Technologies
iPhone Batteries Will Get More Expensive Soon. How to Check Yours and Replace It
Starting in March, Apple is raising the price of phone batteries for all models except the iPhone 14.
Is your iPhone slow to charge? Does it have trouble maintaining a charge throughout the day, or unexpectedly shut down? If so, you might want to consider getting a new battery.
And you probably want to do it ASAP. Apple recently announced that starting March 1, you’ll have to pay $20 more to replace your battery through Apple’s existing services (except for the iPhone 14 models, since that price is staying the same).
So how do you find out if you really do need to replace your battery? We’ll show you how to check out your battery’s health via your iPhone settings, as well as what you can do to prolong your battery’s lifespan.
Read more: I Replaced My iPhone’s Battery Myself and You Can Too
How to check on your iPhone battery’s health
Your iPhone battery becomes less effective over time, but you could also have a faulty battery on a brand-new iPhone. To quickly check if there’s an issue with your battery health, go to Settings > Battery > Battery Health & Charging. If you’re running anything below iOS 16.1, the latter will appear as just Battery Health.
At the top, you’ll see the maximum capacity of your battery, which should be 100%, or close to it, if you have a relatively new iPhone.
However, what you want to look at is Peak Performance Capability and the sentence underneath that. If you see Your battery is currently supporting normal peak performance, you don’t have any recognized battery issues and you shouldn’t need a replacement.

Check what it says under Peak Performance Capability to learn if you need to replace your battery.
Screenshot by Nelson Aguilar/CNETDo you need to replace your iPhone battery?
If you see any of the following messages, you may need to replace your battery, or at the very least make an appointment with Apple or an authorized service provider to check your battery out:
- This iPhone has experienced an unexpected shutdown because the battery was unable to deliver the necessary peak power. Performance management has been applied to help prevent this from happening again, or You have manually disabled performance management protections.
- This iPhone is unable to determine battery health. An Apple Authorized Service Provider can service the battery. More about service options.
- Your battery’s health is significantly degraded. An Apple Authorized Service Provider can replace the battery to restore full performance and capacity. More about service options.
Depending on whether you have insurance (third-party or AppleCare Plus) or not, you may not have to spend any money at all to replace your iPhone’s battery. If your iPhone is new, you have at least a one-year warranty to replace a defective battery. If you do not have insurance, Apple charges an estimated $49 to $99 to replace your battery. Additionally, you can check out the Apple Service Programs page to see if any replacement or repair programs are available for your device.

You can even replace your own battery.
Andrew Lanxon/CNETIs there anything you can do to prolong your iPhone battery’s life?
The quicker you go through your daily battery life, the quicker your battery’s overall lifespan degrades, so here are some tips to follow, according to Apple:
- Update to the latest software available.
- Adjust your screen brightness (manually or automatically) as needed.
- Use Wi-Fi when available.
- Enable Low Power Mode as needed.
- Turn off Background App Refresh (overall or an on a per-app basis).
- Turn off Location Services (overall or on a per-app basis).
- Turn off Allow Notifications.
- Turn on Airplane Mode when applicable.
- When you charge your phone with your computer, make sure your computer is plugged in.

