iPhone 7 'Loop Disease' audio chip issue targeted in class action complaint
A new class action complaint seeks damages and a hardware recall from Apple over the so-called iPhone 7 "Loop Disease," an issue that causes audio problems on impacted handsets and can ultimately render the device inoperable.
Apple's audio controller chip (highlighted) in iPhone 7 is at the core of the "loop disease" issue.
Lodged with the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, the complaint claims Apple knew of and concealed a hardware defect that renders certain audio features of iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus smartphones useless.
Three plaintiffs are named in the suit, each of whom saw their iPhone 7 succumb to a claimed defect. Referred to as an "Audio IC Defect," the symptoms of the apparent hardware issue are identical to those described by users who suffered a previously known problem dubbed "Loop Disease" by some repair industry insiders.
According to the filing, plaintiffs experienced "grayed out" speaker buttons while in calls, loss of voice command capabilities for Siri, an inoperable Voice Memos app, degradation of microphone fidelity and other audio-related issues. Handsets named as defective by the suit were sold between early 2017 and late 2018.
Two plaintiffs encountered the defect after Apple's express warranty expired, meaning they were responsible for repairs or replacements suggested by the company. The third plaintiff, who was informed by Apple that the speaker issues were related to cellular provider AT&T, continues to use their iPhone despite ongoing audio trouble.
The suit attributes the defect to what amounts to poor design. Specifically, iPhone 7's aluminum chassis is made from "substandard materials" that allows for flexion directly over the audio controller attached to the phone's logic board. Over time, solder connecting the audio IC chip to the logic board fails, resulting in a range of problems.
As noted in a 2018 report by Motherboard, independent technicians can fix Loop Disease by removing the audio chip and soldering a small length of wire between it and the logic board. The suit acknowledges the remedy, saying the connected wire allows the chip to remain in electrical contact with the board despite constant bending of the device casing.
Apple faced similar scrutiny -- and a lawsuit -- over a nearly identical hardware issue present in some iPhone 6 models. Dubbed "Touch Disease," the problem was related to broken solder connections on iPhone's touch controller, a result of continual flexing of the device chassis. Degradation of the connection manifested a series of problems, typically starting with the display of a creeping gray bar and ending with an inoperable touch screen.
Apple activated a repair program for Touch Disease and was for a time offering free out-of-warranty repairs on iPhone 7 devices exhibiting grayed-out audio options. The iPhone 7 initiative, which was not officially announced through public channels, has since been terminated.
Citing the out-of-warranty repairs, warranty claims, forum posts from affected customers and an internal repair document acknowledging an iPhone 7 speakerphone problem, the suit claims Apple is aware of Loop Disease, but routinely refuses to conduct repairs without charge.
The suit claims breach of Apple's express warranty, breach of implied warranty, violation of the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, various allegations of fraud, negligent misrepresentation and unjust enrichment. Plaintiffs seek class status, damages, attorneys' fees and injunctive relief, the latter of which could include an order forcing Apple to repair, recall or replace impacted iPhones, extend applicable warranties or provide class members notice of the alleged defect.
Apple's audio controller chip (highlighted) in iPhone 7 is at the core of the "loop disease" issue.
Lodged with the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, the complaint claims Apple knew of and concealed a hardware defect that renders certain audio features of iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus smartphones useless.
Three plaintiffs are named in the suit, each of whom saw their iPhone 7 succumb to a claimed defect. Referred to as an "Audio IC Defect," the symptoms of the apparent hardware issue are identical to those described by users who suffered a previously known problem dubbed "Loop Disease" by some repair industry insiders.
According to the filing, plaintiffs experienced "grayed out" speaker buttons while in calls, loss of voice command capabilities for Siri, an inoperable Voice Memos app, degradation of microphone fidelity and other audio-related issues. Handsets named as defective by the suit were sold between early 2017 and late 2018.
Two plaintiffs encountered the defect after Apple's express warranty expired, meaning they were responsible for repairs or replacements suggested by the company. The third plaintiff, who was informed by Apple that the speaker issues were related to cellular provider AT&T, continues to use their iPhone despite ongoing audio trouble.
The suit attributes the defect to what amounts to poor design. Specifically, iPhone 7's aluminum chassis is made from "substandard materials" that allows for flexion directly over the audio controller attached to the phone's logic board. Over time, solder connecting the audio IC chip to the logic board fails, resulting in a range of problems.
As noted in a 2018 report by Motherboard, independent technicians can fix Loop Disease by removing the audio chip and soldering a small length of wire between it and the logic board. The suit acknowledges the remedy, saying the connected wire allows the chip to remain in electrical contact with the board despite constant bending of the device casing.
