What you need to know
- A class action lawsuit has been filed against Apple over iOS 10 battery management feature.
- It's the same update at the heart of the throttling controversy in late 2017, which lead to an Apple apology.
- According to the suit, iPhone 6, 6 Plus, 6s, 6s Plus, SE, 7 and 7 Plus are the models affected.
A class action lawsuit has been filed against Apple in the state of California, over Apple's battery management tools in previous iterations of iOS. According to a report from AppleInsider:
Plaintiffs allege Apple harmed owners of iPhone 6, 6 Plus, 6s, 6s Plus, SE, 7 and 7 Plus units by implementing an iOS feature that, under certain conditions, temporarily throttles an iPhone's processor during instances of heavy load.
The update in question was first introduced in iOS 10.2.1, and was at the center of controversy in late 2017. Apple argued that the feature was introduced to stop older Apple devices from randomly shutting down by managing their performance. However, public outcry was so great that Apple issued an open letter of apology and reduced the price of out-of-warranty battery replacements to just $29.
This latest lawsuit is about that same feature, and states:
This class action is brought against Apple for its fraudulent, unlawful, deceptive and intentional interference with the operation and performance of the Devices, which were updated with any of the iOS described below, and Apple's failure to disclose that it would purposefully slow down the performance of the Devices through such updates. The iOS affecting the Devices include the following iOS 10 and 11 updates: iOS 10.2.1, iOS 10.3, iOS 10.3.1, iOS 10.3.2, iOS 10.3.3, iOS 11.0.1, iOS 11.0.2, iOS 11.0.3, iOS 11.1, iOS 11.1.1, iOS 11.1.2, iOS 11.2, and iOS 11.2. Specifically, iOS 10.2.1 and iOS 11.2 shall be referred to as "iOS Updates."
The suit goes on to state that Apple's claim it was enhancing performance through updates was false, and that the iOS update unlawfully hindered and interfered with device performance. As such it claims Apple disregarded the rights of Plaintiffs and class members, and that they have suffered economic loss and damages as a result.
The action seeks to prevent Apple from "continuing the unfair business practices detailed", as well as payment of an unspecified amount of damages and restitution.
