Unfixable problem with iPhone 7 Plus - incoming and outgoing calls will not connect
Hi,
I purchased a new iPhone 7Plus in March 2017 from the Apple Store in Chicago for (I think) about $900. I also purchased Apple Care with it. On July 1, 2019, I experienced an issue where I cannot send our receive phone calls. The phone call appear to connect for a fraction of a second and is then dropped. I went to the Genius Bar and after running diagnostics, they tell me this is an issue that cannot be fixed. To be clear, the phone was not damaged in any way - no water damage or anything else. Frankly, it looks brand new. I think they said it was a software issue. So, it was not damage that I had caused. They further told me the phone is past warranty and Apple Care (2 years?) is also expired. They said a work around was to use AirPods on Bluetooth and that would work for phone calls. But that is not a long-term solution as people calling me will hear their calls dropped.
So I have been using Mac product for over 20 years - exclusively Mac computers, iPads and iPhones. I understand redundancy and I understand at a certain point older Mac products will no longer be supported by software upgrades. But this is the first time I have been disappointed by Apple. I have a 2.5 year old iPhone, well-cared for, no user-caused damage and there is a problem that cannot be fixed. Is the life expectancy of an iPhone now only 2.5 years?
Anyone else having the same problem?
Thanks.