Benchmarks detail processor throttling in iOS 9 beta Low Power mode
A benchmark test performed on an iPhone 6 Plus running Apple's latest iOS 9 beta puts numbers to the upcoming operating system's Low Power mode, which throttles down processor performance to preserve battery life.
Using Geekbench 3 for iOS, which was recently updated with support for iOS 9 builds, MacRumors found Low Power mode dropped an iPhone 6 Plus' multi-core score from 2,891 to 1,751, while single-core performance fell from 1,606 to 1,019. Results were similar on an iPhone 5s, which saw a 40-percent decrease in performance.
It should be noted that the tests were performed using beta software and results will likely change when a final build is released this fall.
With iOS 9, Apple promises up to one hour of extra battery life using a combination of power saving tactics and new technologies. For example, iOS 9 will poll ambient light and proximity sensors to check when an iPhone is facedown on a table to prevent the screen from turning on.
More ambiguous, though is Apple's description of a Low Power mode that "lets you extend your battery life even further." When activated, Low Power mode disables a number of power hungry services like Mail fetching, background downloads and app refreshes. Networking capabilities are also affected, though Apple has yet to detail when or how these changes are implemented.
Users can choose to enable Low Power mode from system settings or the familiar "low battery" dialogue box that shows up when an iOS device's battery hits 20 percent and 10 percent charge.
Using Geekbench 3 for iOS, which was recently updated with support for iOS 9 builds, MacRumors found Low Power mode dropped an iPhone 6 Plus' multi-core score from 2,891 to 1,751, while single-core performance fell from 1,606 to 1,019. Results were similar on an iPhone 5s, which saw a 40-percent decrease in performance.
It should be noted that the tests were performed using beta software and results will likely change when a final build is released this fall.
With iOS 9, Apple promises up to one hour of extra battery life using a combination of power saving tactics and new technologies. For example, iOS 9 will poll ambient light and proximity sensors to check when an iPhone is facedown on a table to prevent the screen from turning on.
More ambiguous, though is Apple's description of a Low Power mode that "lets you extend your battery life even further." When activated, Low Power mode disables a number of power hungry services like Mail fetching, background downloads and app refreshes. Networking capabilities are also affected, though Apple has yet to detail when or how these changes are implemented.
Users can choose to enable Low Power mode from system settings or the familiar "low battery" dialogue box that shows up when an iOS device's battery hits 20 percent and 10 percent charge.
Comments
When are benchmarks going to update for Metal?
So they update for iOS 9 and low power mode.
When are benchmarks going to update for Metal?
http://www.anandtech.com/show/9223/gfxbench-3-metal-ios
Update: I forgot mention that I hope that in iOS 9 will be battery usage monitoring working since it is not in iOS8 for number o people. A no info/fix from Apple.
Perhaps they'll add that based on feedback. At least there's an option to toggle it in the 20/10% warning boxes.
I read Anandtech so not sure how I missed that one. Still, it's a fairly limited test. Can't really tell the performance with only a few results. We need more benchmarks to update.
Would also be nice to see results from Metal when it's being used for compute intensive tasks and not just graphics, since it's also capable of this.
Noooooo. I don't want this to degenerate into a full-on Windows style system of profiles for power management. Apple should be able to do this for you, with a minimal amount of input. I don't want to start seeing settings like "Turn screen off after xx seconds".
Noooooo. That type of customization would be horrible! Except, wait, it's been in both iOS and OS X for years now. Lol.
It would be nice if you could have this button in command center though instead of the calculator.
The option to turn it on at 10% or 20% with the low power warning works well for me, I haven't had an issue of turning it on at either warning and being able to stay out for a couple hours until I need to call a cab/uber to get a ride home at the end of the night. Then once I am home and have it on the charger it turns off again automatically once it reaches 80%.
I too wish that it was an option on the command center over something like the calculator, camera or device orientation lock.
Or is this an iPhone 6 only feature?
Question is - what happens on iPhones 5s and 5/5C and 4S when low power mode is enabled? how much can you throttle down on those devices to achieve battery lifetime while not compromising badly on user experience (the 4S already struggles with iOS8 at full throttle....).
Or is this an iPhone 6 only feature?
I only see a bit of slowness loading remote content while on cellular and when switching apps on my 5 with it enabled. Overall the device (at least 5 and up) is still very usable.