iPhone owners seek class action over throttling of performance

[Greg S]

Anyone that owns an older iPhone may be rightly upset to learn that their device cannot perform as well as it did the day it came out of the box due to degradation of the battery. Apple offered an official response to clarify that additional power management actions are necessary to prevent iPhones from unexpectedly shutting down but that does not change the fact that the entire ordeal has been handled poorly.

After spending a small fortune for the latest iPhone available at the time, consumers have every right to be upset that they were not informed their devices were being restricted due to poorly designed power delivery stages. In fact, two residents of California have taken it upon themselves to seek class action against Apple for failure to disclose the throttling of processors in iPhones.

Stefan Bogdanovich and Dakota Speas have filed suit in the US District Court for the Central District of California, accusing Apple of intentionally slowing down older devices to promote the sale of newer models. Both plaintiffs are owners of iPhone 7 handsets as well as several previous generations. The duo is aiming to obtain national class action status for their suit which would allow anyone with an impacted device to seek damages from Apple.

"Our goal is to deliver the best experience for customers, which includes overall performance and prolonging the life of their devices." –Apple

While the lawsuit does not directly coincide with Apple's statement regarding their throttling practices, Apple is far from innocent in the way it has handled the matter. Hiding poor design choices instead of admitting there is a problem that cannot be fixed with software was the wrong decision. Having a slow iPhone is admittedly better than one that will not turn on but neither are desirable outcomes.

In this case, Apple should have more closely followed in the foot steps of Samsung and come forward with the issue sooner. The exploding Galaxy Note 7 was ultimately just a small blip in time for Samsung once the Note 8 rose to prominence.

Bogdanovich and Speas are asking for the replacement of their iPhones, compensation for the cost of replacement batteries and money back on the original purchase of their devices for not receiving a device of the quality they believed to be purchasing. Additionally, damages are being sought for depreciation in value and loss of value due to the inability to use their iPhones.

Permalink to story.

https://www.techspot.com/news/72434-iphone-owners-seek-class-action-over-throttling-performance.html

 

[Cubi Dorf]

They probably have a size 1 font that says you can’t sue them and you automatically accepted by turn on the phone once. And US rules so silly that enforced.

 

[m4a4]

...and prolonging the life of their devices.

Bull****. If it also adds an incentive to upgrade, they'll do it. But beyond minimal fixes on legacy devices, they are a company trying to make as much money as they can. Supporting older devices doesn't make them money. Making it look like they do (for PR) might...

As for the people expecting the batteries to be as good as brand new after 2-3 years of use (basically expecting their phone not to deteriorate in performance), those people can deal with it themselves. I'm pretty sure that no electronics company claims that their devices don't deteriorate over time.

 

[cuerdc]

Problem is lack of communication clearly was a fault that was not disclosed, a fix was implemented without informing its customers. If they did sales of future handsets and repair/return of current handsets would of been a big financial loss, looks like will be finally catching up to them with the added loss of trust from its large fanbase.

 

[Rippleman]

No good deed goes unpunished.

 

[stewi0001]

I say unthrottle them all and let people deal with their terrible battery life. Most people who I sit around at work leave their phones plugged in at their desks. I get WHY they did it, they should give the user the option to enable or disable it though and they should have been upfront about it.

I agree that Apple should made it an option setting but then again Apple tells their consumers what the consumer should want.

 

[RevD14]

I say unthrottle them all and let people deal with their terrible battery life. Most people who I sit around at work leave their phones plugged in at their desks. I get WHY they did it, they should give the user the option to enable or disable it though and they should have been upfront about it.

People also walk around with it plugged into those portable battery pack too.

 

[Carlos GarPov]

It sounds like bad news for apple... It seems like the apple is getting "rotten."

 

[Patrick Laramee]

I say unthrottle them all and let people deal with their terrible battery life. Most people who I sit around at work leave their phones plugged in at their desks. I get WHY they did it, they should give the user the option to enable or disable it though and they should have been upfront about it.

I agree that Apple should made it an option setting but then again Apple tells their consumers what the consumer should want.

HAHA !! good one, Apple making an option for configuring something on an iPhone !

 

[Adorerai]

Does having the phone plugged in while in use restore performance?

 

[Nobina]

Nobody would have a problem with Apple if they told the consumers their devices will become slower over time as the battery gets older. Then the consumer can choose wether he wants to buy the phone or not based on that information. Problem is, they kept it a secret and now suddenly they're like "by the way your phones going to ****". There is no excuse for this.

 

[Kenrick]

This was a bad move by Apple. They should have mentioned this in documentation and make a switch in the settings. The motive was good but every single person in the world have their own preferences.

If they have an old battery and want to have a longer battery life and they approved throttling then make them turn ON that button. If they have an old battery and dont care about exhausting the battery life but want the Mhz numbers cracked up, let them turn it OFF.

To the writer:
" After spending a small fortune for the latest iPhone available at the time, consumers have every right to be upset that they were not informed their devices were being restricted due to poorly designed power delivery stages." -> This statement is false. Its not about the power delivery stages why Apple is throttling it. Its because of the old degraded battery. Lol.

