Apple hits back at claims it designs iPhones to fail

Apple has hit back on the theory that it intentionally slows down older iPhones to get customers to head to the store and buy a new one. 

The firm’s vice president of marketing Greg Joswiak and vice president of augmented reality/virtual reality Mike Rockwell took part in an interview with noted Apple blogger John Gruber to discuss the topic, in addition to iOS 12 and AR. 

Gruber asked Joswiak why Apple’s software boss, Craig Federighi, specifically highlighted performance data when he unveiled iOS 12 at the firm’s annual Worldwide Developers Conference on Monday. 

If you paid for an iPhone battery replacement from Apple last year, you could be due a £54 ($50) refund.  Apple says it will contact all eligible customers via email between May 23 and July 27 with instructions on how to obtain their credit

Federighi explained that with iOS 12 on devices like the iPhone 6S, performance will be up to 70% faster. 

Gruber said the data countered the ‘popular notion’ that Apple slows down older phones with new iOS updates to get them to buy newer models.  

‘[That theory] is about the craziest thinking in the world,’ Joswiak said. 

‘We’re going to give you a s***** experience so you’ll go buy our new product,’ he joked. 

He went on to say that people forget ‘how great software updates are’, saying Apple has a 99% customer satisfaction rate with iOS 11. 

‘What Craig talked about is making everything faster and more responsive,’ Joswiak said.

‘We’re supporting devices that were released in 2011…So we wanted to remind people of how great that is’. 

‘Some people are just heavier users than others. It’s those users who have experienced more slowdowns’ he added.   

Joswiak said Apple ‘did a lot of engineering’ to make sure the experience is still great for users with older devices in iOS 12.  

The comments come as Apple has announced that if you paid for an iPhone battery replacement from Apple last year, you could be a £54 ($50) refund.

Apple has been charging a discounted £25 ($29) for out-of-warranty replacement batteries for the iPhone 6 and newer models since December. 

It dropped the price from the original £79 ($79) after admitting it used software updates to deliberately slow down some handsets with old batteries.

Gruber asked Joswiak why Apple's software boss, Craig Federighi (pictured) specifically highlighted performance data when he unveiled iOS 12 at the firm's annual Worldwide Developers Conference on Monday

Gruber asked Joswiak why Apple’s software boss, Craig Federighi (pictured) specifically highlighted performance data when he unveiled iOS 12 at the firm’s annual Worldwide Developers Conference on Monday

DO YOU QUALIFY FOR A REFUND ON YOUR iPHONE BATTERY REPLACEMENT?

Apple slashed the price of its out-of-warranty battery replacement by £54 ($50) after it was forced to admit that it was intentionally slowing down older iPhone models behind users’ back.

The US company is now offering to refund the difference to customers who paid full-price for their battery replacement last year.

Do I qualify for the credit?

To be eligible, you will need to own an iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, iPhone 7, or iPhone 7 Plus.

If you bought an out-of-warranty battery replacement for one of these phones between January 1 and December 28 last year (when Apple dropped the price of its battery replacements) at an Apple Store, Apple Repair Centre, or one of Apple’s authorised service provider then you qualify for the credit.

What do I have to do?

Nothing. Apple says it will get in touch with anyone who qualifies for the credit. 

The US technology company says it will email customers between May 23 and July 27.

If you believe you are eligible but have not received an email from Apple, the company says you should reach out with evidence of the out-of-warranty repair before the end of the year.

Apple will contact any iPhone owners who are eligible for the refund before July 27. The £54 ($50) credit will be refunded to the credit card used to make the original purchase

Apple will contact any iPhone owners who are eligible for the refund before July 27. The £54 ($50) credit will be refunded to the credit card used to make the original purchase

Do I get cash?

Afraid not. Instead, Apple will issue a credit on the credit card used to pay for the replacement.

If the company has your contact details, Apple will drop you a note to let you know when the credit has been processed.

Does everyone get the same credit?

Apple has tailored the credit so that it matches with the discount now applied to an out-of-warranty battery replacement in your country.

