Apple has issued an apology to customers after its admission to slowing down older iPhones sparked consumer outrage and national headlines.
In an attempt to regain the trust of consumers, the company will reduce the cost of an out-of-warranty replacement battery by $50 to $29 (US). Canadian customers will see a reduction to $35, down from $99.
It was initially announced that the deductions would take effect in late January 2018 and would continue through to December. However, as per public demand, Apple has amended its offering to make replacement batteries available around the world immediately, and will still continue through to December, 2018.
“We expected to need more time to be ready, but we are happy to offer our customers the lower pricing right away. Initial supplies of some replacement batteries may be limited,” said an Apple spokesperson in a statement.
The rumour that Apple throttles the batteries of older iPhones had reared its head on the internet in the past, but the company essentially confirmed those suspicions on Dec., 21 after several Reddit users brought the phenomenon to light once again.
When contacted for comment on the issue, Apple released the following statement:
“Our goal is to deliver the best experience for customers, which includes overall performance and prolonging the life of their devices. Lithium-ion batteries become less capable of supplying peak current demands when in cold conditions, have a low battery charge or as they age over time, which can result in the device unexpectedly shutting down to protect its electronic components.
“Last year we released a feature for iPhone 6, iPhone 6s and iPhone SE to smooth out the instantaneous peaks only when needed to prevent the device from unexpectedly shutting down during these conditions. We’ve now extended that feature to iPhone 7 with iOS 11.2, and plan to add support for other products in the future.”
WATCH: Class-action lawsuit filed against Apple following admission it slows down aging iPhones
In this statement, Apple claims that it slows down older generations of iPhones as a way to protect aging batteries on the devices. The company said this feature was implemented on the iPhone 6, 6S, SE and 7 in a software update.
The admission made headlines and customers launched two class-action lawsuits against the smartphone giant — a breach-of-contract suit filed by two iPhone users in Los Angeles, and another suit filed in Illinois.
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The plaintiffs argued that the iOS updates forced them to purchase the latest iPhone model. The lawsuit is seeking an unspecified amount of money in damages.
Both plaintiffs in the Los Angeles suit were iPhone 7 owners and claimed to have ““suffered interferences to their iPhone usage due to the intentional slowdowns.”
Global News contacted Apple for comment on the lawsuits.
“Our goal is to deliver the best experience for customers, which includes overall performance and prolonging the life of their devices,” Apple spokesperson Tara Hendela said.
In the company’s most recent public statement, it once again reiterated that “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.”
The post went on to explain the characteristics of lithium-ion batteries, and why rechargeable batteries become less effective as they chemically age.
In addition to the apology and reductions on the price of replacement batteries, Apple also published a post explaining in more detail how the performance of an iPhone relates to the device’s battery.