Apple Being Sued for 'Purposefully Slowing Down Older iPhone Models' [Updated]

[DEMinSoCAL]

Calm down fandroids, your Snapdragon is still inferior....by a long shot. I’ll take a “throttled” A10 over anything Snapdragon puts out.

Just because you say it doesn't make it so...it just makes you sound superior. >80% of smartphone owners would disagree with you. Funny, though, is most people don't see it as a contest. They use what they like.

 

[lcseds]

SOB's got me on this one. 6 plus slowed way down after an IOS update, not any deteriorating battery that I noted. I bought an 8 Plus because the 6 Plus was hard to deal with. Thousand bucks. I could've kept my 6 Plus. I liked it. Still had two day battery life. SOB's. I am really at my wits end with Apple. This is a planned obsolescence. Period.

 

[Kmart9419]

How many people would legitimately think that random shutdowns would imply a faulty battery and not something else that is wrong with the phone? It only seems obvious after the fact, doesn’t it?

If the phone is shutting down, then it has a problem and Apple needs to fix it. Nobody needs to guess. It’s a defect.

Apple avoided a recall with this stunt. Now it’s gonna bite them in the ass. To save a buck, they are going to end up paying 10x more, incur a hit to its reputation and brand that’s much more painful than any monetary penalty and equally as bad, have the heavy hands of the government on you. Not so much the US, but the watch out for the EU. They are already pissed Apple is evading taxes over there.

 

[DNichter]

I did do that, but I would have never know why it was running slow until this "news" broke out about it a couple weekends ago.

https://www.macrumors.com/2017/12/11/alleged-throttling-old-iphones-battery-controversy/

Makes sense. I thought these were phones with known battery issues.

 

[LordVic]

Pure Android Google phones runs fast even after several years. Google isnt' throttling their devices.

Got a nexus 5 for a backup device still, and sideloaded 7.1. It’s remarkably smooth for a device it’s age.

Not a great device by today’s standards by any means, but more recent android runs pretty dang smooth.

My s6 is still even getting patches and runs smoother on its latest patch level (last months security patch) than it did when new on 6. Android has come a long way from its past

 

[KJ01]

... and if your phone shut down periodically you would be complaning about that. What Apple is doing is smart. Where they failed is being transparaent.

So your expensive $1000 iPhone X will be throttled next year and possibly rendered useless. Apple wants you to buy a new iPhone every year and that's the only reason why they throttled you. Batteries don't go bad at exactly one year anniversary of your iPhone, and if they do, then your phone shouldn't cost $1000.

 

[dumastudetto]

Well yea, if the battery says it’s fine then you’d have no idea. I wasn’t aware of this.

Yeah it's definitely an issue that has been reported by users on MR, Twitter and Reddit.

Steve Troughton-Smith (who is fairly respected) tweeted this earlier:
https://twitter.com/stroughtonsmith/status/944004306692399104
[doublepost=1513909905][/doublepost]

So your expensive $1000 iPhone X will be throttled next year and possibly rendered useless. Apple wants you to buy a new iPhone every year and that's the only reason why they throttled you. Batteries don't go bad at exactly one year anniversary of your iPhone, and if they do, then your phone shouldn't cost $1000.

It doesn't render phones useless.
They are doing it to prevent phones from randomly shutting down, which would be far worse for most people.
Apple certainly doesn't expect people to buy new iPhones every year.
And Apple also certainly understand pissing customers off is not a good way to keep customers buying new iPhones. This is why they obsess over the custom sat metric time and again.

 

[skinned66]

In my opinion, any of you complaining about Apple (re: your older phones) have no case. Once you agreed to the terms and conditions and installed the software, you gave up your right to complain about future actions like this.

Read the iOS 10 agreement.

Really depends on what we're talking about and the consumer's jurisdiction - just to be clear that I'm not saying you're incorrect - just that sometimes there are cases where the terms are not legally enforceable/invalid. An EULA is not is not always ironclad.

Take the opportunity to make downgrades possible by law

I'd love to see somebody this, but I won't hold my breath.

 

[macfacts]

Snooze. This will go nowhere as usual.

Damage to Apple's reputation is done. Apple got caught.

 

[Abazigal]

If the phone is shutting down, then it has a problem and Apple needs to fix it. Nobody needs to guess. It’s a defect.

