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Italian Consumer Association Launches Lawsuit Against Apple for Planned Obsolescence
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No, the problem is that Apple used a software update to hide the rate at which the wear occurred, so as to protect the reputation of the iPhone. It's got more in common with VW's engine-management tampering in Dieselgate than Apple would like you to believe, and that is why they've been spanked for it in multiple jurisdictions.
Apple prevented users from being alerted to excessive wear which would have entitled them to free or low-price warranty replacement at a time in which Apple was pricing battery replacement so high, it was pitched by Apple employees to customers as more economical to buy a new phone, or indeed refusing to replace batteries, and requiring customers to buy a whole "new" remanufactured phone.
What Android phones do, or what Google does, is irrelivant. Apple is being judged on Apple's behaviour in isolation, not as relative to other players in the industry.
If your car had a steering geometry flaw, that caused excessive wear on the tyres during cornering, and your manufacturer put a stopper into the steering rack to limit steering angle and modified the ECU to limit cornering speed without telling you during a scheduled service, rather than replacing the tyres, or fitting better tyres, your analogy would be closer.
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seems to me many have forgotten what the issue is about. Forbes did a good write up about the issue and subsequent follow up write ups on the issue back when it was first reported on when iOS 10.1.1 was released.
www.forbes.com
A followup piece was written on the issue:
www.forbes.com
and then another followup piece when iOS 10.2.1 was released, still explaing about the battery problems
The reason why Apple is in continued trouble over the issue is because they did not make it clear in the release of 10.1.1 what they were doing. It was only when owners of older iphones started to complain, numbering in their thousands and more did tech journalists pick it up and started to investigate. Only when the issue was becoming a public nightmare for Apple did they release a press statement explaining what Apple had done. Tech critics doubted Apples explanation because they said if Apple's intention was honourable and legitimate, they would have made it clear in the iOS update release documentation what was going on. The fact they didn't and only released that information when pressured to do so gave the impression that Apple was up to no good and was therefore hiding their real intentions.
Some countries around the world have fined Apple for dishonest practices over the issue which I think is right. I do not agree with consumer groups trying to the same thing.
Apple iOS 10.1.1 Ignores 30% Bug, Breaks Some Earpods
iPhone users have been hit by problems in iOS 10.1.1...
www.forbes.com
A followup piece was written on the issue:
Apple iOS 10.2 Exacerbates 30% Battery Bug
Apple iOS 10.2 is going to anger some users...
www.forbes.com
and then another followup piece when iOS 10.2.1 was released, still explaing about the battery problems
The reason why Apple is in continued trouble over the issue is because they did not make it clear in the release of 10.1.1 what they were doing. It was only when owners of older iphones started to complain, numbering in their thousands and more did tech journalists pick it up and started to investigate. Only when the issue was becoming a public nightmare for Apple did they release a press statement explaining what Apple had done. Tech critics doubted Apples explanation because they said if Apple's intention was honourable and legitimate, they would have made it clear in the iOS update release documentation what was going on. The fact they didn't and only released that information when pressured to do so gave the impression that Apple was up to no good and was therefore hiding their real intentions.
Some countries around the world have fined Apple for dishonest practices over the issue which I think is right. I do not agree with consumer groups trying to the same thing.
Interesting claim. Raises the question, are they obliged to notify the user under law. As for "trust in brand" reasons, it would be. But thats not legally binding.
Ironic from a country that builds cars with the integrity of tissue paper
My dad has several lancia’s in the old days and they all fell apart quite literally, if that’s not planned obsolescence I don’t know what is
My dad has several lancia’s in the old days and they all fell apart quite literally, if that’s not planned obsolescence I don’t know what is
Well that's the thing, by using a software patch to lower performance to within the capabilities of a worn battery, it may very well be that Apple avoided having to issue a recall notice in various jurisdictions, by masking the extent of the problem.
I have said this many times, but this one is pertinent... I got two TB Displays (the ones from 2011) that behave like the day when they were bought, the very first iPad Air, an iMac 2013 still going strong. Some family members have a MBP 13” from 2011 that I passed along. Heck I still use the Airtime Capsule 2TB router... it still does the backups and it’s tons more reliable than the included wifi routers by telcos.
I understand that some gadgets may miss those targets but my personal experience is that they are built to last.
