Don't quit your iPhone apps

Debunking a myth: Here's why you shouldn't close them.

Author

Leander Kahney
June 21, 2024

In partnership with

My 79-year-old mom loves her iPhone and is glued to it all day, every day. She’s constantly texting, sending pics, forwarding news stories and the like.

One day when we were getting coffee together, she launched an app to show me something. Then, when she was done, she swiped up to open the app switcher and quit the app.

When I asked why she did that, she looked at me like I was crazy. “I always quit apps when I’m done,” she said.

I looked at her phone, and sure enough, nothing was running!

My mom is not alone. A lot of people routinely quit apps on their iPhones, believing that doing so will free up memory, save battery life or make their devices run faster.

But it’s a myth! Quitting apps is actually bad for all these things — and here’s why.

Also in today’s newsletter:

  • I’m running the new Apple betas on all my devices — which is a knucklehead idea, I know. I do this EVERY single year despite the repeated headaches it causes me. If you are sensible, you’ll wait for the public betas, which are usually more stable. But when the darned heck are they coming out?

  • It’s not huge, but Amazon has the first real discount we’ve seen on the new Apple Pencil Pro.

  • CdkeySales continues to wow with surprisingly low prices on Microsoft software. It’s the real deal!

  • Twelve South’s clever ButterFly is a great two-in-one travel charger for your iPhone and Apple Watch. In our hands-on review, we give it the full five stars.

— Leander Kahney, EIC.

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Don't miss the best deal on Apple Pencil Pro for M4 iPad Pro or M2 iPad Air. The powerful stylus offers new features and Find My support.

Tired of your Apple Watch dying? Try these keychain chargers.

If your smartwatch tends to die in the middle of your workout or evening commute, get an Apple Watch keychain charger to resuscitate it.

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On June 21, 2010, Apple released the first version of iOS 4. With FaceTime and other features, it brought big changes to iPhone and iPad.

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One more thing ...

❝

(Asked about his greatest creation: iPhone, iPad?) No. Apple -- the company. Because anybody can create products, but Apple keeps creating great products.

— Steve Jobs, 2011.

Today’s poll

Do you quit your iPhone apps?

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Results from yesterday’s poll: Does the iOS 18 Lock Screen need more buttons?

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