The latest update to the Apple Watch, watchOS 10.4, has users complaining it’s caused excessive battery drain, with other users complaining that they (maybe luckily) are unable to update to the latest version entirely.
watchOS 10.4 was released to the public over a month ago and since then users have taken to Reddit, X, and online forums (1, 2) to report a shared phenomenon of battery issues. It’s not unusual to see a small uptick in reports after either an iOS or watchOS update of users complaining about battery life. Those initial reports are usually exaggerated and disappear quickly.
Additionally, after any major update, your iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch are conducting several background tasks that may cause a small decrease in battery life for some time. This is normal and typically the core reason users share reports of battery drain issues right after an update is released.
These latest reports, however, seem to be a little more serious. Podcast and content creator Stephen Robles wrote on X, “Anyone else experiencing terrible battery life on Watch Ultra 2 with watchOS 10.4?” “Been ROUGH the last week, and getting various reports of the same bug on Series 9 and Ultra 2,” he added.
“Anyone else seeing MASSIVELY worse watch battery life on watchOS 10.4? Seeing 3x normal battery drain 48hrs in,” another wrote on X, with dozens of other users sharing their frustration over the update. “The new WatchOS 10.4 has increased the battery consumption quite a lot. It almost drained 30% in 2 hours, that too just on normal usage. Please fix the issue asap. Currently using the series 9,” a user wrote, tagging the official Apple Support account.
On Reddit, dozens of threads include similar stories. “The battery is absolutely useless,” one Reddit user wrote. “Literally draining from 95% to 65% in just over 2 min. Kept dropping down to 54% before I took it off my wrist and plopped it back on the charger,” they added.
Many of the reports suggest the issue is focused on the latest Apple Watch Series 9 and the second-generation Apple Watch Ultra. Interestingly, one of the biggest bug fixes that came with the update was a fix for “ghost touches,” specifically impacting the Apple Watch Series 9 and the second-generation Apple Watch Ultra.
It’s unclear whether the fix for the ghost touches inadvertently is causing the battery drain, but users have little recourse as of now. Users on Reddit have advised a force restart and unpairing and repairing an Apple Watch to try and solve the battery issues, but those efforts seem to have little impact.
watchOS 10.4 Stuck Preparing
Related to watchOS 10.4, users attempting to install the update on their Apple Watch are reporting the update is stuck at “preparing,” no matter how long they wait. Users are advised to leave their Apple Watch connected to the charger or delete and redownload the update as an interim fix. Given the reported battery issues, however, it may be best to wait until a new update is released.