Apple avoided a recall with this stunt. Now it’s gonna bite them in the ass. To save a buck, they are going to end up paying 10x more, incur a hit to its reputation and brand that’s much more painful than any monetary penalty and equally as bad, have the heavy hands of the government on you. Not so much the US, but the watch out for the EU. They are already pissed Apple is evading taxes over there.

Um no, that’s not what is happening here.

The throttling was introduced to prevent random shutdowns in phones whose batteries have degraded through normal wear and tear. There was nothing to recall because there was nothing faulty with the phones in the first place. Apple has even gone so far as to assert that they will continue to do this for subsequent iPhones via future software updates.

I don’t see this lawsuit gaining traction, much less Apple actually losing it because it can be argued that Apple is technically doing the right thing here from an engineering perspective. That you believe a better solution exists has no bearing on the merits of what Apple has done here.

Nor do I think it will send people running to Android.

That said, this may well have long term repercussions for Apple’s reputation and the willingness of its users to update their software in the future. In the short run, Apple will likely have to do a lot of firefighting. They could start by providing a clear and extensive explanation on what is going on. My belief is this will stop a good portion of the bleeding once people see that Apple is being rationale and is genuinely looking out for the user. Apple can then assess whether additional information about the battery and throttling can be included in iPhone settings, and where.

 

[Act3]

Um no, that’s not what is happening here.

The throttling was introduced to prevent random shutdowns in phones whose batteries have degraded through normal wear and tear. There was nothing to recall because there was nothing faulty with the phones in the first place. Apple has even gone so far as to assert that they will continue to do this for subsequent iPhones via future software updates.

I don’t see this lawsuit gaining traction, much less Apple actually losing it because it can be argued that Apple is technically doing the right thing here from an engineering perspective. That you believe a better solution exists has no bearing on the merits of what Apple has done here.

Nor do I think it will send people running to Android.

That said, this may well have long term repercussions for Apple’s reputation and the willingness of its users to update their software in the future. In the short run, Apple will likely have to do a lot of firefighting. They could start by providing a clear and extensive explanation on what is going on. My belief is this will stop a good portion of the bleeding once people see that Apple is being rationale and is genuinely looking out for the user. Apple can then assess whether additional information about the battery and throttling can be included in iPhone settings, and where.

you have that much faith in that they are so transparent on what is really going on?

 

[I7guy]

Damage to Apple's reputation is done. Apple got caught.

Said who? Just read the NYT story on it. Very downplayed. To the people who want apple’s reputation damaged it is, to the remainder it isn’t.

 

[Abazigal]

you have that much faith in that they are so transparent on what is really going on?

Just trying to be the voice of reason here amidst this maelstrom of chaos.

 

[Breaking Good]

Just my US$0.02 on the issue, as a result of Johnny Ive's obsession with thinness Apple used a battery that was too small to power the phone. Apple's "fix" to throttle the CPU was an attempt to mitigate the design flaw.

I think I'm now seeing why some people are so upset about this and I'm beginning to agree with them. Apple advertised a certain level of performance, a flagship level of performance, and six months later intentionally degraded that performance without notifying the owners.

I don't care if you are Apple, Samsung, Motorola, HTC, LG or OnePlus, if you charge flagship prices you need to deliver flagship performance through the life of the product. Anything less is dishonest.

It's like an auto manufacturer promising a certain level of fuel economy and issuing a firmware upgrade that degrades fuel economy so that the car can meet emission requirements.

I'm starting to think Apple might be in real trouble on this one.

 

[iCat]

About time. What they are doing is highly unethical. Their involvement with my property stops after payment.

Um, your phone was already programmed to slow down functions if battery degradation was detected. What are you talking about?

 

[viperGTS]

I take issue with Macrumor's pro-Apple bias criticizing the lawsuit and giving Apple a pass. Apple's 'workaround' of throttling CPU is just that, a workaround and it's not normal. It may be that Apple is trying to avoid issuing a recall of a hardware defect and resorts to a cheap software fix.

Other smartphone manufacturers don't seem to have implemented the throttling. We still don't know for sure the exact details, yet Macrumors presents Apple's questionable secret throttling as something fine and necessary.

