Apple Fined 25 Million Euros in France for Slowing Down Older iPhones With iOS Update

[Defthand]

So you are sure that (a) having their phones run slower will entice more people to get a new one compared to having their phone shut-down prematurely and (b) that Apple thought so as well and that this was an important factor in their decisions to develop and deploy that change?

A phone that shuts down suddenly and routinely would be too obvious. It would be an obvious red flag and make users reconsider their next phone purchase. A phone that gradually declines in performance can be explained away. Indeed, most users will make their own assumptions about the reasons: the processor isn’t adequate for the latest OS... the hardware is somehow wearing out.. but neither is a defect.

The reality is, Apple exploited people’s ignorance about the actual issue and ideal solution, and yes, lawsuits state that people purchased new phones because of the unexplained throttling.

 

[manu chao]

What amazes me is okay lets say Apple was upfront. People would still have their iPhone 6 with a new battery. So you paid Apple 100+ for a new battery. Are people really hugging on to these old devices?

As long as the resale value of an iPhone 6 at that point was still significantly higher than the price of a battery replacement any rational person would of course have replaced the battery.

 

[Defthand]

Sure, because it had occurred to nobody that all those reports of sudden shutdowns all happened with devices that were at least a year old (and in most cases 2+ years old).

It did occur to some. And they were told that their batteries were fine.

 

[manu chao]

The reality is, Apple exploited people’s ignorance about the actual issue and ideal solution, and yes, lawsuits state that people purchased new phones because of the unexplained throttling.

And nobody bought a new phone because their old one was shutting down early?

 

[I7guy]

Then you weren’t paying attention. Apple deliberately withheld the knowledge that aging batteries were the trigger for users’ device shutdowns, and more importantly, that replacing the battery would resolve the issue while restoring general performance. The undisclosed software band-aid minimized the likelihood of a device shutdown but added to the general performance hit. When Apple store employees were asked about a phone’s declining performance, they had no knowledge of the software patch either. Phones tested by the geniuses revealed no battery deficits(!) or other hardware issues. Customers were advised that their older phones had reached the peak of their processing abilities. A considerable number of users testified that they unnecessarily purchased new phones on that advice.

Meanwhile, a tech blogger discovered the software patch and demonstrated that a new battery would restore performance to like-new levels, but users like myself who immediately took this insight to the geniuses, were told that our tested batteries were within Apple’s specs. Even if you insisted on buying a new battery, as I did, they refused. Their policy was they did not do maintenance, only repairs. I bought a replacement battery from iFixit and installed it myself. Sure enough, its Geekbench score was restored to like-new levels.

Ultimately, affected users were outraged that Apple didn’t disclose either the software band-aid nor the battery solution. The stunt disproved Apple’s integrity and added to suspicions that products are purposely obsoleted. Apple was busted and had a serious PR matter that it couldn’t convincingly explain away. To soften the blow from the numerous lawsuits that were filed, and to regain trust, Apple launched its battery replacement program.

This is just the first of many fines/settlements I suspect they’ll pay.

Some were outraged and some were faux-outraged. To me this was way overblown and I was in that universe.

 

[lkalliance]

It's a great engineering solution to a hardware issue, but by not telling customers about it, Apple just "happened" to have a lot of people buy new phones.

I think this is the core issue that Apple flubbed. This engineering existed, I believe it existed to extend the life of older phones. OK. Apple wasn't transparent about it, and when this engineering was discovered they looked bad. OK.

But, anecdotally, lots of people were evidently advised by employees at Apple Stores that their phones needed replacing with newer models. That was the real problem. If the feature exists, and a battery replacement would make a huge difference, then that option should at least have been mentioned.

Now I don't know that it WASN'T mentioned. People's memories can be faulty. Perhaps six months after having bought a new phone someone doesn't remember the Apple Store clerk saying "another option would be to replace the battery in this phone." But I get the feeling (just a feeling, I have no evidence) that the option wasn't generally mentioned.