 

[elites2012]

I think they are just but heart they blew so much money to purchase the phone. some still are behind on their rent cause of the phone. I bought my ipod from gamestop for 3/4 of the price.

 

[Evernessince]

I say unthrottle them all and let people deal with their terrible battery life. Most people who I sit around at work leave their phones plugged in at their desks. I get WHY they did it, they should give the user the option to enable or disable it though and they should have been upfront about it.

That still does not fix the fact that the phones were poorly designed. If this issue isn't coming up on android, it could easily be seen as planned obsolescence from Apple. Assuming all lithium ion batteries are the same, why are Apple devices having problems en mass but not android? I've passed down my moto g 5 years ago and it's still in use today without any random shutdowns or miscellaneous errata.

 

[Squid Surprise]

What's with the clickbait title? You can do better than this Techspot!! "iPhone owners seek class action.. " implies a vast quantity of iPhone owners... this story has TWO people!!

I expect better...

 

[VitalyT]

To summarize Apple's policy....

Siri: It seems you want something. Is it on the list of Apple's things to want?
User: No, I mean, is there a list?
Siri: Then you don't want it, trust me!
Siri: Oh, and things to want should be in the User Agreement that you signed (110 pages).

C'mon, why doesn't it read?

 

[mailpup]

What's with the clickbait title? You can do better than this Techspot!! "iPhone owners seek class action.. " implies a vast quantity of iPhone owners... this story has TWO people!!

I expect better...

The plaintiffs are seeking class action status but a judge must still certify it as such. The fewer the plaintiffs the less likely it will be granted class action status. So the plaintiffs will have to seek out others to join the suit or it might not proceed as a class action suit. It doesn't have to be "vast" numbers of plaintiffs either but the more the better.

 

[Squid Surprise]

The plaintiffs are seeking class action status but a judge must still certify it as such. The fewer the plaintiffs the less likely it will be granted class action status. So the plaintiffs will have to seek out others to join the suit or it might not proceed as a class action suit. It doesn't have to be "vast" numbers of plaintiffs either but the more the better.

Oh I understand exactly what the article is saying... I simply take issue with the title - which is purposely clickbait - that’s the type of title I’d see on other sites, not here.

 

[Kenrick]

What's with the clickbait title? You can do better than this Techspot!! "iPhone owners seek class action.. " implies a vast quantity of iPhone owners... this story has TWO people!!

I expect better...

Its been like that here at TS. This is an ugly side of modern journalism. Its like substandard tabloids in the 1990s.

 

[Cycloid Torus]

"Anyone that owns an older iPhone may be rightly upset to learn that their device cannot perform as well as it did the day it came out of the box due to degradation of the battery"

Anyone who expects a lithium-ion battery to NOT deteriorate needs special help.

I think slowing down a bit for an elderly battery to continue to work is an elegant solution - and, possibly, it was considered a special proprietary feature - not to be brought to notice like secret sauce or the Coca Cola formula - or broadcast, like the decision to let Bob in the mailroom begin his day at 8 instead of 6:30 as he nears retirement.

If the litigants had noticed declining utility, why didn't they spend the $80 to get the battery replaced?

 

[Rippleman]

"Anyone that owns an older iPhone may be rightly upset to learn that their device cannot perform as well as it did the day it came out of the box due to degradation of the battery"

Anyone who expects a lithium-ion battery to NOT deteriorate needs special help.

I think slowing down a bit for an elderly battery to continue to work is an elegant solution - and, possibly, it was considered a special proprietary feature - not to be brought to notice like secret sauce or the Coca Cola formula - or broadcast, like the decision to let Bob in the mailroom begin his day at 8 instead of 6:30 as he nears retirement.

If the litigants had noticed declining utility, why didn't they spend the $80 to get the battery replaced?

some will always see things "glass half empty" rather then "half full". Would suck to spend life always half-empty.

 

[captaincranky]

Its been like that here at TS. This is an ugly side of modern journalism. Its like substandard tabloids in the 1990s.

And yet, here you still are. Tell me, do you come for the articles, or just to complain about them?

 

[captaincranky]

.... [ ]....If the litigants had noticed declining utility, why didn't they spend the $80 to get the battery replaced?

Well because these are Apple customers we're talking about.

Having the battery replaced could amount to double jeopardy, since it's highly unlikely that Apple would check to see who had a new battery, and would have simply slowed down those devices with new batteries along with the rest of the flock's.

I didn't see a disclaimer in Apple's statement such as, "if you had your battery replaced, then your phone wouldn't have been slowed down, did you?

If I missed something, do let me know. As soon as I see, "Apple" in the title of an article, my eyes sort of glaze over and roll back in my head...

 

[cliffordcooley]

They don't come to complain about the articles. It is the titles they are complaining about.

 

[captaincranky]

They don't come to complain about the articles. It is the titles they are complaining about.

Well, that makes even less sense. If the "click bait" title drew you to an article you enjoyed and commented on, what's the problem? At that juncture, when you start complaining about the title, the only thing you're demonstrating, is how much in love you are with the sound of your own endless whining.

(You knew I'd tee off on your post, didn't ya Cliff)?