You can toggle on auto-brightness (left) and prevent apps from refreshing in the background (right) to improve your battery life and lifespan.
Screenshot by Nelson Aguilar/CNETIf you need more battery-saving tips for your iPhone, check out eight ways to improve iPhone battery life, two iOS 16 features to disable to save battery and what happens if you keep your iPhone in Low Power Mode all the time.
Technologies
Fubo Loses NBCUniversal Channels, Putting Your NBA Games in Jeopardy
Sound the carriage dispute Klaxon: Some network programming has disappeared from the streaming service after content negotiations fell through.
If you’ve noticed your favorite show has recently gone missing from Fubo, it’s probably because an entire block of programming just disappeared from the site’s channel lineup.
The live TV streaming service is engaged in a carriage dispute with NBCUniversal, a media company whose subsidiaries include NBC News, Universal Studios, Peacock, Telemundo and Illumination, among other brands.
On Nov. 21, NBCUniversal pulled all of its networks from Fubo. This is an especially big deal for sports watchers on the streaming service, since the Fubo Sports subscription — which began earlier this year — depends on the licensing agreement with NBCUniversal. However, viewers can still access sports content on networks like ESPN, CBS and ABC.
Fubo released a statement on Tuesday, alleging the media giant is engaging in «discriminatory tactics» that are harming the streamer’s subscribers.
«NBCU is discriminating against Fubo and our subscribers,» the statement says. «They allowed YouTube TV and Amazon Prime to integrate Peacock directly into their channel store, but refused to give Fubo the same rights.»
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Fubo says NBCUniversal is trying to force a multiyear deal for certain channel packages under the media giant’s new spin-off media company, Versant, and that it’s trying to upcharge on the Fubo Sports subscription by adding «expensive, non-sports channels» into the agreement, increasing the cost.
According to NBCUniversal’s website, the Versant brands include CNBC, E!, MS Now, SyFy and USA, among other channels.
NBCUniversal did not respond to a request for comment.
Fubo says that it’s willing to move forward without NBCUniversal content if an agreement cannot be reached.
«Fubo is committed to bringing its subscribers a premium, competitively-priced live TV streaming experience with the content they love,» its statement concludes. «That includes multiple content options, including a sports-focused service, that can be accessed directly from the Fubo app.»
Fubo recently became an affiliate of The Walt Disney Company, following its merger with Hulu’s live TV platform in October. It’s unclear whether this merger affected content agreement negotiations with NBCUniversal. Fubo did not respond to a request for comment on this.
Technologies
Spotify Will Reportedly Get More Expensive in the US Next Year. Here’s What to Expect
The music streaming service will reportedly raise prices again after subscription rate hikes in other regions.
After announcing it is raising prices in regions including Europe, South Asia and Latin America, Spotify is reportedly about to increase prices again in the US.
The US is included in the latest Spotify price hike on its Premium services starting in early 2026, according to the Financial Times, which cited three sources familiar with the streaming music company’s dealings. For now, the least expensive Premium plans in the US start at $12, but the price hike would likely put it in line with the other regions where the Premium plan costs about $14 a month.
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Spotify also offers a Premium Family plan that covers six people in the same household for $20 and plans for students ($6 a month bundled with Hulu) and couples ($17 a month). Spotify also offers a Basic plan that does not include access to audiobooks for $11 a month. A representative for Spotify did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
A steady increase
If the report is accurate, this would be the third price increase on Premium plans in the US since 2023. Before those hikes, Premium plans were $10, but Spotify raised its minimum price by $1 in 2023 then again in 2024.
Just this week, Spotify added the ability to seamlessly import playlists from other music services including Apple Music and Tidal.
Spotify has faced some controversy this year, including some music acts abandoning the platform and some customers canceling subscriptions over advertising for Homeland Security’s ICE program. CNET has a guide for canceling your Spotify subscription.
The company is the market leader among music streaming apps with about 32 percent market share as of the end of 2024.
Technologies
Some Rad Power Bike E-Bike Batteries Can Catch Fire, Consumer Protection Agency Warns
The company declined to offer full replacements or refunds, citing financial constraints.
The US Consumer Product Safety Commission is warning that some lithium‑ion batteries used in certain e‑bikes made by Rad Power Bikes pose a serious fire hazard that could lead to injury or even death. The agency says the batteries, identified by model numbers RP‑1304 and HL‑RP‑S1304, can unexpectedly ignite or explode, especially if the battery or its harness has been exposed to water or debris.
The recall has been marked as a «public health and safety finding» because Rad Power Bikes has declined to offer full replacements or refunds for all consumers, citing financial constraints.
CPSC reports 31 incidents of fire involving these batteries, including 12 cases where property damage totaled approximately $734,500. Some of these fires occurred even when the battery was not in use or charging, but was in storage.
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The batteries were sold as either original or replacement units for several Rad Power Bikes e-bike models and were available through RadPowerBikes.com, Best Buy and independent bike shops nationwide.
«Rad informed the agency that its demand to replace all batteries, regardless of condition, would immediately put Rad out of business, which would be of no benefit to our riders,» the company said in a statement issued with the CPSC warning. «Rad is disappointed that it could not reach a resolution that best serves our riders and the industry at large. Rad reminds its customers to inspect batteries before use or charging and immediately stop using batteries that show signs of damage, water ingress, or corrosion, and to contact Rad so we can support our riders.»
The CPSC’s statement does not apply to all Rad batteries, and does not apply to its Safe Shield or semi-integrated batteries.
Consumers who have one of the affected batteries are urged to stop using it immediately and dispose of it properly via a household hazardous‑waste collection center. Do not place the batteries in standard curb-side recycling or trash bins, and refrain from reselling them.
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