For example, UK users will find a £54 credit issued to their card, while US customers will only be handed back $50. 

It claimed it wanted to prevent unexpected shutdowns, which can often occur when the processor tries to draw too much power from an older battery cell.

But its failure to tell users about slowing down of phones provoked widespread outcry, with many replacing their batteries at full price to improve performance.

Apple now says it will refund the difference to these users using credits – but they have to be claimed. 

To be eligible for the £54 ($50) credit, users need to have an iPhone 6 or more recent,

Apple says it will contact all eligible customers via email between May 23 and July 27 with instructions on how to obtain their £54 ($50) credit.

Those who are eligible for the credit, but do not receive an email from Apple should reach out to the company before the end of the year.

Apple CEO Tim Cook apologised to customers after it was revealed the company was quietly slowing  some iPhone models without the owners' knowledge

Apple CEO Tim Cook apologised to customers after it was revealed the company was quietly slowing some iPhone models without the owners’ knowledge

‘Proof of service at an Apple authorised service location may be required,’ the company warns.

The £54 ($50) discount to out-of-warranty battery replacements is scheduled to end on December 31 2018. 

Last year, Apple apologised for the decision to throttle iPhone performance in an open letter to customers.

‘We know that some of you feel Apple has let you down. We apologise,’ the letter read. 

Disgruntled iPhone customers have filed at least 59 lawsuits accusing Apple of slowing down their phones so they would be encouraged to buy a new one. 

The case could become one of the biggest legal challenges since it was first debuted in 2007, the Wall Street Journal reported. 

HOW APPLE’S THROTTLING WORKS 

Apple says with a low battery state of charge, a higher chemical age, or colder temperatures, users are more likely to experience unexpected shutdowns. 

To get around this, it introduces software in iOS to manage the issue.  

‘This power management works by looking at a combination of the device temperature, battery state of charge, and the battery’s impedancem’ Apple says.

‘Only if these variables require it, iOS will dynamically manage the maximum performance of some system components, such as the CPU and GPU in order to prevent unexpected shutdowns. 

‘As a result, the device workloads will self-balance, allowing a smoother distribution of system tasks, rather than larger, quick spikes of performance all at once. In some cases, a user may not notice any differences in daily device performance. The level of perceived change depends on how much power management is required for a particular device.

In cases that require more extreme forms of this power management, Apple says users may notice effects such as:

  • Longer app launch times
  • Lower frame rates while scrolling
  • Backlight dimming (which can be overridden in Control Center)
  • Lower speaker volume by up to -3dB
  • Gradual frame rate reductions in some apps
  • During the most extreme cases, the camera flash will be disabled as visible in the camera UI
  • Apps refreshing in background may require reloading upon launch

However, it says the following areas are not affected:

  • Cellular call quality and networking throughput performance
  • Captured photo and video quality
  • GPS performance
  • Location accuracy
  • Sensors like gyroscope, accelerometer, barometer
  • Apple Pay

The first lawsuits were filed after Apple disclosed in December its software updates purposely reduce the performance of older iPhone models in order to preserve battery life. 

The plaintiffs are seeking unspecified financial amounts, attorney fees and free iPhone battery replacements. 

They also want Apple to release a corrective advertising campaign.

With the launch of iOS 11.3 earlier this year, Apple enabled customers to see whether their iPhone performance was being intentionally throttled — and manually switch off the feature.

With the launch of iOS 11.3, Apple enables iPhone owners to see whether the performance of their handset is being throttled. Customers with a degraded battery can schedule a replacement at the discounted rate from within the Settings menu

With the launch of iOS 11.3, Apple enables iPhone owners to see whether the performance of their handset is being throttled. Customers with a degraded battery can schedule a replacement at the discounted rate from within the Settings menu

Dubbed Battery Health, the software feature can be found in Settings > Battery > Battery Health.

Apple offers users an estimation of how well the battery in their iPhone is performing, with those below 80 per cent capacity being labelled as ‘significantly degraded’.

When this happens, the company will surface a link for customers to apply for a battery replacement.



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