July update is destroying Galaxy phone batteries. Ultra models suffer the most

Updates are supposed to fix problems, not create them – but with the July update based on One UI 8.5, it seems to be the opposite for Samsung. Reports of significant battery drain and phone overheating are increasing on official community forums, with owners of the Galaxy S24 and S25 series, especially the most expensive Ultra models, complaining the loudest.

Less screen time, yet battery drains faster

One Galaxy S25 Ultra owner provided the most illustrative description. After installing the update, his battery drained noticeably faster, even though the screen was on for a shorter period than before – exactly the opposite of what one would expect. When he started investigating the cause, he traced it to WhatsApp, which got stuck in the backup process after the update and was evidently consuming power in the background. Several other users described a similar experience.

Samsung is silent, no certainty

Whether the stuck backup is the real culprit or just one manifestation of a deeper bug cannot be said yet. What is certain is that the problems consistently appear only after installing the July update. Samsung has not publicly commented on the situation, and we can only hope that the issue will be resolved in the August patch.

Have you also experienced worse battery life after the July update?

Source: 9to5Google