“A class action lawsuit lodged with a New York district court on Tuesday dredges up claims that Apple engages in planned obsolescence, saying the company knew of potential compatibility issues when it foisted its latest iOS 9 software update on iPhone 4s owners,” Mikey Campbell reports for AppleInsider.
“Plaintiff Chaim Lerman asserts Apple engaged in deceptive trade practices and false advertisement by touting iOS 9 as compatible with legacy handsets dating back to iPhone 4s models,” Campbell reports. “In actuality, the complaint reads, iOS 9 significantly interferes with iPhone 4s performance, and because Apple security protocols prevent users from downgrading, owners were forced to choose between an inoperable device or spending hundreds of dollars on a new version.”
“The class, which includes more than 100 members, asserts iOS 9 bogged down their iPhone 4s devices to the point of being unfit for daily use,” Campbell reports. “Plaintiffs are seeking over $5 million in damages with an option to treble.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Not having a 4s handy (because it’s a freaking four-year old device!) on which to install iOS 9, we’ll assume it’s dog slow, but that it also does “work” as it’s listed as compatible on Apple’s iOS 9 page.
To avoid confusion (and class action lawsuits), Apple needs to inform the [redacted], uh… “less technically inclined user” that, yes, a four-year-old device may be compatible, but might also struggle with more advanced iOS versions. After all, the iPhone 4s debuted with iOS 5 and is powered by an A5! Or, if performance is indeed so hampered, just omit the really old devices from the iOS compatibility list as some smartphone users might not understand how computers work and what “compatible” really means when used by a computer maker.
(I misposted this in reply to a reply, but think it is worth repeating.)
The 4S is NOT a freaking 4 year old phone! It was sold as new until Sept 2014, so to one who bought one then it is only a bit over a year old. It is very reasonable to expect several years of functional upgrading a NEW iPhone, just like one would expect several years of relative equal functioning from a 5S one might buy today.
While I think the lawsuit is without merit, here’s an interesting tidbit by the article’s author:
“The class, which includes more than 100 members”
Ya think it might be more than 100?! Talk about an understatement. Here’s the definition of the class, according to the lawsuit:
“All individuals, businesses, and entities in New York who own an iPhone 4s and have updated their iPhones to iOS 9 (or later versions of iOS 9).”
Probably a _bit_ more than 100.
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