So is that a purposeful initiative at Apple? To lie by omission and get people to buy phones? Well, that's a sexy way to look at it. It's fun to point the finger of blame at people, especially successful ones. But I think there was just poor communication not only with the public but with Apple's rank-and-file.

 

[manu chao]

I don't wish my next statement to be taken as an insult against iPhone users.....but let's be honest, a great number of people who purchase iPhones (and Android phones) do little to no research, have little or no interest in knowing how phones really work and buy the phone because their family or friends have told them that iPhone is the way to go and probably most importantly, believe everything they are told by the "experts" who work in Apple Stores. And in some cases, the semi-savvy customers who had the gall to suggest that perhaps a new battery was the best way to resolve things were told by the "expert" that it would be much better for all concerned to purchase a new phone.

So please don't try to turn this around and put the blame on the customers.

Well, I do blame every customer that publicly posts, 'My phone's battery is getting worse, I guess I have to buy a new phone to fix this' for lacking curiosity or imagination. It happens to everyone when somebody points out a solution oneself hasn't thought of. And something like that happens to me, I also do blame myself.
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It did occur to some. And they were told that their batteries were fine.

I don't remember being told that.
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But, anecdotally, lots of people were evidently advised by employees at Apple Stores that their phones needed replacing with newer models. That was the real problem. If the feature exists, and a battery replacement would make a huge difference, then that option should at least have been mentioned.

Now I don't know that it WASN'T mentioned. People's memories can be faulty. Perhaps six months after having bought a new phone someone doesn't remember the Apple Store clerk saying "another option would be to replace the battery in this phone." But I get the feeling (just a feeling, I have no evidence) that the option wasn't generally mentioned.

So is that a purposeful initiative at Apple? To lie by omission and get people to buy phones? Well, that's a sexy way to look at it. It's fun to point the finger of blame at people, especially successful ones. But I think there was just poor communication not only with the public but with Apple's rank-and-file.

Apple employees also have recommended people to remove all apps from the multi-tasking switcher to 'free up memory' and other stupid stuff. Not all bad advice by Apple employees is corporate policy.

 

[Defthand]

Are people really hugging on to these old devices? I imagine people who would spend the cost of a new phone replacing the battery every year talking about how great they are for not needing new tech. The whole thing is silly.

Do the math. A typical phone battery provides about two years of acceptable performance. The average phone purchase is $800. Using your logic, your cost of ownership is probably $300 per year if you get a trade-in credit. Over six years, your cost is around $1800.

Someone who replaces their battery every two years @$100 per battery service, would spend only $1000 over six years. A frugal owner can spend even less on battery replacements.

Now look at the advances in phone features over the last six years. There were none that fundamentally changed the status quo.
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Some were outraged and some were faux-outraged. To me this was way overblown and I was in that universe.

You must consider it a favor when businesses exploit your trust and ignorance.

 

[lkalliance]

Apple employees also have recommended people to remove all apps from the multi-tasking switcher to 'free up memory' and other stupid stuff. Not all bad advice by Apple employees is corporate policy.

Oh this one really rankles me. People who quit all their apps because it will save battery when doing so actually uses more battery. And it's such a widespread belief too. You're right, I HAVE seen an Apple Store clerk advise that.

It IS something you need to do sometimes, to force-quit an app...but not for battery purposes.

 

[Oblivious.Robot]

I think it boils down more towards the fact that some people replaced or upgraded their older iPhones thinking they've slowed down, where in all that was required was a fresh battery to get that thing a new lease of life.

And whenever it comes to batteries, I can swear that the Apple reps in my hometown basically ask to upgrade instead of replacing the older battery as a go to response.

 

[spartan1967]

Justice. My CPU's MHz was cut in half when I would get close to a 50% charge with a battery health at 93% on my SE.

Nice try Apple. I would think the lower fine was to give credit because Apple corrected this on a subsequent update.