Apple faced similar scrutiny -- and a lawsuit -- over a nearly identical hardware issue present in some iPhone 6 models. Dubbed "Touch Disease," the problem was related to broken solder connections on iPhone's touch controller, a result of continual flexing of the device chassis. Degradation of the connection manifested a series of problems, typically starting with the display of a creeping gray bar and ending with an inoperable touch screen.
Apple activated a repair program for Touch Disease and was for a time offering free out-of-warranty repairs on iPhone 7 devices exhibiting grayed-out audio options. The iPhone 7 initiative, which was not officially announced through public channels, has since been terminated.
Citing the out-of-warranty repairs, warranty claims, forum posts from affected customers and an internal repair document acknowledging an iPhone 7 speakerphone problem, the suit claims Apple is aware of Loop Disease, but routinely refuses to conduct repairs without charge.
The suit claims breach of Apple's express warranty, breach of implied warranty, violation of the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, various allegations of fraud, negligent misrepresentation and unjust enrichment. Plaintiffs seek class status, damages, attorneys' fees and injunctive relief, the latter of which could include an order forcing Apple to repair, recall or replace impacted iPhones, extend applicable warranties or provide class members notice of the alleged defect.
Audio IC Defect Class Action by Mikey Campbell on Scribd
Comments
This is is no longer about consumer rights, it is all about blood sucking lawyers and lobbyists.
Hot coffee can’t be hot. Knife need a warning label about it will cut you open. It makes me wonder if gun manufacturers put warning on guns about it can kill people. But I guess it doesn’t matter.
Sorry for bad English.
What would be good is semi-regular series that updates all the Apple consumer lawsuits and their status, sort of like the update on Apple TV+ shows. Such a column will also give us a clearer picture if this Apple Lawsuit niche, money-making machine is really of any value to plaintiff's industry or just a waste of time.
I’m glad it’s been working fine other than the battery, which I’ve replaced myself last year.
Before I go further, I’m not gonna be joining this class action as I don’t believe in this kind of process. However I can’t help but feel a bit upset that they weren’t able to diagnose such a a HW fault, and that because of the unknown nature of the fault I couldn’t go back to my company to say it’s would cost this much to fix. Maybe that’s just life, but apple is a premium brand with a quality reputation so I expected them to do better, especially as I’d hope they’d want to find out why it wasn’t working to improve things in future models. ( I’m an engineer and that’s what we care about, as it’s a continuous process to track down everything to get to a low field failure rate)
anyway iI posted this (it’s my first post - so you can tell the subject effected me enough to post) in case anyone else had problems with audio on this or other models, with the hope that it might help, and that maybe the message will get back to Apple and they can keep improving their products and service
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For myself, I took advantage of the iPhone 6 Touch Disease and got a new phone out of it: While Touch Disease is real, it is also relative. Mine didn't breakdown till after 3 years of use and only then when I added my grandson's smaller iPhone 7 to the same pocket where I carried my 6+ while we played basketball. The 6+ bent over the smaller 7 and touch disease developed.
So, was that a defective phone or misuse on my part? I think the answer may be "Both".
And I suspect that this problem may be similar: if you don't "over stress" the phone, the problem doesn't happen: But, what is "over stressing"?
An analogy might be: when I tore down one of my early IBM Thinkpads I found that it contained a separate full size titanium frame inside. That obviously added considerable bulk to the laptop but it also made it near bullet proof -- NOTHING was going to bend inside of there. Nothing! Apple could easily avoid these problems by adding thick, bulky titanium frame to the inside of its phones -- but then we would likely complain that they weren't slim enough.
These are difficult problems that force Tim to earn his paycheck.
I always see what Apple (or any other company) will agree to fix or replace before dumping a product. Even if you're completely fed up with it you can sell it or gift it to someone who does want it. I've had countless repairs with Apple over the decades, but I keep coming back to them because they support their products much better than other vendors. I see it from the very pro and very anti Apple fans alike. They live in a fantasy world where they assume that a tech company building products in China using hundreds of components sourced from dozens of companies are never suppose to have an issue. Frankly, I'm amazed that something that has the yield and mindshare Apple has with the iPhone doesn't have more issues.
So is putting a phone in your back pocket typical and expected use? Since you see virtually every female between the ages of 14 and 40 doing it I would argue that it is. (Why clothing designers chose to design women’s clothes without adequate pockets and why women continue to buy them is a separate issue.)
Beyond the expected use is the question of manufacturing vs design defects and what companies should be expected to cover. The Apple warranty covers manufacturing defects for one year. Manufacturing defects are present at the time of purchase, so that clearly doesn’t apply here. If one argues that this is a design defect, how long should Apple be held liable? If a device quits working 2 years after purchase, it has functioned for twice as long as the warranty, but clearly not as long as most would hope, and can it be considered a design defect in this case?