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

[ipooed]

I am experiencing throttling on a 6s that I purchased on November 28th 2016 so just out of the 1 year warranty, however I sent it back to Apple in September with complaints of slow performance and bad battery.

They sent me back the same phone saying it passed all "their tests" after I received the phone back I drove to my local Jump+ store which is a store authorized by Apple to swap out defective phones with replacements. It passed the test there too! I wasn't happy I became irate and was kicked out of the store! I even called afterwards calmly and spoke to a senior rep I used every threat in the book about never purchasing Apple products again hoping to get my device replaced or at a minimum a new battery the rep refused.

I am loving every minute of it so to speak, Hoping apples balls get nailed to a wall! I purchased an ifixit battery just waiting for it to arrive in the mail.

 

[rlaroquem]

Apple yesterday confirmed that it has implemented power management features in older iPhones to improve performance and prevent unexpected shutdowns as the battery in the devices starts to degrade, and this admission has now led to a class action lawsuit, which was first noticed by TMZ.

Los Angeles residents Stefan Bogdanovich and Dakota Speas, represented by Wilshire Law Firm, this morning filed a lawsuit with the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California accusing Apple of slowing down their older iPhone models when new models come out.

According to the lawsuit, Bogdanovich and Speas have owned the iPhone 7 and several older iPhone models and have noticed that their "older iPhone models slows (sic) down when new models come out." The two say they did not consent to have Apple slow down their devices, nor were they able to "choose whether they preferred to have their iPhones slower than normal."

They're seeking both California and Nationwide class action certification, which would cover all persons residing in the United States who have owned iPhone models older than the iPhone 8.

Apple yesterday addressed speculation that it throttles the performance of older iPhones with degraded batteries, confirming that there are power management features in place to attempt to prolong the life of the iPhone and its battery. Apple implemented these features last year in iOS 10.2.1.

When an iPhone's battery health starts to decline, the battery is not capable of supplying enough power to the iPhone in times of peak processor usage, which can lead to shutdowns, Apple says.The lawsuit seemingly misrepresents Apple's original statement and suggests the plaintiffs and their lawyers do not understand Apple's explanation for how iPhone power management features work and why they were implemented, given the lawsuit's suggestion that it's tied to the release of new devices. As explained by Apple, when certain iPhone models hit a peak of processor power, a degraded battery is sometimes unable to provide enough juice, leading to a shutdown. Apple says it "smooths out" these peaks by limiting the power draw from the battery or by spreading power requests over several cycles.

Lithium-ion batteries degrade over time by nature, and this eventual wearing out addressed by the power management features is unrelated to the release of new iPhone models.

Apple does not deny that iPhones with older batteries can sometimes see slower performance, but power management is a feature that Apple says has been implemented to improve overall performance by preventing an iPhone from shutting down completely rather than a feature that's been implemented to force users to upgrade by deliberately slowing devices.

As many people have suggested, Apple has done a poor job of explaining why it has implemented these power management features and how the state of the battery ultimately affects iPhone performance. More transparent information about battery health should be provided, and customers should be better informed when their batteries start to degrade so they can choose whether or not to pay for a replacement. Apple may also need to relax its policies on when customers can pay for a battery replacement, as currently, a battery can't be replaced unless in-store equipment registers it as near failing.

An iPhone's battery is designed to retain 80 percent of its original capacity at 500 complete charge cycles. A defective battery that does not meet those parameters can be replaced for free for customers who have AppleCare+ or who have devices still under warranty.

For out of warranty customers, Apple offers a battery replacement service, which costs $79 plus $6.95 for shipping.

The lawsuit is demanding the replacement of the old iPhone and compensation for loss of use, loss of value, the purchase of new batteries, ascertainable losses in the form of the deprivation of the value of the iPhone, and overpayments because Plaintiffs and Class Members "did not receive what they paid for" when Apple interfered with the usage of their iPhones.

Article Link: Apple Being Sued for 'Purposefully Slowing Down Older iPhone Models'

Exactly when does the battery start to wear down and slow dows kicks in? After 12 months? 9 months or 6 months?

 

[VulchR]

Well, Apple cannot be blamed for throttling per se, but they can be blamed for being so opaque about it and for not designing their iPhones for longevity at full processing power. I think Apple's devotion to making the iPhone thinner has contributed to this issue. A smaller battery needs to be recharged more, and thus will degrade at a rate faster than a larger battery. Apple does really need to get a grip on its design priorities and, maybe, just maybe, consider incorporating larger batteries into the iPhone design.

