7 battery saving tips for iOS 7

Apple iOS 7 has been available for download since September 19 (local time zone), and in just three days, more than 200 million iOS devices worldwide have been updated to the new iOS, making it the fastest software upgrade in history. However, iOS 7 users have raised concerns over the poor battery life of their devices.

Fortunately, there are a few simple steps that you can take to improve the battery life of your iOS 7 device so that you do not need to scurry around searching for a power outlet. Here's a compilation of 7 tips and tricks we've read and found:

1. Disable parallax effect

Parallax is a 3D-like animation that Apple introduced on iOS 7, which shifts the wallpaper and icons whenever you tilt the phone. It is a fun feature, but it is also one that drains unnecessary power since the motion sensors have to be kept running.

If you do not need this parallax effect, which in some cases causes motion sickness, there is a way to disable it. The option is found under Settings > General > Accessibility > Reduce Motion.

2. Disable background app refresh

Background app refresh allows apps to refresh their content when on a Wi-Fi or mobile network, our use Location Services, in the background. If you do not want the apps to keep refreshing in the background, you can completely turn this feature off or select which apps are allowed to refresh their content. This can be found under Settings > General > Background App Refresh. 

3. Disable automatic updates

Automatic updates help keep your apps up-to-date so that you do not need to waste time checking and downloading the latest version. However, this feature is a double-edged sword especially when your phone is running low on battery or that a power source is not easily available. To turn off automatic updates (as well as automatic downloads of purchased music and apps made on other devices), head over to the Automatic Downloads section under Settings > iTunes & App Store.

4. Manage your notifications

Notification Center collates all your notifications (emails, missed calls, to-dos, calendar, etc.) into one central location for easy viewing. To achieve this, the device has to rely on cellular data or Wi-Fi connection to keep the info up-to-date. This can drain your battery quite quickly. Even when you are not using Notification Center, the reminders that keep lighting up your display will also add up, resulting in battery drain.

Go to Settings > Notification Center to tweak the alert styles of your apps. On a per-app basis, you can also decide if you want its alerts to show up in Notification Center. To disable alerts completely for an app, move it down to the 'Do Not Include' section.

5. Disable Spotlight search

Spotlight not only gives you faster access to apps, emails and contacts, it also regularly index the files on your device. With Spotlight constantly searching for new information to index, it can cause a battery drain.

Go to Settings > General > Spotlight Search. From there, you can disable Spotlight search completely by un-checking everything on the list or you can choose which types of information that Spotlight can continue to search and index. 

6. Turn off AirDrop if you aren't using it

AirDrop uses Wi-Fi and Bluetooth to share photos, videos, contacts and anything else from any app with one or more people using iOS 7. If you are not using AirDrop, it is best to turn it off so that your device does not keep searching for nearby devices.

To turn AirDrop off after using it, simply swipe up from the bottom of the screen to bring up Control Center, tap on the AirDrop option and select 'Off'.

7. Disable Location Services

Location services are important for certain apps such as Google Maps, which needs to know your location and helps you to navigate, but there are other apps and services that do not need this option turned on for them all the time.

If you do not want to constantly check which rogue apps are using this feature without your knowledge, you can go over the top and disable Location Services (take note, this will disable the Find My iPhone security service too). However, if you have some apps that will only work with Location Services turned on, you can head to Settings > Privacy > Location Services and select which apps get access to it.

There is also another potential power-draining source, which is System Services where location-based iAds, Popular Near Me and Diagnostics & Usage options reside in. These services can be turned off if they are irrelevant in your daily use of the device.

So there you've it, our 7 tips for conserving battery life in iOS 7. As you may have noticed, we've focused on new settings and features that are present on iOS 7. There are of course other age-old methods, such as dimming the brightness, turning off Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, and manually fetching your email. All these are applicable in iOS 7 (in fact, in any mobile OS) as well.

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