Check this out, was going to look for what was available for an iPad Air legacy I got around (locked to iOS 12):
Actually neither/both of that.
Apple should not have made the decision for the user in first place as they do so often in their infinite arrogance.
The problem would have not been one if there was a switch deep down in the settings for peak power draw limitation on weak and/or cold battery which is default on. Or just generally communicate openly that a battery is not a magic component that lasts forever but degrades and at some point might not deliver enough performance to support the hardware and as such the hardware may need to be limited in power draw when the battery is old and low on charge. and/or cold.
While the user should not be bothered too much with this in an everyday situation, the basic behaviour of batteries is something the average person needs to learn and comprehend imho as it's a technology that basically sourrounds us everyday and everywhere. Old batteries drop in performance. Cold batteries drop in performance. Old batteries also drop in capacity. Charging a battery too hot or cold is not good. If attempted, charging will be slowed by the controller automatically. It's not rocket science.
I thought they were more into beheading them, and leaving the head in the bed of people they didn't like.
I watched Godfather part 1 on the weekend, and had forgotten about that scene. I thought it came in later parts. It's been years since I watched that movie set. Decades actually. So much gun play. So similar and different than Casino. Godfather in 1972, and Casino in 1995. Hmm...
I wonder why Apple always has the weirdest bugs/features. Take my OnePlus2. It has never heard of throttling or bad batteries. Same with software updates that break the weirdest things on their devices. And they control both hard- and software. I don't get that...
let's say at the date of release an iphone 6 had a 10/100 performance rating. then 6s a 11/100, 7 12/100 etc... seems obvious. the reality is different:
iphone 6 had a 10/10 performance, then 6s had 10/10 while 6 slipped to 9/10, then 7 had 10/10, 6s 9/10, 6 8/10 etc. result is that the max performance is stuck from years. in fact it got even worse. booting an iphone takes ages for example. do u noticed some performance increases from your iphone 4 (at its day one) to your iphone 12 pro max turbo gt? NO! you can say: but there are more features every year! it may be true for some of them (because emojis doesnt need a super pc), but on the other side there should be os optimization. new features decreases performance while optimization should increase it, balancing them. but the reality is, again, different: newer ios'es, requires more and more resources, regardless of the features.... i dont call it evolution and improving.
The 6 was only a 10/10 bc it was the newest at the time. When a new one comes out, it’s worse by comparison.
To compare an iPhone 4 to a 12 is laughable. There is clear progression on every level.
I get the reason why they do the throttling and why they tried to keep it on the down low. But, there is also a risk to keeping things hush hush.
Feature bloat, users' expectations for consistent performance, and the realities of battery longevity. A tough set of items to balance. Then you also have pricing pressures, pricing mix for profitability.....
Feature bloat, users' expectations for consistent performance, and the realities of battery longevity. A tough set of items to balance. Then you also have pricing pressures, pricing mix for profitability.....
my working 12 year and 9 year old Macbook pro's would disagree, my dead 4 year old Surface Pro however ...
well Apple does sell iPhones globally, but they only compensated a small subset of those ? Its ridiculous a lawsuit must be on the cards just to sway what a company should have done in the first place.
Apple even thinks in restricted more
I get where Itanlians are comming from, but polities probably got in the way. Or perhaps Apple thought Italians weren't important enough to be a concern as the ones affected.
Apple even thinks in restricted more
I get where Itanlians are comming from, but polities probably got in the way. Or perhaps Apple thought Italians weren't important enough to be a concern as the ones affected.
Frivolous lawsuits like these just drive the price up of products for everyone and don’t benefit consumers. Apple will just add the cost of their lawyers and whatever settlement to the price of products. I mean they have no other choice because the money they make comes from product sales. In the end the lawyers will make millions and some consumers will get five dollar checks 🤦♂️
I can't speak for Apple, but my own opinion is that I believe Apple doesn't care. Lawsuits come with the territory and they will get sued for anything and everything. Win some, lose some.
When Volkswagen Group altered its engines for emissions testing, got caught, and then tried to "fix" the emissions problem with a software update that simply reduced the power output of customers' engines (sound familiar?), I bet they thought lawsuits came with the territory... until executives started going to jail.
That's an equivalent analogy? Apple executives will go to jail because of performance management software and battery replacement program?
design your own device, most people buy the device for what it does, not what they want it to do.