Arizona Attorney General Leading Multi-State Probe on Apple iPhone Throttling

[Wanted797]

Consumer: My old phone shuts off randomly when I’m using it.
Apple: here have a free software update that keeps your phone on.
Consumer: Apple slowed down my phone!

No matter what someone is always not happy.

Apple slowed down my phone to make me buy a new one!!

 

[Kal-037]

Apple is facing another probe on its iPhone "throttling" practices, this time from Arizona attorney general Mark Brnovich, reports Reuters.

The probe, which may also involve Texas, has been ongoing since October 2018 and is attempting to determine whether Apple's deliberate slowing of older iPhones "violated deceptive trade practice laws."

Last week, reports suggested that Texas was involved in an investigation aiming to determine whether Apple deceived customers, though no other information was available at the time. It's likely that the probe in Arizona is linked to the Texas report, with both states looking into Apple's 2017 iPhone slowdown practices.

As many MacRumors readers know, Apple in iOS 10.2.1 (which was released in early 2017) introduced a performance management system designed to eliminate unexpected shutdowns by throttling the maximum performance of iPhones with chemically aged batteries.

Apple did not disclose how its power management system worked, leading to customer outrage when it was discovered iPhone performance was being downgraded. Apple said that this was to make sure that the iPhone lasted as long as possible, even as the battery failed.

After it was discovered that Apple was limiting iPhone performance, Apple apologized and ultimately launched a battery replacement program that saw the company offering replacement batteries for older devices for $29. Replacing a failing battery successfully resolves the problem that leads to shutdowns, which is why power was limited by Apple in the first place.

In addition to offering low-cost battery replacements for a year, Apple has also agreed to pay up to $500 million to settle a class action lawsuit over the issue.

Apple's performance management system is now disabled by default and it turns on only if an iPhone suffers an unexpected shutdown. Even then, it can be disabled, and Apple also provides much more detailed information on battery health so customers can opt for a replacement when necessary.

Article Link: Arizona Attorney General Leading Multi-State Probe on Apple iPhone Throttling

I still think this is horse pucky. Apple did people a favor to save the life of folks iPhones. But oh no!! They didn’t tell people that by throttling the iPhones it would extend it’s life. ??‍♂️
I’m siding with Apple on this one.
[automerge]1596079931[/automerge]

As someone who had a phone that would randomly shut down because of poor battery health (and eventually wore it down to the point where the battery went kaput), I actually prefer the throttling. My next phone, I eventually used it into the throttling phase. The phone was still fast enough for most of what I did, and it was a better user experience than my phone randomly dying on me with 50% left. It kept my next phone usable for longer (I only replaced it because the phone took a swim when I fell out of a boat last summer).

^^^^^This^^^^^ ???

 

[Camarillo Brillo]

How is this even illegal? Is there a law against throttling software on a smartphone when the battery becomes weak? really?

 

[C DM]

How is this even illegal? Is there a law against throttling software on a smartphone when the battery becomes weak? really?

Seems like that's not really the part that's in question, but the part about Apple initially potentially misleading customers (in particular those who contacted them and even came in with their devices) about it all.

 

[Lancer]

I'd rather my iPhone slows down a little, then crashing.

If Apple had not done anything they would be sued for the number of iPhones shutting down unexpectedly!

 

[kiranmk2]

Don’t know why Apple bother looking after some people! If you have an old phone thats not capable of dealing with updates or the battery deteriorates then that’s tough. It’s like my old laptop (the battery is done), it’s like my old DAB radio (won’t pick up a lot of the new stations), it’s even like my old mechanical corkscrew (it won’t remove some of the new corks that are synthetic). Technology advances and products become obsolete or reduce in performance to protect them! Next we will be suing a company because a can opener no longer work on certain types of cans!!

As someone who had a phone that would randomly shut down because of poor battery health (and eventually wore it down to the point where the battery went kaput), I actually prefer the throttling. My next phone, I eventually used it into the throttling phase. The phone was still fast enough for most of what I did, and it was a better user experience than my phone randomly dying on me with 50% left. It kept my next phone usable for longer (I only replaced it because the phone took a swim when I fell out of a boat last summer).

I still think this is horse pucky. Apple did people a favor to save the life of folks iPhones. But oh no!! They didn’t tell people that by throttling the iPhones it would extend it’s life. ??‍♂️
I’m siding with Apple on this one.
[automerge]1596079931[/automerge]

^^^^^This^^^^^ ???

How is this even illegal? Is there a law against throttling software on a smartphone when the battery becomes weak? really?

I'd rather my iPhone slows down a little, then crashing.

If Apple had not done anything they would be sued for the number of iPhones shutting down unexpectedly!

There will always be people who want full speed with the risk of the phone switching off and some who would trade speed for stability. The issue is that Apple didn't tell anyone about what they were doing so people understood. Now they have done what they should have done from the start: given people the option of disabling throttling if they are happy to take the risk.

Imagine you bought a phone you were intending to keep for 2 years. After 15 months it is getting a lot slower than you remember it being: wouldn't it be nice if when you took it into the Apple store they would have told you that the battery capacity has degraded and the phone is throttling rather than just telling you the phone has passed their internal checks. I'm sure a large number of people would have paid the $79 for a new battery rather than $749+ for a new device if they knew the battey swap would have fixed the issue.