How to check battery capacity of a new phone (iPhone SE)?

Question

So I just bought an iPhone SE in an unofficial store (new packaging and everything, warranty, etc.). The only problem with the phone is, the battery life seems super short to me. In settings -> battery -> battery health it says 100% capacity. But could somebody have taken out the new battery out of the phone and replaced it with an old one before packaging, and for some reason the phone still thinks the battery is at 100% health?

How can I make sure the battery is indeed old before I go to an official store and tell them to replace my phone? What ways are there to check the capacity?

P.S. a rip-off like this maybe couldn't happen in America, but I don't live in America so this is possible, in my opinion.

And yes, I have closed apps and tried different ways of minimizing battery consumption, yet the battery life still seems to me way too short for a new phone.

Answer 1

There's no way to check to see if the battery is genuine without opening it up and visually inspecting it.

When the battery gives you it's capacity, it's basing that on a moment-in-time measurement of the battery's charge against a known capacity value (1624 mAh for the iPhone SE; 1821 mAh for 2020 SE). Any 3rd party battery can have that capacity, but how they discharge is what makes the difference (quality of the cells).

That said, there are many reasons for quick discharge of your battery: an update to iOS may have a bug, apps being open or utilizing too much resources, etc. For example, my own iPhone started exhibiting poor battery life the moment I upgraded to iOS 14. I confirmed it by restoring a backup from iOS 13.

That said, "way to short" is very subjective - you need to define what way to short is in terms of hours of use compared to what Apple publishes. However, it's been reported that battery life is a "Major Letdown" when compared to other manufacturers. So, based on how you use the phone and the factors mentioned above, YMMV with respect to battery life.

If you're concerned that the battery may not be genuine, the only way is to physically open it and have an Apple technician inspect it.