Apple hit with new iPhone throttling class action in California

AppleInsider

A fresh class action lawsuit lodged in California seeks to bring Apple to task for quietly building iPhone-throttling battery management tools into previous versions of its iOS operating system, an action that allegedly hindered and interfered with device performance.

Filed with the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, today's lawsuit is the latest in a long line of similar complaints lodged in courts across the country.

Among the causes of action laid out by plaintiffs are counts of trespass to chattels, violation of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), violation of California's Computer Data Access and Fraud Act, unfair business practices and false advertisement.

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.

First released in iOS 10.2.1, the hardware management tool was included in subsequent iOS versions to mitigate negative effects of aging iPhone batteries, specifically unexpected shutdowns suffered by certain iPhone 6 and 6s devices. Critics claim Apple failed to adequately inform users about the feature and its ability to slow down performance without user consent, as release notes accompanying the 10.2.1 release state only that the update "improves power management during peak workloads to avoid unexpected shutdowns on iPhone."

A Reddit user discovered the CPU throttling function by running impromptu benchmarking tests on their personal device, setting off a firestorm of complaints and rekindling rumors of a so-called planned obsolescence scheme.

Further testing from third parties confirmed the presence of an undisclosed throttling process, prompting Apple to issue an apology to iPhone owners for a lack of transparency. In a bid to quell customer concerns, the company slashed prices on out-of-warranty battery replacements and introduced a battery health tool in iOS that allows users to disable the throttling feature.

Despite its best efforts, Apple was saddled with a series of class-action lawsuits and government inquiries. In April 2018, the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation ordered the consolidation of 61 class action complaints targeting the slowdown controversy. New cases continue to pop up, however, with the latest filed with a California court in August.

As with previous cases, plaintiffs seek class certification, unspecified damages with interest and attorneys' fees.

iPhone Slowdown Lawsuit October 2019 by Mikey Campbell on Scribd

andrewj5790

Dumbest lawsuit ever. 

chaicka

Americans are really strange at times. Why would one prefer to have their iPhones crashing instead of having it run stably but at slightly reduced speed, esp when most times that performance degradation isn’t noticeable.

I was among those who had random crashing and auto-shutdown (think was iPhone 6s) which was getting very irritating. It was only much later that it was announced as a battery quality issue and a recall program initiated.

commentzilla

chaicka said:

Americans are really strange at times. Why would one prefer to have their iPhones crashing instead of having it run stably but at slightly reduced speed, esp when most times that performance degradation isn’t noticeable.

I was among those who had random crashing and auto-shutdown (think was iPhone 6s) which was getting very irritating. It was only much later that it was announced as a battery quality issue and a recall program initiated.

The point of the lawsuit is to make money, that's it. The phone (all smartphones) have to either throttle when the battery ages or risk instant crashes and possible data loss. Either way Apple will get sued, even if everyone else has the same issues, because they are high profile with lots of cash to settle. 100% bullshit.

leavingthebigg

chaicka said:

Americans are really strange at times. Why would one prefer to have their iPhones crashing instead of having it run stably but at slightly reduced speed, esp when most times that performance degradation isn’t noticeable.

I was among those who had random crashing and auto-shutdown (think was iPhone 6s) which was getting very irritating. It was only much later that it was announced as a battery quality issue and a recall program initiated.

Many Americans, not all Americans. I’m an American who wants Apple to request its legal fees be paid by the litigants and the law firm representing the litigants. 

radarthekat

I want to see how the plaintives express harm.  Because without proof of harm, there’s no damages to be had.

chasm

I predict this one will do exactly as well as all the previous ones.

dhawkins541

This may be an unpopular opinion but $&@? these people. If you're too stupid to understand a battery that you're charging sometimes multiple times a day for several years in most instances will degrade then you got some hard lessons coming in life. If you have a faulty device by all means apple should do you a solid, but if you've had it for quite a while and it's not perfect anymore a company doesn't owe you a new phone or a fat check. 

But I'm open to opinions…not attacks

Lara Croft 835

chaicka said:

Americans are really strange at times. 

At times ? 

coolfactor

If Apple had built in a larger-capacity battery, then people would sue the company for the burden of having to carry the phone around.

lkrupp

radarthekat said:

I want to see how the plaintives express harm.  Because without proof of harm, there’s no damages to be had.

All you have to do is find a sympathetic jury that thinks all companies are evil. These would usually be blue collar individuals, union members, the underemployed. A good lawyer combined with a good jury consultant can hand select a jury almost assured to find for the plaintiff. Once that happens proof of harm doesn’t matter, the law doesn’t matter, nothing matters. That jury will award all it can to the plaintiffs. That’s why these cases are usually settled before any trial. I live in Madison County, Illinois which is known as a judicial hellhole. It’s a unionized, democrat party controlled, lower middle class demographic. One time I was dismissed from jury duty because I had a college education. The minute the plaintiff’s lawyer found out I was educated he gave a thumbs down. Personal injury cases are always filed in Madison County because juries here are 100% guaranteed to find for plaintiffs every time. They like giving money away.

gerard

Being educated doesn’t make someone more intelligent than someone else. You just obtained more knowledge in a school setting. Don’t blame the people who get summoned to court as a juror. Blame the lawyers bringing these frivolous lawsuits. No lawsuit; no jury selection. 

sergioz

I guarantee this case will be dismissed. 

