Last week, it was revealed that Apple does indeed slow down older iPhones, or at least ones with older batteries. According to the company, new features in recent versions of iOS cause it to slow down components of the device to avoid shutdowns that would be caused by an old, weak battery. The firm is even facing legal trouble, as it didn't warn users that this was happening.
Today, Apple issued an apology statement, and a more in-depth explanation.
We’ve been hearing feedback from our customers about the way we handle performance for iPhones with older batteries and how we have communicated that process. We know that some of you feel Apple has let you down. We apologize. There’s been a lot of misunderstanding about this issue, so we would like to clarify and let you know about some changes we’re making.
First and foremost, we have never — and would never — do anything to intentionally shorten the life of any Apple product, or degrade the user experience to drive customer upgrades. Our goal has always been to create products that our customers love, and making iPhones last as long as possible is an important part of that.
Of course, "We know that some of you feel Apple has let you down" is basically the "I'm sorry that you got offended by what I said" of company apologies, but the firm is backing it up by discounting the price of replacement batteries. If you've got an iPhone 6 or later that needs a replacement battery, you can get one for $29 instead of $79. That offer will last from late January and throughout the rest of 2018.
Apple also promised that in early 2018, it will release an iOS update that will make it more transparent as to the health of the battery, and if it's affecting performance.
The firm also said that its "customers' trust means everything to us", and that it will "never stop working to earn and maintain it." It would seem that Apple will learn from this mistake, and will be more transparent about any changes that affect performance moving forward.
Of course, this seems like the type of story that might stick around. The average user might hear that Apple is slowing down older iPhones without taking the time to understand why it's happening.
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