On the other hand, at least the Apple batteries don't explode into flames....

 

[Abazigal]

@xflashx I am referring to post 618. Click on the link in my post you quoted and it will direct you to that post.

As it stands, I admit I also have no idea why the batteries need to be throttled to avoid further damage after the first year. I suspect it's the 64-bit processors and the way it's optimised for short bursts of speed. I imagine it's something like sprinting and stopping multiple times in quick succession - gets tiring very quickly as opposed to running a longer distance at a slower, more constant pace. Maybe it's as you said - they are literally too fast for their own good!

 

[jlasoon]

Tim Cook should be canned for this alone. I don't care what any MacRumors member says.

This is what 'Reputation Suicide' looks like!

 

[Text2Speech]

Apple did and does the same with BootCamp, making it half the speed when installing OS or Linux, at least when it does not detect a Mac OS X partition, I have Windows 10 installed on my Core Duo MacBook because Apple doesn't support it anymore and the CPU is throttled to 1GHZ maximum, fortunately I have RightMark CPU Clock Utility that makes it possible to bypass that restriction, and goes all way to 2GHz dual core, perfect for my private VPN and Web/Streaming server.

 

[lcseds]

It's funny Apple doesn't "help" users of their notebooks in this fashion. You know, throttle down MacBooks everywhere without letting the users know. Good enough for a iPhone, why not notebooks too?

 

[0837990]

You can try fixit. Their stuff seems legit enough.

It's been proven that their batteries are not as good as the OEM's.
And I shouldn't have to be forced to use a 3rd party battery.
Why can't I choose when I want my phoned serviced?
Why can't I choose to buy an authentic OEM battery and replace it at my own risk when the phone is out of warranty anyway?

And again, why can't I CHOOSE when I PAY $79 + shipping to replace the battery in my phone at my own will, regardless of what Apple's diagnostics say? That's like Toyota denying me an oil change simply because I haven't put enough miles on my car, even if I just want the oil changed regardless. It would be quite insane if any auto manufacturer tried something like that. Or any manufacturer at all. "I want to pay for a service" - "No we won't let you, cause our tests say you don't need it, and we know what's best for you"....

 

[Kabeyun]

As many people have suggested, Apple has done a poor job of explaining why it has implemented these power management features and how the state of the battery ultimately affects iPhone performance. More transparent information about battery health should be provided, and customers should be better informed when their batteries start to degrade so they can choose whether or not to pay for a replacement. Apple may also need to relax its policies on when customers can pay for a battery replacement, as currently, a battery can't be replaced unless in-store equipment registers it as near failing.

Juli, please save the editorializing for your product reviews. You do those pretty well. Inserting your opinions into a reporting piece is bad journalism.

... 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.

This, this, and this.

 

[lwells1441]

2. Couple of years???? Better make it 9-14 months.

I can understand your frustration, but I really get the sense that your case is a bit spectacular.

I think you and I are both outliers. My iP6 is still rocking an above average GB4 score and it runs iOS11 great.

 

[Wildkraut]

Hey, now 0.99 cent:

https://itunes.apple.com/app/full-throttle-remastered/id1230257367

 

[0837990]

Well if that's your stance to customer rights, I'm glad that I live in a country where I, by law, have

2 years warranty on all batteries (iPhones included)
5 year warranty on phones (iPhones included)

The sad part is the places in the world where there is a 3month/1 year limited warranty, and the even sadder part is the people that think this is fair on a phone that costs upwards of $1000. And the even sadder part is people that defend manufacturers when they are clearly exploiting their customers wallet.

 

[Type4O]

The batteries do last well. My 6, which I got on launch day, lasted until a week before the X came out, which I upgraded to. It wouldn't hold a charge and started to shut down. I replaced the battery and it was like new. My parents are now using it.

Most battery operated things will suffer degraded performance when the battery is dying, in my experience.

I for one would rather have a working phone then one that constantly shuts down, even if it does slow down a bit. I like the safeguard Apple has put in place.

 

[xflashx]

@xflashx I am referring to post 618. Click on the link in my post you quoted and it will direct you to that post.

Found your post and edited mine, the link didn't load correctly. The thing is, Snapdragon processors are pretty fast as well in real day-to-day usage (other than in synthetic benchmarks), but they are able to continue to work as designed even with an older battery. You are right, Apple and their A-XX processors might be too fast for current battery technology. That's the thing I hope they will address in their next processors.

