After witnessing the consumer outrage and facing lawsuits because it said that older iPhones with flagging batteries were slowed down, Apple Inc. has decided to take some measures. The company announced that it was reducing the prices for battery replacements and would also make changes to its software for showing users the condition of their phone’s battery in order to help them figure out if its good or not. On Thursday, it published a post on its website in which it apologized for the way the battery issue was handled. It also added that they would make a number of changes for their customers as an appreciation of their loyalty and for regaining the trust of all those who had doubted their intentions.
The iPhone maker has made the move to address concerns about the durability and quality of its devices at a time when it has chosen to charge $999 for the iPhone X, which is its latest flagship model. The American tech giant said that the price of replacement of an out-of-warranty battery would be slashed from $79 to $29 for iPhone 6 and later models and the new pricing would be implemented from the next month.
Apart from that, the Cupertino, California giant added that an update would also be rolled out for its iOS operating system, which would enable the users to see if their battery is in poor health and is impacting the performance of their device. In its post, the company said that it was sorry for letting its customers down. The issue had started when the smartphone giant had acknowledged on December 20th that the phones dealing with battery issues were automatically slowed down through the iPhone software for enhancing the performance of the device. It said that power was delivered unevenly by the aging lithium batteries.
Therefore, users would see their iPhones shut down unexpectedly for protecting the delicate circuits of the phone. This disclosure by the company was all the confirmation people needed as there had already been a widespread belief amongst users that Apple deliberately slowed down old phones to push people into buying the newer models. There has never been any credible evidence to back this very common belief of Apple engaging in such low tricks and conduct, but the firm’s disclosure about the batteries seemed to have struck a nerve on social media platforms and everywhere else.
In its post on Thursday, Apple denied allegations about intentionally reducing the life of a product. Approximately eight lawsuits have been filed in Illinois, California and New York against Apple. The company has been accused of defrauding users by slowing down their devices without issuing any warning. Likewise, a legal complaint has also been filed against the iPhone manufacturer in France where such ‘planned obsolescence’ is not allowed by the law. As of now, no response has been made by Apple in regard to these lawsuits or the complaint in France, but the battery reduction just might assuage some iPhone users, if not all.
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