iPhone 15 Pro overheating woes. Unraveling the instagram connection
30.09.2023 posted by Admin
Since the launch of the iPhone 15 series a week ago, some users, particularly those with the premium iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max models, have been complaining about their new iOS-powered phones getting excessively warm. This issue appears to occur during activities like playing certain video games, charging, and using social media platforms. Users have reported that the affected devices can reach temperatures as high as 116 degrees Fahrenheit.
Prominent tech influencer Marques Brownlee recently shared his experience with overheating, noting that he encountered this problem when listening to music and browsing Instagram on his iPhone 15 Pro. Brownlee described how the overheating occurs, stating, "For about 5 minutes, the phone becomes quite hot and drains around 5% of the battery. After that, it returns to normal."
Is Instagram solely responsible for causing the iPhone 15 Pro models to reach such high temperatures?
A YouTube video by tech reviewer @iPhonedo also points the finger at Instagram for the overheating issue. However, in contrast to most complaints, @iPhonedo mentions that this problem started for him after updating his iPhone 14 Pro, iPhone 14 Pro Max, and iPad Pro to iOS 17 and iPadOS 17. Like Brownlee, Faruk, the creator behind @iPhonedo, observed that while his devices were overheating, the battery life of each device was decreasing rapidly at a rate of 1% per minute. Consequently, simply idling on Instagram for 10 minutes resulted in a 10% drop in battery life.
In his video, Faruk demonstrated how the temperature of the iPhone 15 Pro Max increased from around 80 degrees Fahrenheit to over 96 degrees, causing a slight decrease in battery life. Faruk emphasized that this issue specifically occurs with the Instagram app. Since he relies on Instagram for work, deleting the app is not a practical solution. However, he did find that switching to Low Power Mode while using Instagram helped somewhat with the heat issue, although the battery still drained.
A former Facebook employee has suggested that Meta intentionally drains phone batteries
Faruk also expressed his frustration in attempting to get Instagram's attention regarding this matter and clarified that it's not an iPhone problem but rather an Instagram problem. Why is this peculiar to Instagram? It's worth noting that earlier this year, George Hayward, a former Facebook employee and data scientist, alleged that Facebook and the Messenger app deliberately drain phone batteries as part of a process he claims Meta refers to as "negative testing."
Hayward explained that this practice is used to assess app features or gauge how images load. He also revealed that he was terminated by Meta for refusing to participate in "negative testing." In a court filing, his lawyer argued, albeit later withdrawn, that excessively draining smartphone batteries could pose risks to users, especially in situations where they need to contact authorities or emergency responders.
Hayward had to drop his lawsuit because his employment contract with Meta required arbitration. Speaking of Meta, Hayward's experience is relevant to Instagram since the company owns Instagram, Facebook, Facebook Messenger, and WhatsApp.
If you can manage without Instagram, you can test Faruk's theory by uninstalling Instagram for a few days to see if your iPhone 15 Pro series device stops overheating. If the issue persists even after removing Instagram, then the social media platform may not be the culprit, and you can continue using it. Alternatively, you can try enabling Low Power Mode on your iPhone while using Instagram to see if that mitigates the problem.
To activate Low Power Mode, navigate to Settings > Battery and toggle on Low Power Mode. This setting will prevent apps from running in the background and potentially reduce overheating.
Prominent tech influencer Marques Brownlee recently shared his experience with overheating, noting that he encountered this problem when listening to music and browsing Instagram on his iPhone 15 Pro. Brownlee described how the overheating occurs, stating, "For about 5 minutes, the phone becomes quite hot and drains around 5% of the battery. After that, it returns to normal."
Is Instagram solely responsible for causing the iPhone 15 Pro models to reach such high temperatures?
A YouTube video by tech reviewer @iPhonedo also points the finger at Instagram for the overheating issue. However, in contrast to most complaints, @iPhonedo mentions that this problem started for him after updating his iPhone 14 Pro, iPhone 14 Pro Max, and iPad Pro to iOS 17 and iPadOS 17. Like Brownlee, Faruk, the creator behind @iPhonedo, observed that while his devices were overheating, the battery life of each device was decreasing rapidly at a rate of 1% per minute. Consequently, simply idling on Instagram for 10 minutes resulted in a 10% drop in battery life.
In his video, Faruk demonstrated how the temperature of the iPhone 15 Pro Max increased from around 80 degrees Fahrenheit to over 96 degrees, causing a slight decrease in battery life. Faruk emphasized that this issue specifically occurs with the Instagram app. Since he relies on Instagram for work, deleting the app is not a practical solution. However, he did find that switching to Low Power Mode while using Instagram helped somewhat with the heat issue, although the battery still drained.
A former Facebook employee has suggested that Meta intentionally drains phone batteries
Faruk also expressed his frustration in attempting to get Instagram's attention regarding this matter and clarified that it's not an iPhone problem but rather an Instagram problem. Why is this peculiar to Instagram? It's worth noting that earlier this year, George Hayward, a former Facebook employee and data scientist, alleged that Facebook and the Messenger app deliberately drain phone batteries as part of a process he claims Meta refers to as "negative testing."
Hayward explained that this practice is used to assess app features or gauge how images load. He also revealed that he was terminated by Meta for refusing to participate in "negative testing." In a court filing, his lawyer argued, albeit later withdrawn, that excessively draining smartphone batteries could pose risks to users, especially in situations where they need to contact authorities or emergency responders.
Hayward had to drop his lawsuit because his employment contract with Meta required arbitration. Speaking of Meta, Hayward's experience is relevant to Instagram since the company owns Instagram, Facebook, Facebook Messenger, and WhatsApp.
If you can manage without Instagram, you can test Faruk's theory by uninstalling Instagram for a few days to see if your iPhone 15 Pro series device stops overheating. If the issue persists even after removing Instagram, then the social media platform may not be the culprit, and you can continue using it. Alternatively, you can try enabling Low Power Mode on your iPhone while using Instagram to see if that mitigates the problem.
To activate Low Power Mode, navigate to Settings > Battery and toggle on Low Power Mode. This setting will prevent apps from running in the background and potentially reduce overheating.