Ciprol

Frivolous court case again! In the end, it unnecessarily increases the cost of living for all and similarly applies to many medical/pharmaceutical cases. Pathetic society!

StrangeDays

lkrupp said:

radarthekat said:

I want to see how the plaintives express harm.  Because without proof of harm, there’s no damages to be had.

All you have to do is find a sympathetic jury that thinks all companies are evil. These would usually be blue collar individuals, union members, the underemployed.

This sentiment reeks of so much bullshit it’s difficult to breathe. The working class and those looking to bargain collectively with the executive class doesn’t mean they think “corporation are evil!” It means there’s a desire to organize to help level the playing field against the inherent advantage large employers have over workers. The removal of unions and collective bargaining bears such a striking correlation with the decrease of the middle class that I believe no rational person can deny causation. 


...but nice nice job perpetuating the class warfare infighting that the mega-wealthy oligarchy who give no shits about working class or middle class depend on. Down with blue collar workers, rar! Good thing the executive class has educated fellows like you watching their backs!

seanismorris

We should sue Microsoft for dimming screens to save battery life...

Damages in the billions... for people needing glasses & contacts & LASIC due to eye strain.

nadriel

I’d need to buy a new battery. 2 years of use and battery is already at 80% peak performance capacity. But this one still lasts usually the whole day with no extra charging, so no hurry. 

I tested it for “fun” and sure enough it will have a shutdown if I max the power consumption around 30% battery left. Could turn off with even more battery, but I don’t really want to spend my days doing iterative tests I’m not getting paid for.

EDIT: checked and it was 79% maximum capacity already...

Mike Wuerthele

da Holland said:

look.......i am EFFING SICK AND TIRED of my devices ALL slowing down over time, there is NO REASON for this.....Apple should just cap each processor with software "upgrades" at the point where performance is maintained, and leave it at that. Apple can go to hell, they are OBVIOUSLY screwing with us.

You're aware that there's a toggle for what you want, right?

airnerd

Do auto, boat, tractor, etc makers deal with this when they put electronic governors on their products?  I know they don't for manual governors that have been in place since darn near the beginning of internal combustion engines.  The point is to put safeguards in place to prevent something from destroying itself.  

Nothing more.  

I get the anger over this being added AFTER a phone was purchased and people being upset.  But the battery program was instituted to fix the issue for anyone that wanted.  What more should Apple do?  Handle it better?  Yes.  Won't happen again I'm pretty sure.  But beyond that, let it go people!!!

lkrupp

StrangeDays said:

lkrupp said:

radarthekat said:

I want to see how the plaintives express harm.  Because without proof of harm, there’s no damages to be had.

All you have to do is find a sympathetic jury that thinks all companies are evil. These would usually be blue collar individuals, union members, the underemployed.

This sentiment reeks of so much bullshit it’s difficult to breathe. The working class and those looking to bargain collectively with the executive class doesn’t mean they think “corporation are evil!” It means there’s a desire to organize to help level the playing field against the inherent advantage large employers have over workers. The removal of unions and collective bargaining bears such a striking correlation with the decrease of the middle class that I believe no rational person can deny causation. 


...but nice nice job perpetuating the class warfare infighting that the mega-wealthy oligarchy who give no shits about working class or middle class depend on. Down with blue collar workers, rar! Good thing the executive class has educated fellows like you watching their backs!

Then why do you think most of the lawsuits against Apple are filed in specific locations, like East Texas? It ain’t because the juries there are objective. Lawsuits are filed in those locations precisely because the people there are more likely to award large sums of money. The lawyers know it and so should you. I was a member of a union for 34 years at AT&T (TCEU, CWA, IBEW) not because I wanted to but because Illinois is a union shop state. That means you must pay union dues whether you join or not, a nice little gotcha. Then there’s something called COPE, the union equivalent of a PAC. For most of my time at AT&T the union used dues to fund COPE, no opting out. Now only voluntary contributions are allowed. Take it from me that the union leaders I dealt with were as radical anti-corporation as it gets, fanatical Democrats, and hard left in their political and social ideology. Funny thing was when one of them got promoted to management they immediately did a complete 180 and became dutiful company men. 

airnerd

lkrupp said:

radarthekat said:

I want to see how the plaintives express harm.  Because without proof of harm, there’s no damages to be had.

All you have to do is find a sympathetic jury that thinks all companies are evil. These would usually be blue collar individuals, union members, the underemployed. A good lawyer combined with a good jury consultant can hand select a jury almost assured to find for the plaintiff. Once that happens proof of harm doesn’t matter, the law doesn’t matter, nothing matters. That jury will award all it can to the plaintiffs. That’s why these cases are usually settled before any trial. I live in Madison County, Illinois which is known as a judicial hellhole. It’s a unionized, democrat party controlled, lower middle class demographic. One time I was dismissed from jury duty because I had a college education. The minute the plaintiff’s lawyer found out I was educated he gave a thumbs down. Personal injury cases are always filed in Madison County because juries here are 100% guaranteed to find for plaintiffs every time. They like giving money away.

Something along the lines of "This CORPORATION has made billions..." and a sympathetic jury will award millions.  Just a sad fact.  Doing well means you are cheating in the eyes of some Americans.