14 DAY TRIAL // Consumer group Which? has performed a new series of battery tests on today’s flagships and, surprisingly or not, the iPhone 7 came last on the list with the worst score.
First of all, some context. What Which? did was to test some of the most popular high-end phones with comparable specs and screen size, including the HTC 10, the Samsung Galaxy S7, the LG G5, and the iPhone 7 (the standard model, not the Plus).
The organization performed two different series of tests to determine which provides the longest battery life for 3G calling and 3G Internet browsing, but in both of them, the iPhone 7 performed the worst.
Specifically, the iPhone 7 received 712 points in the 3G calling tests, while the leader was HTC 10 with 1859 points. LG G5 was next with 1579 points, followed by Samsung Galaxy S7 with 1492 points, so the difference between the iPhone 7 and the rest of the models is quite embarrassing for Apple.
The iPhone 7 performed a little bit better when it came to Internet usage, but it once again finished the last. This time, however, the difference isn’t really that huge, as the LG G5, which is the third in the charts, got 640 points, versus 615 in the case of the iPhone 7. HTC 10 is again the leader with 790 points.
How tests are performed
Which? says all tests are objective and performed in the same conditions on all models mentioned above. The company explains:
“We test battery life using our own phone network simulator. This ensures that the signal strength is consistent for each test, which is important as a phone has to expend more power when it’s struggling for reception. We also set the screen brightness on every phone to the same level. Finally, we perform a full ‘power cycle’ of each phone’s battery prior to testing - that means fully discharging and then charging it.”
Certainly, the small battery upgrade to 1960 mAh on the iPhone 7 isn’t enough to allow the new model to compete against the other flagships, but nobody seems to be bothered too much about this. At least, not yet.
We’re currently reviewing the iPhone 7 and evaluating battery life as well, so keep an eye on our news section to find more about this new model and what it’s up to in terms of performance, camera, and battery.
