Apple has been hit with a lawsuit claiming that recent iOS software updates "damaged iPhones by dramatically lowing processing speeds and battery life."
The lawsuit claims that a slew of users have been reporting problems with iOS 14.5, iOS 14.5.1, and iOS 14.6 related to performance throttling and battery drain.
More specifically, the complaint attempts to draw a connection between battery drain and performance bugs and allegations of planned obsolescence.
"Apple benefits from not having to tell existing and prospective iPhone users that updates touted to add desirable features and to fix security and other bugs have a significant countervailing downside in the form of decreased processing speed and battery life," the complaint reads.
The lawsuit alleges that "degrading device performance ahead of product launches may also allow Apple to drum up demand for faster phones with longer battery life."
Essentially, the lawsuit alleges that Apple is ostensibly trying to trick users into downloading software updates so that it can slow down iPhones in an attempt to get users to buy new ones.
The complaint, which seeks class status, asks for an enjoinment on the alleged practices and damages.
Interestingly, the lawsuit says that users cannot individually download an update's security patches without downloading the entire update. Apple recently announced that it would change that behavior at WWDC 2021.
Follow all of WWDC 2021 with comprehensive AppleInsider coverage of the week-long event from June 7 through June 11, including details on iOS 15, iPadOS 15, watchOS 8, macOS Monterey and more.
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19 Comments
And once again the parasites are circling. Of course in a couple of weeks when the next update fixes this, that won’t end the suit, because it isn’t about going after Apple for wrongdoing. It’s about greed.
You can not say Apple is throttling your phone performance at the same time as causing your battery life to be shorten. Throttling should increasing battery life.
These people need decide whether their performance has gone in the hole or the battery life.
I personally think these people have older phones which were fast in their day and then they see their friends new phones running the latest iOS and they get phone envy then think the iOS caused the phone to slow down or they just noticed the 3 yr old battery is not what it use be. I seen old battery work okay one week then the next week they do not what you hold a charge.
Jesse James was once asked why he robbed banks?
He replied “Because that’s where the money is.”
I don’t blame Apple for my SE 2016 running slow. It’s 5 years old and on it’s second battery.