If you have an iPhone SE 2, also known as iPhone SE 2020 and iPhone SE of the 2nd generation, you should know that the battery is not one of its strongest points. However, this does not make battery failures have to be common, far from it. In this article we go over everything about it and how to fix it, including how much Apple will charge you for the iPhone SE battery replacement.
Battery capacity and estimated life
A priori, this iPhone SE shares a design with the iPhone 8 and now, because the processor is more advanced and has other features from more recent generations. However, the battery is one of the components that it does share with it, being 1,821 mAh . At first, it is a fairly low capacity compared to its competition, but Apple always does this on its phones due to the excellent management of the processor and software, guaranteeing a greater autonomy than expected.
While it is true that of the most recent Apple devices, this is one of the worst autonomy has, this should be enough to last a day without going through the charger. It should at least be that way for the first few months of the device’s life since it was taken out of the box. If you also make intensive use of the device, keep in mind that in the end it can affect the hours of duration.
If health has dropped suddenly
If you go to Settings> Battery and click on “Battery health” you will see an index that indicates the percentage of battery deterioration, 100% being the lowest level. It is natural that this percentage goes down over time, since this is one of the components that suffers the most over time, although this does not mean that it is normal for it to go down a lot in a short time.
This section always gives information about the state of the battery and if it reaches a percentage where it is considered to be already very worn, it will be indicated that it should be changed. If you have observed that this percentage has dropped a lot in a short time, for example 5% in a matter of a few weeks, there are two possibilities. One of them is that the battery is really defective, something that is confirmed if you also notice that the autonomy is less. The other possibility is that the calculation is wrong, especially if you have not noticed a decrease in its duration.
This is not always a reliable parameter , since in the end it is very difficult to know exactly what the level of deterioration of a component is. It is done through algorithmic calculations that only Apple knows about and that, unfortunately, sometimes fail and show a percentage that is not. This would be solved by restoring the device from scratch, although we will see that later.
If you think that everything is fine and yet it does not last long
This is a very frequent possibility, since you may notice that you have 100% health or that this parameter has not dropped too much and that however the iPhone SE is barely holding on to its battery. The most recommended thing is to update the software, for which you can go to Settings> General> Software update and download and install the latest version of iOS available. If there are none, it is best to wait for an update that will surely include performance improvements that will make the battery more optimized.
Restore iPhone SE to make sure
If you can’t wait, as we told you in the previous section, you can proceed to format the iPhone SE. This will also cause the percentage of health to be recalculated and show you a value much closer to reality. Of course, not any type of restoration works , since when it is done from the device itself, the data is not being erased, but at a technical level you will be adding new information over the old one. It is best to always restore the iPhone with a computer and, furthermore, when configuring it again, do not load a backup copy . The latter is fundamentally recommended because if there is a software failure on your device, it has probably been saved in the backup copy and will appear again.
Battery price at Apple
If after trying everything you are still having problems, you should contact Apple. It is possible that they can offer you a free replacement , but for this the device must be under warranty and they must have verified that it is a factory defect. The same happens if you have AppleCare + contracted, although in this case it will not matter if it is a factory defect or not, since the replacement of the battery is covered by them.
If it is not determined that your iPhone SE 2020 meets these conditions, the price you will have to pay for the replacement is 55 euros . If you also request a repair from home, with a courier service that collects and then returns the device, you will have to add 12.10 euros for shipping costs. At least that is how Apple clarifies this last point. In any case, you will always be given a free quote and you can accept it or not.
And in unauthorized centers?
It is understandable that if you find an establishment that offers you the same repair at a lower cost, you should consider at least taking your iPhone there. However, there are times when cheap is expensive and this is a perfect example of this. Keep in mind that some non-original components may give you a bad user experience and may not even work in the worst case. That’s why we recommend you take it to Apple or an authorized service, which may also have lower prices, but use original components. If you still decide to go to one of these places without authorization from Apple, we recommend that you make sure well before they offer you a guarantee for the repair.
Be careful with changing the battery yourself
The saying goes that skill is better than strength and in this case it applies perfectly. The first thing to keep in mind is precisely that you are skilled and careful with the tools to be able to disassemble the phone and change the battery yourself, since any slight mistake could leave your iPhone unusable. On the other hand, we run the risk of the aforementioned and that is that the battery is not original and does not guarantee a good user experience. There are many online stores that offer supposedly original batteries and they are not, so first of all we recommend you to be cautious.