IN DEPTH: Apple Watch battery life: how many hours does it last?

Apple Watch battery life explainer

No one wants to have to charge another gadget every day, but the limited Apple Watch battery life - like nearly all smartwatch batteries - is going require daily charging.

That's led to me be constantly asked, "Well, how long does that thing last?" whenever I explain the Apple Watch to people. The answer is more complicated than any one number.

The official Apple Watch battery life specs are listed as both "all day" and "up to 18 hours," according to Apple. Note: there are still 24 hours in a day.

Yes, that "all day" claim technically syncs up with a normal sleep schedule and it takes only two and half hours to fully recharge. But Apple's methodology behind these numbers and how they compare to the best smartwatches deserves a deeper dive.

How the Apple Watch battery life calculated?

Apple claims that its iPhone-compatible smartwatch achieved all-day battery life of 18 hours during tests based on a pre-production Apple Watch and pre-production iOS software.

Its 18 hours of "mixed use" consisted of 90 time checks, 90 notifications, 45 minutes of app use and a 30-minute workout with music playback via Bluetooth.

Check the time or light up the screen fewer times, and Apple Watch's battery could beat these estimates.

Get a deluge of notifications, and it may die on your commute home from work.

More Apple Watch battery life tests

More granular tests by Apple yielded different results. A "watch test" netted 48 hours from five time checks every hour, with Apple noting that each screen-lighting timecheck lasted four seconds.

The most power-draining battery test was a "talk time test" using the Apple Watch phone app. It lasted three hours in this Dick Tracy-esque mode that still required a connected iPhone.

Apple's "workout test" and "audio playback test" each resulted in 6.5 hours of battery life. The company said the heart rate sensor was on during the workout session.

Apple Watch Power Reserve mode

What happens when the Apple Watch battery is about to die? Instead of becoming a wearable sundial, it can still tell the time in what the company calls a "Power Reserve" mode.

Like today's best smartphones, this special battery-saving mode turns off app functionality in favor of giving users the ability to check time on the smartwatch for up to 72 hours.

This little known three-day extension is based on four time checks per hour, again lasting four seconds each time.

Apple Watch 42mm size battery life

The Apple Watch battery mAh and size are unknown, at least until someone brave (or who can afford the Apple Watch price twice-over) does a teardown.

Until then, we know that the battery is the same in all cases, from the entry-level aluminum Sport to the pricey stainless steel Watch to the ridiculously expensive gold Watch Edition.

However, the larger 42m Apple Watch size has a bigger battery than the smaller 38mm version. That fact and the larger touchscreen area make this the better choice for most people.

Apple Watch charging time

As fast as the Apple Watch battery drains, it recharges even quicker using Apple's MagSafe inductive charger, which is included in the box.

Recharging the smartwatch to 80% takes 1.5 hours, according to Apple's official tests, and a 100% full charge takes 2.5 hours.

That's about the same time as other smartwatches I've tested, which of course you won't really notice at night, unless this thing constantly dies on your before the day is through.

Is the Apple Watch battery replaceable?

Apple Watch is unlike a smartphone that's destined to be upgraded every year or two, so it's important to be able to replace the battery eventually.

While this is no easy task compared to a normal watch, the sealed battery can be replaced by Apple for an unspecified amount.

Let's see how it does versus its chief rivals, Android Wear and Pebble watches.

Apple Watch vs rivals and accessories

Apple Watch battery boosting accessories

Entrepreneurial inventors are already tinkering with ways to extend the battery life with on-wrist chargers, going as far as opening up pre-orders for their Apple Watch bands as accessories.

But hold up. Before you wind up your arm to throw money at the screen and tell me to "shut up," know that the extra battery life comes at a different sort of cost: style.

Even if the unshapely Wipowerband and marginally better-looking Reserve Strap double the battery life, they make the Apple Watch price seems a the more outrageous when it looks like you bought something from Fisher Price.

There's also no way to tell if all of the watch's built-in sensors will work properly with these accessories.

Apple Watch battery life vs Android Wear

Apple Watch's battery doesn't last as long as most Android Wear watches, and that's awful for everyone considering the already diminished capacity of these Google-powered watches.

Moto 360, Samsung Gear Live and LG G Watch lasted me about a day, give or take a few hours. Note that I mean a full 24 hours when I, not Apple, say the word "day."

Sony Smartwatch 3, with its larger 420 mAh battery size, lasts a day and a half off on a full charge. LG G Watch R and Asus ZenWatch fall in between.

This is only slightly better than the Apple Watch battery life and still not good enough for most people's hectic, notification-bombarded lives.

Apple Watch battery life vs Pebble

This is where Pebble smokes Apple Watch and all other smartwatches. The original Pebble, Pebble Steel and the new color e-paper Pebble Time can last up to seven days.

That's only bested by Pebble's own Pebble Time Steel, which promises to last 10 days with a fraction of a millimeter of extra thickness. It's a worthy trade-off.

With a 7:1 and 10:1 battery life ratio, battery life-conscious folks might find it hard not to pass up the Pebble Time or Pebble Time Steel pre-order instead of waiting for the Apple Watch.

What's next for Apple Watch's battery

Apple Watch sales so far indicate that there will be an Apple Watch 2, and if that happens, battery life needs to be extended beyond the current edition's 18 hours.

Battery life needs to go up, while the Apple Watch price needs to go down, and that's likely to happen with larger, more efficient batteries and more streamlined software.

The third-party straps that acts as on-wrist chargers, while not ideal in their current unstylish form, may be a good idea for Apple to develop later on. I was impressed with the unique recharging methods of the Samsung Simband prototype last year. There's some merit to these concepts.

Until then, check out all of our other smartwatch coverage. I think it's almost time for the Apple Watch release date, though I'm not sure. No joke, my Android Wear watch died while writing this.

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