 Ultra |
Peak Charging Power
45W |
0-50% charge time
17 minutes |
| Smartphone
OnePlus 11 |
Peak Charging Power
100W |
0-50% charge time
10 minutes |
| Smartphone
Pixel 7 |
Peak Charging Power
21W |
0-50% charge time
30 minutes |
At this point, Google remains the only other manufacturer matching Apple’s conservative 20W fast charging ceiling. And even then, rumors indicate that the upcoming Pixel 8 series will get slightly faster charging.
All in all, the iPhone 15 series doesn’t exactly impress in the battery life or charging department. However, the transition to USB-C is a major convenience win and could justify an upgrade on its own. And for better or worse, owners of Apple’s 20W charger won’t have to worry about buying a new adapter.