 

[Konigi]

I guess we're just one fine away from Apple declaring bankruptcy 😱

 

[Defthand]

And whenever it comes to batteries, I can swear that the Apple reps in my hometown basically ask to upgrade instead of replacing the older battery as a go to response.

Prior to Apple’s stunt and policy change, it was impossible to purchase a replacement battery from them unless the phone was still under warranty and it was deemed a repair. Even then, they routinely swapped your unit for another because they aren’t sufficiently staffed or equipped to do most repairs in the store.

Adding to the nonsense, if you replaced the battery with a non-OEM one, your phone was deemed untouchable because of concerns that the battery might be a safety risk to their geniuses. Yet Apple wants to deny third parties from installing OEM parts when Apple itself is unable/unwilling to offer the service.

 

[adrianlondon]

France is stupid.

I do stupid things all the time. Where's my €25,000,000?

 

[df22799]

Up until this "feature" / batterygate from Apple, the whole battery degradation and throttling was not a significant issue.
I mean of course technically and physically there is a battery degradation in any phone, but Apple seems to have somehow made the batteries degrade significantly in 2-3 years of life and then "solve" it through this software update that, as a lot noticed, conveniently brings more people in the store to upgrade their iphone.....
I wish these sequence of events and circumstances would be investigated.

 

[nsayer]

Time to start the drumbeat for Applexit.

 

[ajfahey]

Next there will be a fine to punish Apple for less battery life because the iPhones were not throttled to extend battery life.

 

[Jon20001]

Fine. Now, future updates will only apply to newer phones, so the cycle of planned obsolescence is sped up.

 

[Expos of 1969]

I guess we're just one fine away from Apple declaring bankruptcy 😱

One can hope...

 

[I7guy]

Fine. Now, future updates will only apply to newer phones, so the cycle of planned obsolescence is sped up.

From 6 years to how many years?

 

[uller6]

I'm not sure 'bigger' is the relevant characteristic here. Designing a battery to last longer is probably not exactly the same as designing a battery to accommodate a higher power draw (or even more precisely maintain the capacity to accommodate a higher power draw for longer along the battery's life time). In other words, the problem was not having enough headroom to still provide x Wh after two years of usage. It didn't have enough headroom in regard to how many Watts it could supply after two years.

You're somewhat right, but it's not the complete picture. The problem is that cell impedance increases in the battery over time as the electrolyte degrades. When the CPU tries to draw too much current the voltage of the battery droops, going below what is needed to run the phone. Boom, sudden shutdown. If the battery capacity were increased then they could deal with sudden voltage droops but still be above the "sudden shutdown voltage." I agree that there's not enough headroom to supply the same power draw after 2 years of use, however the solution to problem (assuming identical battery chemistry) is to make the battery larger so it takes longer to degrade to a point where it no longer functions.

 

[maverick28]

"If something's wrong it's customer's fault" has been a long non-written Apple's tune. Apparently, that can hit the other way too. Happened, eventually.

 

[SDJim]

I still don't see the problem.

 

[H2SO4]

OK Apple badly communicated the steps they took, but would the same people who complained about the slowdown have been happier if the iPhone just unexpectedly shut down? Somehow I doubt it.

A battery is a consumable item and degrades with usage after all.



Maybe I can sue God because I get physically slower as I age

Except you forgot that Apple told its customers they needed new phones when in fact a new battery would have removed the issue.

 

[coolfactor]

is it planned obsolescence though? tweaking the os to be able to keep it running with an old battery seems like the opposite.

they should stop hunting unicorn and go full on for the right of repair. those soldered ssd and ram, glued battery, etc. that's the practice I like to see changed in the future.

Exactly. It's not "planned" obsolescence.... just plain old-fashioned tech obsolescence, and Apple is trying to fight against that by making these changes. They learned their lesson about not announcing the change, although I'm not sure that would have helped much anyway. Consumers would have complained just the same.