 

[gluckett]

the easiest solution would be to continue to provide software updates (bug fixes and security patches) for existing iOS releases, rather than forcing users to update to the latest & greatest iOS to receive bug fixes and security patches. that gives people the choice to upgrade, receive newer features, and accept the performance loss, or stay with the existing iOS, receive only security patches, and continue to get the performance of the device, as purchased.

I'm assuming you've never worked in the software industry. You cannot possibly provide software updates for every version of software you've ever released.

 

[Abazigal]

I'm assuming you've never worked in the software industry. You cannot possibly provide software updates for every version of software you've ever released.

Yeah, even Microsoft had to call it quits after a certain point.

 

[prvt.donut]

So, my understanding is that if I get a new battery, my iPhone 6 should go back to full speed as it used to be when new?

 

[WatchFromAfar]

... 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.

What about people having the right to run the latest iOS to their detriment? Perhaps they're OK with living with less battery and just want the latest iOS to run full tilt?

 

[mlody]

I am kind of torn on this one. I get where Apple is coming from, but then on the other hand I don't appreciate to be throttled down. Generally speaking a lot of tools, appliances or devices don't work at the same efficiency or perform the same after several years - that is including cars (as the components wear out, the horsepower drops, breaks, tires etc dont perform the same way).

The problem I have with Apple are their batteries. The original battery is covered for 1 year and it supposed to retain 80% of charge after 500 cycles. My issue is that I have 6S that had a brand spanking new battery installed by Apple as part of the recall around April of this year and only after 300 cycles, the battery is shot - does not even retain the 80%. Since those replacement batteries are only covered for 3 months if I am not mistaken, I am out of luck. Presume that Apple replaces one of those for me at $79. This means that I am paying $79 for a battery that is barely usable for 6 months and I am out of $79 again. Their replacement battery warranty should follow the same standard as the original battery at least in this situation, or the batteries should be made to last 1000 cycles like other Apple devices.

 

[lwells1441]

You are right, Apple and their A-XX processors might be too fast for current battery technology. That's the thing I hope they will address in their next processors.

This is definitely not the case. This is an issue with cell design.

The cell in your iPhone is produced for high energy density. If you the A11 chip requires more current than the A10, for example, you can change parameters in cell design to adjust for this (i.e. areal coating weight, porosity, conductive dilluent content) to make the cell more rate capable for the application.

 

[cocky jeremy]

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

I hope you don’t download iOS updates then.

 

[WatchFromAfar]

The batteries do last well. My 6, which I got on launch day, lasted until a week before the X came out, which I upgraded to. It wouldn't hold a charge and started to shut down. I replaced the battery and it was like new. My parents are now using it.

Most battery operated things will suffer degraded performance when the battery is dying, in my experience.

I for one would rather have a working phone then one that constantly shuts down, even if it does slow down a bit. I like the safeguard Apple has put in place.

No you wouldn't; you're admitted it wouldn't hold a charge so you paid for an iPhone X. Then you paid for a new battery in your old phone so your parents could use it.

If the original iPhone didn't slow down would you have done any of the above?

 

[xflashx]

This is definitely not the case. This is an issue with cell design.

The cell in your iPhone is produced for high energy density. If you the A11 chip requires more current than the A10, for example, you can change parameters in cell design to adjust for this (i.e. areal coating weight, porosity, conductive dilluent content) to make the cell more rate capable for the application.

So it is in fact a battery issue? Unfortunately I don't know much about battery technology, but it seems weird that an iPhone has to throttle down so it is still usable and doesn't randomly shutdown while Android phones are affected much much later of random shutdowns.

 

[lwells1441]

If the original iPhone didn't slow down would you have done any of the above?

Are you suggesting there is no improvements between the iPhone 6 and the iPhone x besides speed?

There are many reasons to upgrade. A slower behaving phone is just a catalyst for breaking the activation barrier to make that purchase. If you didn't have a positive experience with that previous product, you wouldn't maintain any brand loyalty.

 

[dialogos]

I can understand your frustration, but I really get the sense that your case is a bit spectacular.

I think you and I are both outliers. My iP6 is still rocking an above average GB4 score and it runs iOS11 great.

my frustration mostly comes from the fact that if I knew that I have a phone slower than a samsung s3 because of a faulty battery I would have immediately change the battery!!! On the contrary Apple's official response is that my phone got slow because newer iOS versions demand newer phones with faster chips, more RAM etc... Pretty much I should change my phone. They lied in my face when they could just tell me that replacing the battery would make my phone working properly again.

and from what I read here on macrumors I don't get the feeling I'm an outlier. I read posts from lot of people having problems with iphone 6 or 6s after almost a year.