iPhone 13 Pro Max overheating? Here’s what to do

I’ve heard from several readers who are concerned that their iPhone 13 Pro Max has turned into portable pocket warmers.

And it’s not just a little bit warm.

These iPhones become physically hot to the touch and the battery depletes in a few hours with little to no usage.

And it seems pretty widespread, with a lot of chatter about it on social media and on Apple’s own support forum.

An overheating iPhone 13 Pro Max — or for that matter any device, especially if that device contains a rechargeable battery — is no joke. Prolonged high temperatures can cause glitches and crashes, damage internal components, drain the battery and permanently shorten the battery lifespan.

This is something you need to get on top of.

My iPhone 13 Pro Max is overheating! What should I do?

Follow these tips to prevent your iPhone 13 Pro Max from overheating:

Turn off your iPhone

The fastest way to cool down an iPhone 13 Pro Max is to turn it off completely and let it come down to normal temperature naturally. Don’t try to speed up the process by putting the iPhone into a refrigerator or ice box as this could also damage the battery.

Update your iPhone

Make sure you’re always running the latest version of iOS, as it comes with performance improvements that can prevent your iPhone 13 Pro Max from overheating.

You should also update your apps for the same reason, to remove patches for bugs that could cause performance issues that overload the processor.

Keep your iPhone from direct sunlight

The most important thing is to keep your phone away from direct sunlight when possible, especially when it’s warm. Your phone might be fine in the grass on an overcast day, but the warmer the temperature, the less your phone can withstand the sun. At the beach, your phone can overheat in just a few minutes in the sun. Same if you put it in a sunny spot in your car.

Instead, get your phone out of the direct light, whether it’s in your pocket, inside a backpack or under a towel/blanket or dashboard. Anyplace that will keep it away from sunlight will work.

Keep your iPhone from extreme temperatures

It’s fairly easy to protect your phone from the sun, but high temperatures alone can also cause your phone to overheat. After only an hour, the inside of a car can reach 143 degrees when it’s 100 degrees outside, for example, so a phone left in your cup holder could quickly overheat and get damaged. The short answer: Don’t **keep your phone in a hot environment for an extended period of time, even if it’s not in direct sunlight. **That includes your car, a sauna, the kitchen, the middle of the desert or anywhere near a fire.

Your phone’s optimal internal temperature should be somewhere between 32º and 95º F (0º and 35º C). To prevent overheating, Apple recommends keeping the device in a place where the temperature is between -4º and 113º F (-20º and 45º C).

Don’t use graphics- or processor-intensive apps

If you are using your iPhone 13 Pro Max for heavy processing tasks like playing high-end games, streaming, using graphics-intensive applications, or recording videos for an extended period, this can cause your phone to overheat.

If you notice that your iPhone 13 Pro Max gets too hot when performing a demanding task, such as playing 3D games, you might want to limit that task.

If there are other devices in your vicinity that do the same thing — like a PC or game console — use them instead so you don’t overheat your phone.

Use a quality charger and cable.

Using your iPhone while it’s charging, or charging it with a non-Apple charger that doesn’t comply with Apple’s safety standards, can cause it to overheat. Wireless charging causes more heat to be produced than using a cable.

Use a quality charger and cable. Switch to a lower-power charger. Remove the phone case if you use one. Use a wireless charger with built-in cooling or avoid wireless charging.

Remove the iPhone from the case and fan the phone

iPhones dissipate the heat into their surroundings through the back shell, and putting a case over the iPhone can interfere with this heat dissipation.

Remove the iPhone from the case.

While you’re at it, fan your iPhone or place it somewhere cool to help get the heat out quicker.

Turn on auto-brightness

When your brightness is too high, it can deplete your battery and cause your iPhone 13 Pro Max to get hot.

Luckily, iPhone has a setting that automatically adjusts the brightness based on the conditions around you.

Here’s how to turn it on.

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Scroll down and tap on Accessibility.
3. Under the "VISION" heading, tap Display & Text Size.
4. Scroll all the way to the bottom and switch the toggle for Auto-Brightness.

Scan for apps causing overheating

It is not unusual for apps to have bugs or issues that cause them to use more power than necessary. This could result in the iPhone 13 Pro Max overheating, even when not directly using the app.

If you suspect that’s the case, you can check by going into your Settings and selecting Privacy & Security. Next, tap Analytics & Improvements and then choose Analytics Data. This will show you a list of any apps that have been crashing.

Try using Low Power Mode

The longer your screen is awake, the more heat your phone generates, and the more battery power you lose.

You can reduce the amount of time your screen remains in an awake state by enabling Low Power Mode.

Here’s how.

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Scroll down and tap on Battery.
3. Switch the toggle for Low Power Mode at the top.