iPhone 4S owners file suit against Apple, claim iOS 9 made phones unbearably slow

Shawn Knight

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Apple is on the receiving end of a class-action lawsuit from disgruntled iPhone 4s owners. The suit, filed by Chaim Lerman and more than 100 others, alleges Apple's iOS 9 update severely degraded the smartphone's performance both in terms of third-party apps and core functionality.

Lerman blames Apple for not warning users that the update would slow their phones to the point that it "disrupts everyday life." The complaint points to a section on Apple's website in which iOS 9 promises faster performance, improved security, convenient updates and longer battery life.

Without the option to roll back the update, the suit says iPhone 4s owners must either deal with a slow phone or shell out hundreds of dollars for a newer, faster iPhone in order to maintain their investment in Apple's app ecosystem. Plaintiffs are seeking more than $5 million in damages.

Lerman's argument isn't without merit as it is more or less common knowledge - at least, among technology enthusiasts - that older hardware struggles with newer software. In the case of iOS 9 (or Android 6.0 Marshmallow or Windows 10), the new software is optimized to run on the latest hardware and handle content that's far more complicated than what was around several years ago.

It's the same reason your 10-year-old computer seems to run much slower today than it did when it was brand new, even with a fresh OS install. The processor, RAM and graphics card didn't slow down - it's simply having to work harder to run today's complex programs and content.

Some have labeled this phenomenon as planned obsolescence, accusing Apple of intentionally making older phones perform slower so users will be more inclined to buy a new device. It's not the first time the company has been sued over the matter and it probably won't be the last. It'll ultimately be up for a judge to decide in this instance but at the very least, Apple and others could - and probably should - do a better job of conveying the fact that new software doesn't always jibe with old hardware.

Lead image courtesy AnandTech

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Lol, little bit funny. I had both the 4 and 4s from work which were horribly slow out of the box new...... Wonder if I can have some money
 
I'm surprised people are still using the 4 or 4s. I thought the whole point of owning an Apple device was to stand in front of an Apple store in sub zero temperatures waiting to buy the next version the moment it is released.

Not to mention everyone I see nowadays is missing multiple chunks of glass from the casing and would probably fillet the skin off your fingers as you Slide to Unlock©®™℗
 
.....that older hardware struggles with newer software. In the case of iOS 9 (or Android 6.0 Marshmallow )

That's not the case for Marshmallow. The 2013 Nexus 7 tablet is like a new machine with Marshmallow and you'll find that any Android device that's upgraded to Marshmallow is actually faster and more efficient.
 
I'm surprised people are still using the 4 or 4s. I thought the whole point of owning an Apple device was to stand in front of an Apple store in sub zero temperatures waiting to buy the next version the moment it is released.

2 and 3 year contracts....
 
.....that older hardware struggles with newer software. In the case of iOS 9 (or Android 6.0 Marshmallow )

That's not the case for Marshmallow. The 2013 Nexus 7 tablet is like a new machine with Marshmallow and you'll find that any Android device that's upgraded to Marshmallow is actually faster and more efficient.

Comparing how a tablet from 2013 that was already high spec for it's year and price point vs a phone from 2011 that was already tech wise behind android flagships coming out is not proving much. I am not a huge apple guy but apple added a lot more into ios since 2011 compared to androids last 3 releases.
 
Or they could do what the Android ecosystem does and set a cap for the software version on older models of iPhones.

That way this issue wouldn't happen. But nope, holding [old] hardware for ransom with new software is the Apple way of forcing new sales.
They do. But this time they thought what better way to persuade such people to upgrade than to put a software update on it that would make it annoying enough to do so.

Otherwise, I'm sure you can revert back, but not through normal means. Just will take a bit more of a tecky to do so...
 
I never upgrade my OS. We learned this "slow down" issue long ago with the 3Gs. I get a new OS when I get a new phone. I do point releases, but NEVER a full.
 
Ios 9 just got a tiny bit more open for the user, right ? I guess that is the punishment for giving power to the people.
 
Windows 7 made my Zeos 386SX so slow that it takes me almost 4hrs just to load Netscape. Thanks alot Zeos. Now I am going to be forced into an upgrade.
 
LOL, I hope the people win in this. Not because I feel sorry for them - after all they deserved it for buying that overpriced crap but so that apple suffers.
 
Or they could do what the Android ecosystem does and set a cap for the software version on older models of iPhones.

That way this issue wouldn't happen. But nope, holding [old] hardware for ransom with new software is the Apple way of forcing new sales.

They already have. I'm unsure why they're allowing the 4S to run iOS 9, but the 3GS was capped at iOS 6.1.6.
 
LOL, I hope the people win in this. Not because I feel sorry for them - after all they deserved it for buying that overpriced crap but so that apple suffers.
$5Mil is a minuscule drop in a humongous bucket for apple... setting the precedence though, that's priceless.
 
The only thing I want to take objection to is your note about Windows 10 and Android 6. Microsoft and Google have both taken performance seriously in their latest releases. Android 6 performs closer to 4.4 than to either of the 5.x releases. Windows 10 performs better than Windows 8 or 7 did. For both systems, this includes performance on older devices.
 
Less about the 'new OS'es always more demanding than old...

I upgraded an old 1.6Ghz Centrino dual core laptop from the nastiness that was Windows Vista 32 bit to the loveliness that is Windows 10 64 bit. It runs beautifully now, way better than it ever did under Vista - all hardware found and detected - a perfectly good little machine again. I was so impressed with how well it was running I put an old SSD I had lying around in it and got some some second hand RAM and upgraded to 4GB, now its even better. :)
 
I'm sure you can revert back, but not through normal means. Just will take a bit more of a tecky to do so...

Nope, not unless this class action lawsuit forces Apple to allow for the downgrading of Firmware on devices after the firmware signing window has passed, or allows it for older devices. After Apple drops a new iOS, you have about a month to do anything you need to with the previous version of the software before iTunes will no longer restore to that version and mandate that you upgrade.

It sucks (especially for Jailbreakers), and I think shouldn't be allowed, mainly because of legit problems like this. There is a kind of work around, but to downgrade with the workaround, you need to run an SHSH pull on the firmware's signature with a on again/off again supported program called TinyUmbrella to fake a server authorization signature from iTunes. Oh, and if you you didn't pull that signature during the signing window when it was released? You're SOL. And it only just started working with iOS 9.

So there ya go. Not as easy as one might think, hence why this lawsuit is actually a good thing.
 
Windows 7 made my Zeos 386SX so slow that it takes me almost 4hrs just to load Netscape. Thanks alot Zeos. Now I am going to be forced into an upgrade.
Did you set it up for maximum performance ie turn off all the visual stuff? It's default setting of "Let Windows decide what is best for my computer" includes all but a couple of things. Clean install is also an option. I upgraded my laptop from 8.1 to 10 keeping everything and it turned into a turtle. Then factory reset (to 8) and upgraded immediately keeping nothing and now it's great.

Linux might also be an option. I put it on an old laptop which works well except the learning curve is insane. It's the least intuitive software I've ever used and since it's just used for my kid surfing and me using GParted I've never bothered to learn how to use it properly.
 
Still have my handy 4S, and, yes, it is slower with iOS9. Still, I'm happy to have a four year old device that does what I need, fits nicely in form and function in my day to day work, and will upgrade to something else when I need to do so or the thing dies. Annoyed enough to demand I'm compensated for reality? Ummmm.
 
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