Back in 2017, Apple faced controversy over throttling the performance of older iPhones following the release of the iOS 10.2.1 update. Users began reporting the issues and then Apple eventually admitted that this was true, writing an apology statement on its website and reducing the cost of battery replacements to $29. Following this, it faced a class action lawsuit over the way that this was communicated to users, as well as accusations that it was a tactic to encourage users to upgrade.
Following this, Apple introduced the "Battery Health" feature to iOS starting with iOS 11.3, which included the ability to view both the battery's maximum capacity as a percentage relative to when it was new, as well as the "Peak Performance Capability" feature which details when performance management is enabled on the device.
Jumping forward to 2020, Apple eventually agreed to settle these lawsuits by paying up to $500 million to customers that were affected. The eligibility criteria for the lawsuit was that the user was a U.S. owner of the iPhone 6, 6 Plus, 6s, 6s Plus, 7, 7 Plus, and/or SE running iOS 10.2.1 or an iPhone 7 or 7 Plus device that was running iOS 11.2 before the 21st December 2017.
Back to the present, the judge that has been overseeing the lawsuits has thrown out the final appeals from two iPhone owners, who were attempting to object to the settlement. This means that there are no further obstructions to the settlement deal. Therefore, payments can now be sent out to those who submitted a claim back in 2020.
These payments are now estimated to be approximately $65 per claimant, but currently, there is no confirmed time frame for payment to be received by the eligible users, which is reported to total 3 million.
Source: The Mercury News
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