Should you let iOS 26 slow down your iPhone for better battery life? I tried it to find out

Apple has a new battery-saving feature, Adaptive Power, in the iOS 26 public beta. Here's what happened when I flipped it on and went for a hike.

ZDNET's key takeaways

• The new Adaptive Power Mode in iOS 26 seems to noticeably improve battery life.
• The performance hit from activating this feature appears to be negligible.
• Be aware, though, that the iOS 26 public beta seems quite crashy right now.

One of the features that I've been testing out in the public beta of iOS 26 is Adaptive Power. This is a feature that monitors battery usage, and when it is higher than usual, the system makes small performance tweaks to extend battery life.

Also: You can download iOS 26 public beta right now - how to install (and which iPhones support it)

But is it worth trading ...