Apple sued after disclosing it purposely slowed down older iPhones

Apple is facing class-action lawsuits from owners in several US states for not disclosing sooner that it issued software updates deliberately slowing older-model phones so that ageing batteries lasted longer, saying Apple's silence led them to wrongly conclude that their only option was to buy newer, pricier iPhones.

Apple had on 20 December confirmed that it has implemented power management features in its older iPhones to improve performance and prevent unexpected shutdowns, slowing some apps to conserve power as the battery in the devices starts to degrade (See: Apple confirms it slows down older iPhones to conderve bettery life).

The allegations were in a lawsuit filed on 21 December in Chicago federal court on behalf of five iPhone owners from Illinois, Ohio, Indiana and North Carolina, all of whom say they would never have bought new iPhones had Apple told them that simply replacing the batteries would have sped up their old ones. The suit alleges Apple violated consumer fraud laws.

Stefan Bogdanovich and Dakota Speas, residents of Los Angeles, represented by Wilshire Law Firm, have filed a lawsuit with the US District Court for the Central District of California accusing Apple of slowing down their older iPhone models after the launch of its new models.

The second lawsuit has been filed by Chicago Sun-Times in Chicago claiming that Apple is in violation of business laws by partaking in deceptive business practices in the state of Illinois, and thus also in Indiana and North Carolina. "Apple is slowing down its older phones without telling customers is deemed purposeful, and if proven, constitutes the unlawful and decisive withholding of material information," according to the lawsuit's press release.

The lawsuit demands Apple stop these practices and also shell out a penalty for damages.

Both suits came a day after Apple confirmed what high-tech sleuths outside the company already observed: the company had deployed software to slow some phones. Apple said it was intended as a fix to deal with degraded lithium-ion batteries that could otherwise suddenly die.

''Our goal is to deliver the best experience for customers, which includes overall performance and prolonging the life of their devices,'' an Apple statement said. It said it released the fix for iPhone 6, iPhone 6s and iPhone SE and later extended it to iPhone 7.

"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," Apple said on Thursday.

The Chicago lawsuit suggests Apple's motive may have been sinister, though it offers no evidence in the filing. ''Apple's decision to purposefully throttle down these devices'', it says, was undertaken to fraudulently induce consumers to purchase the latest iPhone.

Plaintiff Kirk Pedelty, of North Carolina, contacted Apple as his frustration grew. However, the lawsuit says, ''Nobody from Apple customer support suggested that he replace his battery to improve the performance of his iPhone. Frustrated by slowdowns and intermittent shutdowns of his iPhone 7, Pedelty purchased an iPhone 8.''

The lawsuit seeks class-action status to represent thousands of iPhone owners nationwide. Basically, the lawsuits demand the replacement of the old iPhone and compensation for the loss.