Apple to Add “Clean Energy Charging” Feature to iOS 16
Apple is planning to introduce a new Clean Energy Charging feature on iOS 16 later this fall. iOS 16 was released yesterday as a free update on iPhone 8 and newer, but Clean Energy Charging is an additional feature that will be released alongside the iCloud Shared Library in the coming months.
Information about this new Clean Energy feature was buried at the bottom of Apple’s press release for the launch of iOS 16 yesterday (via 9to5Mac). “Clean Energy Charging aims to decrease the carbon footprint of the iPhone by optimizing charging times for when the grid is using cleaner energy sources,” the company explained.
In some way, Apple’s Clean Energy Charging feature echoes similar work Microsoft did to make Windows Update help to reduce carbon emissions. Indeed, Windows 11 can now schedule Windows updates on plugged-in PCs when devices are the most susceptible to leveraging renewable energy sources.
It’s not exactly clear how Apple’s Clean Energy Charging feature will work, and it remains to be seen if the feature can make a difference. Anyway, it will complement the existing “Optimized Battery Charging” feature on iOS that can reduce battery aging by learning from your daily charging routine.
Unfortunately, Apple said that Clean Energy Charging will work exclusively in the US at launch. That’s unfortunate considering the current global energy crisis we have right now, with energy prices skyrocketing and increasing risks of power shortages even in wealthy nations.