Apple sued over 'broken promises' regarding 3G speeds - Page 2

Originally Posted by macFanDave

I generally don't like class-action suits, but I have to admit that I kind of agree with this one. I got an iPhone 3G a couple of weeks ago and I am disappointed by its 3G-ness.

Originally Posted by paxman

And I'm suing Lotus. There is no way my Elise can do the advertised speed on my local roads. There should be a law that charges people the cost of wasting courts and taxpayers money dealing with claims like this.

Originally Posted by AppleInsider

A new class-action lawsuit claims Apple knowingly profited from faulty iPhone 3Gs that couldn't stay connected to the faster 3G network, costing buyers inferior service and missed opportunities to use an alternative provider.

California resident Jason Medway filed the 14-page complaint in a Northern California court this week on behalf of himself and thousands of other California customers who purchased the iPhone 3G.

The suit revives claims that the smartphone, launched last June, has a defect that keeps it from maintaining a signal on AT&T's 3G network. *Medway alleges Apple is aware of the problem yet continues to advertise the device's high speed while ignoring complaints and requests to remedy the situation.

"Despite knowledge that the iPhone 3G cannot maintain consistent 3G service, defendant continues to solicit new orders in a multimillion-dollar television and print advertising campaign for the iPhone 3G," the complaint says. *"Apple simply replicated the problems by providing consumers with replacement phones and thus subject to the same issues which prompted the replacements."

The suit goes on to argue that, as a result of Apple's misrepresentations, "thousands of consumers who purchased Apple's iPhone 3G and accompanying 3G service from AT&T have experienced broken promises regarding the phone's transmission speeds."

Attorneys for Medway are seeking damages for thousands of class members in excess of $5 million. *The complaint claims the plaintiffs should receive full restitution, including the "disgorgement" of all profits Apple received from sales of the device plus interest at the "highest rate allowable by law", along with attorneys' fees.

The complaint is the latest in a long saga dating back to last August that's pitted the iPhone maker against customers who believe the iPhone's 3G performance is subpar. *In early December Apple argued in response to one such suit that "no reasonable person" would take the statements in iPhone 3G ads as fact. *The response was preceded by a succession of lawsuits that claimed Apple and AT&T over-saturated the network, exploited its customers, fell short of promised performance, deceived customers of the real download speed, and even failed to warn about the "defective" third-party apps found on the App Store.

Ironically, an independent study commissioned by Wired last year concluded that iPhone data speed problems "have more to do with carriers' networks than with Apple's handsets."

AT&T, however, is not named as a defendant in Medway's suit.

Originally Posted by StormChaser

In Australia there is the same issue with using 3G on the iPhone with the Optus Network. the other 4 carriers that have 3G service do not seem to have issues with the iPhone. i prefer to have 3G off as the battery life seems to be only 50% but that maybe due to the network cutting in and out and drawing down the battery life. often with the phone on 3G, the signal just drops out and does not reconnect. the only thing to do is to turn the 3G off and back on or leave it off.
Even the call quality seems to be down as the calls drop or cut in and out. shameful for apple and Optus with what is otherwise a remarkable device way ahead of its time and competitors. at least 5 years ahead.

Originally Posted by jragosta

The fundamental problem is the absurd sense of entitlement that so many people have gotten. They buy something and expect perfection. It should do everything they could ever wish 100% of the time no matter what.

Sorry, folks, but it's the real world. Nothing works perfectly all the time.

In reality, the iPhone is a great device. On my old iPhone, browsing the web was painfully slow, so I hardly ever used it. On the iPhone 3G, it operates at decent speeds and is quite useful, so I use it quite a bit. Is it twice as fast? Probably, but who cares? It's much faster than the old one and is now fast enough that I can use it.

Does my iPhone occasionally drop calls? Sure. Just like every other phone I've ever had. Does it drop calls more than the other phones in the household (all using AT&T)? I don't think so - they all occasionally drop a call, but not frequently enough to be a problem. Even if the iPhone was marginally worse, it takes 2 seconds to return a call, so I would be able to live with it to get the other advantages of the iPhone.

Was the iPhone more expensive than other phones? Maybe yes, maybe no. It was more expensive than some and less expensive than others. But, again, who cares? I knew the price when I bought it, so it was a choice I made. People whining about the price don't have to buy one.

Do I like being locked into AT&T? Not really, but I don't really care. I used to use Sprint and before that Verizon and there really isn't all that much difference. My sales people claimed that when they were in very remote locations that AT&T service was better than the others, so we went with AT&T, but 99% of the time, I just don't think it matters all that much.

If you don't like the iPhone, don't buy it. If you buy it and it fails to meet your expectations, you have 30 days to return it. Just stop the whining stuff. I hope the court throws this one out. Quickly.

Originally Posted by Murphster

Please can you share with us all any advertising from Lotus that mentions how fast the car can be driven. As far as I am aware car companies do not advertise top speeds precisely for that reason. The figures in relation to speed and engine size quoted are acceleration speed, not actual driving speeds.

But hey, you seem so sure so please show us.

Originally Posted by paxman

Go to their website, mate. Not on billboards but advertising all the same.