Apple Class Action Lawsuits - Multiple iPhone Slowdown Lawsuits

Apple Class Action Lawsuits – Multiple iPhone Slowdown Lawsuits

Apple Class Action Lawsuits & Apple’s Recent Apology Letter

A Newburgh Gazette article, “Apple Faces at least 12 different class-action lawsuits over iPhone slowdowns,” reported that Apple has issued a letter addressing the iPhone slowdown “controversial practice . . . created to offset errors caused by the aging batteries inside” iPhones.

According to Apple’s December 28, 2017 letter, “A Message to Our Customers about iPhone Batteries and Performance”:

We’ve been hearing feedback from our customers about the way we handle performance for iPhones with older batteries and how we have communicated that process. We know that some of you feel Apple has let you down. We apologize. There’s been a lot of misunderstanding about this issue, so we would like to clarify and let you know about some changes we’re making.

Apple’s letter also addressed how batteries age, preventing unexpected shutdowns, recent user feedback, and how Apple is addressing customer concerns.  Apple’s letter also included a link to a new customer support page, “iPhone Battery and Performance.”

Apple Class Action Lawsuits – iPhone Slowdowns & Apple’s “Stark Reversal”

The Newburgh Gazette story also reported:

Earlier this month, users began noticing how their iPhones were slowing down over time, with benchmarking service Geekbench later concluding from its data that after iOS 10.2.1 previous year the iPhone 6, 6s, and SE encountered slow downs.”

. . . Apple said it’s been hearing the feedback. It’s a stark reversal for a company that once said iPhone users would never need to replace their batteries, and for a company that has always been suspected of slowing down their products to encourage users to upgrade to newer devices. While the company should address this problem by making the battery replacement free, we’ll acknowledge that cutting $50 off the out-of-warranty replacement fee is a step forward, at least. However, starting next month, Apple will offer a lower price: $29.

More recently with the introduction of iOS 11.2.0 similar throttling was discovered for iPhone 7 models with older batteries.

This means the price has dropped down from $79 to $29, and an iOS software update providing updates on iPhone battery health in early 2018 – though details on exactly how that will work have yet to be announced.

And the Newburgh Gazette story reported about multiple lawsuits Apple now faces “for not disclosing what it knew about its software updates ahead of time.”

Apple Class Action Lawsuits – Software Updates & Deliberate Slowdown of Older-Model iPhones To Make Batteries Last Longer

A Los Angeles Times story referenced in the Newburgh Gazette article, “Apple faces class-action lawsuits over slowed-down iPhones,” reported

iPhone owners from several states have filed at least nine class-action lawsuits against Apple Inc. for not disclosing sooner that its software updates deliberately slowed down older-model phones so batteries would last longer.

The lawsuits — filed in U.S. district courts in California, New York and Illinois — allege that Apple’s silence led the iPhone owners to wrongly conclude that they had to buy newer, pricier iPhones instead of simply replacing the battery.

Three of the lawsuits were filed by Los Angeles-area residents. One accuses Apple of fraud through concealment and unfair business practices. Another accuses Apple of breaching an implied contract — that is, it argues that when people buy iPhones, they do so with the assumption that Apple won’t “purposefully interfere with” the phones’ “usage or value.” The lawsuit says Apple did not get iPhone owners’ consent before meddling with the phones’ speed. The third alleges a slew of misdeeds, including fraud, false advertising and unjust enrichment.

. . .

The lawsuits came after Apple confirmed last week what high-tech sleuths outside the company had already observed: The company deployed software to slow some phones. Apple said the software was intended as a fix to deal with degraded lithium-ion batteries that could otherwise suddenly die. [Emphasis added]

Apple Class Action Lawsuits iPhone Slowdown

Image: Pixabay, kropekk_pl, CC0 1.0 Universal

Apple Class Action Lawsuits – Apple iPhone Owners

If you own an iPhone 6, iPhone 6S, iPhone SE or iPhone 7 which was upgraded to iOS 10.2.1, or a later version, and have questions about your potential legal rights, please fill out the form above on the right or send an e-mail to [email protected].  For additional information, please click here or here.

Kehoe Law Firm, P.C.