If there is a defect with iPhone batteries that kill my CPU prematurely, I expect Apple to issue recall or free battery replacement, not force me to use a slow iPhone.

I was going to post something similar to this. I agree with you 110% and I notice it increasingly with newer articles that are published here. There is a slight dash of bias. I get that this website is MacRumors, but information (especially something serious like this) should be presented in a completely neutral way. It degrades the credibility of the staff here.

 

[dumastudetto]

Said who? Just read the NYT story on it. Very downplayed. To the people who want apple’s reputation damaged it is, to the remainder it isn’t.

I think it's hard to deny Apple will have been harmed by these stories to some extent. But I doubt it will do any serious harm to them. Investors have certainly brushed it off.

That said, if Apple were to lose the lawsuit (I don't think they will) that would be much more toxic.

 

[lcseds]

Um no, that’s not what is happening here.

The throttling was introduced to prevent random shutdowns in phones whose batteries have degraded through normal wear and tear. There was nothing to recall because there was nothing faulty with the phones in the first place. Apple has even gone so far as to assert that they will continue to do this for subsequent iPhones via future software updates.

I don’t see this lawsuit gaining traction, much less Apple actually losing it because it can be argued that Apple is technically doing the right thing here from an engineering perspective. That you believe a better solution exists has no bearing on the merits of what Apple has done here.

Nor do I think it will send people running to Android.

That said, this may well have long term repercussions for Apple’s reputation and the willingness of its users to update their software in the future. In the short run, Apple will likely have to do a lot of firefighting. They could start by providing a clear and extensive explanation on what is going on. My belief is this will stop a good portion of the bleeding once people see that Apple is being rationale and is genuinely looking out for the user. Apple can then assess whether additional information about the battery and throttling can be included in iPhone settings, and where.

Dear heavens man, my 6 plus crawled after an IOS update. Why did it happen at that time? This wasn't a slow battery wear issue, this was overnight. If I get two days battery throttled, maybe I want one day at full power. I wasn't given the option. Nor was I informed of any "help" Apple was providing to save me from something I had no issue with.

But it worked. I bought an iPhone 8 plus shortly after release because the 6 Plus ALL OF A SUDDEN slowed to a crawl at the same time. I'm a big supporter of Apple, but this stinks to high heaven.

 

[pratikindia]

Significant degradation of battery in just 1 year? Apple is not acknowledging their fault.

 

[ThisBougieLife]

I've never noticed any slowing down, but after 2 years the battery in my 6S is awful. I'm starting to need to charge it twice a day.

 

[gavroche]

About time. What they are doing is highly unethical. Their involvement with my property stops after payment.

Ok, then back that statement up and perform no software upgrades after you buy it. Since you think they should have no involvement with your property.

 

[fairuz]

Pure Android Google phones runs fast even after several years. Google isnt' throttling their devices.

No, they're laggy out of the box. I was thinking of switching to Android, but a trip to the AT&T store changed that.

 

[I7guy]

I think it's hard to deny Apple will have been harmed by these stories to some extent. But I doubt it will do any serious harm to them. Investors have certainly brushed it off.

That said, if Apple were to lose the lawsuit (I don't think they will) that would be much more toxic.

There are a bunch of lawsuits that are still unsettled; this will be one of the many...unless it is tossed.

 

[827538]

This could be quite serious for Apple.

I understand their reasoning behind it, but my iPhone 6S literally went from a fantastic device that I was happy with to a painfully slow and unresponsive device almost over night. That's not OK and not what I paid for.

I'd accept a free battery replacement.

 

[Abazigal]

I think I'm now seeing why some people are so upset about this and I'm beginning to agree with them. Apple advertised a certain level of performance, a flagship level of performance, and six months later intentionally degraded that performance without notifying the owners.

I don't care if you are Apple, Samsung, Motorola, HTC, LG or OnePlus, if you charge flagship prices you need to deliver flagship performance through the life of the product. Anything less is dishonest.

It's like an auto manufacturer promising a certain level of fuel economy and issuing a firmware upgrade that degrades fuel economy so that the car can meet emission requirements.

I'm starting to think Apple might be in real trouble on this one.

Then you may as well include every PC manufacturer and android smartphone oem in the lawsuit while you are at it.