Apple has been the target of criticism in plenty over the past few days as it was accused of intentionally slowing down older iPhones to encourage users to upgrade to the latest models.
In its defense, the company later issued a statement addressing the issue, stating that Lithium-ion batteries age over time, and in order to smooth out battery usage during peak demands, the company throttles processor speed to prevent unexpected shutdowns; referring to this as a feature, the firm stated that it was present and functioning as intended "for iPhone 6, iPhone 6s and iPhone SE" and was also extended to iPhone 7 with iOS 11.2.
The question of whether other smartphone manufacturers are utilizing similar strategies to extend the battery life of their devices by deteriorating their performance as they get older is the first one to come to mind, and as expected, most claim to be not mimicking Apple in any such practice.
In a statement to The Verge, an HTC spokesperson simply stated that this “is not something we do," with a Motorola representative also stating that that company does "not throttle CPU performance based on older batteries.”
In a statement to PhoneArena, LG states with simplicity that it "Never have, never will! We care what our customers think." Samsung, on the other hand, provides a more detailed statement:
Product quality has been and will always be Samsung Mobile's top priority. We ensure extended battery life of Samsung mobile devices through multi-layer safety measures, which include software algorithms that govern the battery charging current and charging duration. We do not reduce CPU performance through software updates over the lifecycles of the phone.
Apple has, seemingly by its own fault, left users frustrated, with even class action lawsuits being filed against it. While the company has now apologized for its deeds, perhaps it should have been more transparent to its users in the first place.
Source: The Verge, PhoneArena
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