Class Action Lawsuit Accuses Apple of Crippling iPhone 4s With iOS 9 Update

[patent10021]

What a joke. As if Craig Federighi tells his engineers to insert code that will intentionally slow down older devices. People sue for anything and everything these days. Only in America.

Actually it's quite plausible. The code doesn't have to be instructed to slow down the device like you're hypothesizing (even though that's also easy to do). The usage and structure of code or API could very well slow down certain devices i.e. methods placed on the main thread that wouldn't affect newer devices but would cause havoc on older devices. Methods and functions that perform differently on different devices are a reality. And it doesn't even have to be written code. It could even be class-size layout issues that bring UI transitions to a grinding halt. Any developer could cloak and dagger older devices.

 

[mariusignorello]

That makes no sense whatsoever. If Apple would do this on purpose it would have come out in court previously, through a whistleblower or by someone investigating actual code. This is too big to cover up.

The patterns we observe are also present at other producers:

• Newer versions of OSes slow down older phones. That is as much the case with Android and Windows as it is with Apple. Absolutely no difference at all. The reason why it is more apparent for Apple is because Apple is the only one actually providing OS upgrades to older devices.
• Then the absence of features in older hardware. Go look on other platforms and you will see the same, but in a much more chaotic fashion. Samsung retires functions on a regular basis for its mobile platforms and other hardware. I get monthly notifications on my top of the line TV that they will retire software functionality.

What so many people complain about here is common to the entire industry. If Apple is not communicating clearly then they should be corrected and provide a solution. But the complaints about obsolescence do not make sense without any actual factual proof.

Not many have what it takes to sue Apple and find these things. It's costly both in terms of money and time.

 

[AFEPPL]

Nope don't agree. This reminds me of those who claim Apple intentionally constrains supply in order to artificially create demand. That's silly. There's no guarantee someone will just go out and buy a new Apple device, just like there's no guarantee someone is going to wait around for a product to become available. There's a good chance they'll just go buy something else or nothing at all. The idea that Apple executives sit around thinking about ways to annoy Apple customers, somehow believing that will result in more Apple product sales is nonsense.

Thats exactly what they do along with their lock-in eco system. Apple only make money WHEN people buying new devices... It's silly to think they are exists for any other reason.

Creating demand is a common and legitimate business ploy.
Why do you think people change their phones? a phone doesn't nothing it didn't do 5 years ago, the apps are no more demanding, but somehow the OS has become so bloated you need a new device to stand still.. Think about that for a while.

 

[Carlanga]

The applelogetics are in full force on this thread.

I see no reason for Apple to NOT let you downgrade to a previous firmware stable version. Nowhere in the upgrade process does it say you can't go back to a previous firmware. I still don't get why the artificial block is set up for downgrading to an older firmwares last release besides that the adoption chart they like to show off every year.

 

[AZREOSpecialist]

This article is absolutely true and the plaintiffs have a legitimate complaint. iOS 8 and 9 have ruined my iPad 2. Now it doesn't even keep up with my typing. If I had known, I wouldn't have upgraded to the later operating systems. Apple absolutely should warn users about potentially downgraded performance, otherwise it is guilty of changing the performance of the device you purchased to render it unusable for the purpose it was purchased.

 

[I7guy]

Thats exactly what they do along with their lock-in eco system. Apple only make money WHEN people buying new devices... It's silly to think they are exists for any other reason.

Creating demand is a common and legitimate business ploy.
Why do you think people change their phones? a phone doesn't nothing it didn't do 5 years ago, the apps are no more demanding, but somehow the OS has become so bloated you need a new device to stand still.. Think about that for a while.

If you view the smartphone as a telephone, nothing has changed since Alexander graham bell. If you view the device as a computer a lot has changed in 5years and apps need more computing power. Try running iMovie on an iPhone 4 for example; or editing a large movie on a pre-core i7; dual core pentium.

Your premise is a bit flawed.

 

[orioncrystalice]

muh oboelessense, muh first-world tears....muh lawsuits!

 

[akbarali.ch]

I wish my iPad 2 could go back to iOS 6. They literally destroyed the device forcing us to move to iOS 7 without the ability to go back. Biggest mistake I ever made was upgrading the iPad 2. Now it is a slow mess of crashes.

Did they force ? I don't think so.

Yes, they delibrately cripple the performance.

I mean, the message app would literally fly even on iPhone 3GS but with iOS 6 the same app is very sluggish. Can anyone explain what is so performance intensive feature went in message app which slows it so much?

Same goes for each and every built in app.

 

[I7guy]

The applelogetics are in full force on this thread.

I see no reason for Apple to NOT let you downgrade to a previous firmware stable version. Nowhere in the upgrade process does it say you can't go back to a previous firmware. I still don't get why the artificial block is set up for downgrading to an older firmwares last release besides that the adoption chart they like to show off every year.

Apple apparently has a different view. I think as other posters mentioned, it's about fragmentation.

 

[stevemiller]

If you view the smartphone as a telephone, nothing has changed since Alexander graham bell. If you view the device as a computer a lot has changed in 5years and apps need more computing power. Try running iMovie on an iPhone 4 for example; or editing a large movie on a pre-core i7; dual core pentium.

Your premise is a bit flawed.

your argument is a bit flawed.

there's a fair bit of gradient between an early 1900's 'phone' and a portable movie editing suite device that happens to make phone calls. i have a 6 and i'm not editing movies on it non-stop. i take pictures, read websites, text friends, make calls, and play some mobile games. amazingly, i did all those things on a 4S in 2011 and it actually was pretty much an identical experience.

and i'm not complaining that a 4S/iPad 3 doesn't edit a movie as well as a new 6S, or play the latest games as well. i'm complaining that i can type a 5-6 word sentence and it actually takes the better part of 10 seconds to "catch up" when i'm done typing. i'd reinstalled the OS clean on both devices and it continued to be a miserable experience. but when i was finally able to roll the 4S back to iOS 6, the problems all went away.

whether its an intentional act or just really really lazy programming, i stand by my discontent with apple.

 

[s15119]

Dismissed.

 

[s15119]

I wish my iPad 2 could go back to iOS 6. They literally destroyed the device forcing us to move to iOS 7 without the ability to go back. Biggest mistake I ever made was upgrading the iPad 2. Now it is a slow mess of crashes.

Weird, my iPad 2 works great with the latest OS. You couldn't pay me to go back to 6.

 

[justperry]

I own a iPhone 4S, bought it only 2 years ago, it's useable but just barely on iOS 9.
Thought about buying a new one just because it is too slow but the thing is, iPhones are becoming too expensive, if a want a new iPhone I would choose a 64 GB model which sets me back 850 Euro's, too much.

This weekend I will try to get it back to iOS 6.

The thing is, OS 9 is very buggy on a 4S, notifications missed, no sound when getting messages, most of the time no ring tone when using Viber or other VOIP calls, ringtone volume too low, generally slow performance, iOS 8 was better but still no match for iOS 6 which was super fast.

 

[justperry]

your argument is a bit flawed.

there's a fair bit of gradient between an early 1900's 'phone' and a portable movie editing suite device that happens to make phone calls. i have a 6 and i'm not editing movies on it non-stop. i take pictures, read websites, text friends, make calls, and play some mobile games. amazingly, i did all those things on a 4S in 2011 and it actually was pretty much an identical experience.

and i'm not complaining that a 4S/iPad 3 doesn't edit a movie as well as a new 6S, or play the latest games as well. i'm complaining that i can type a 5-6 word sentence and it actually takes the better part of 10 seconds to "catch up" when i'm done typing. i'd reinstalled the OS clean on both devices and it continued to be a miserable experience. but when i was finally able to roll the 4S back to iOS 6, the problems all went away.

whether its an intentional act or just really really lazy programming, i stand by my discontent with apple.

Same experience here, typing any text anywhere in any app is horrible on a 4S running iOS 9

 

[peterdevries]

Not many have what it takes to sue Apple and find these things. It's costly both in terms of money and time.

A bit weak to cherry-pick only one sentence from my elaborate response to yours and disregard the rest, isn't it? Or is it too difficult to uphold your theory if you do respond to the rest also?

 

[Radon87000]

If you view the smartphone as a telephone, nothing has changed since Alexander graham bell. If you view the device as a computer a lot has changed in 5years and apps need more computing power. Try running iMovie on an iPhone 4 for example; or editing a large movie on a pre-core i7; dual core pentium.

Your premise is a bit flawed.

You seriously can't expect me to believe a 4 year old phone cannot handle basic tasks like opening a new browser tab or keep up with my typing speed just because it's old

 

[stevemiller]

Dismissed.

might be, but apple would do well to heed the knowledge that there is some discontent. if the lawsuit is declared frivolous, its not going to make me suddenly say i'm ok with rebuying my device every 2-3 years mostly for the privilege of text entry that doesn't become slow as molasses to keep up with the "so important that we can't let you roll back from them" security updates.

 

[Radon87000]

Same experience here, typing any text anywhere in any app is horrible on a 4S running iOS 9

It takes 3 whole seconds for my iPad Mini keyboard to catch up to the word I type.I am quite sure that if I tried to,I could finish typing 4 words before my Mini actually displays one

 

[apolloa]

Apple does not comment on security patches (so we don't know) except in new releases of iOS and does not back patch security fixes unless there is public outcry. Simply put Apple is too big to care any more. And as we all know teenagers (Apples main customer) are too smart to care about security patches.

Apple release statement updates to their security patches all the time:

https://support.apple.com/en-gb/HT201222

 

[I7guy]

You seriously can't expect me to believe a 4 year old phone cannot handle basic tasks like opening a new browser tab or keep up with my typing speed just because it's old

Who said anything about typing? I can type fine on iPad 2 under iOS 9.2.

 

[apolloa]

Exactly this. My mother has it on her iPad Mini and it's now a joke to use. Completely unusable and Apple flaunt the following:

I say that's false advertising. There's no disclaimer to tell me it doesn't apply to older models.

Yeap, and hence why I think this case has some meat to it. Apple will I think find it challenging to defend this one.

 

[I7guy]

your argument is a bit flawed.

there's a fair bit of gradient between an early 1900's 'phone' and a portable movie editing suite device that happens to make phone calls. i have a 6 and i'm not editing movies on it non-stop. i take pictures, read websites, text friends, make calls, and play some mobile games. amazingly, i did all those things on a 4S in 2011 and it actually was pretty much an identical experience.

and i'm not complaining that a 4S/iPad 3 doesn't edit a movie as well as a new 6S, or play the latest games as well. i'm complaining that i can type a 5-6 word sentence and it actually takes the better part of 10 seconds to "catch up" when i'm done typing. i'd reinstalled the OS clean on both devices and it continued to be a miserable experience. but when i was finally able to roll the 4S back to iOS 6, the problems all went away.

whether its an intentional act or just really really lazy programming, i stand by my discontent with apple.

I dont know, my iPad 2 works fine within the limitations of the hardware and I'm happy to have the latest features in iOS 9.2.

 

[apolloa]

What happens when the iPad Pro, the device Tim Cook proudly stated "the iPad Pro is a replacement for a notebook or a desktop for many, many people" has it's performance crippled through an iOS update, I mean my 5 year old Mac Laptop still runs fine on the latest OSX, will an iPad Pro that is designed to replace it, according to Apple, also run just as fast in 5 years time?

 

[kazmac]

What the heck is the matter with your 2010 iMac? I've got an old 27in 2.93 i7 with 16gb of ram, the 1gb video card and a 3tb DIY Fusion drive. 256gb OWC SSD and a 3tb WD HDD. I should be good to go for a while.

Glad you're good to go. Water under the bridge, I have a more current 27" now that is closer to your specs.

 

[AFEPPL]

If you view the smartphone as a telephone, nothing has changed since Alexander graham bell. If you view the device as a computer a lot has changed in 5years and apps need more computing power. Try running iMovie on an iPhone 4 for example; or editing a large movie on a pre-core i7; dual core pentium.

Your premise is a bit flawed.

Not flawed at all, you simply think you understand my requirement based on a single post...
I know my requirements, at no point do i EVER need or desire to edit movies on mobile phone, i'd also wager most other people are the same. If and when i want to edit photos or videos i will bring them onto a more appropriate device such and my i7 rMBP.

What is true and part of this topic and not open to opinion or usage patterns is that iOS worked fine on release of the 4S if thats your device of debate, but right now with iOS 9 running the same apps and same usage pattern its basically not usable... Those Apps still have the same performance requirements in general terms, the issue is the bloat and underlying OS thats on the phone. So you have to ask yourself why...