Consumers' Association says Apple's way of dealing with older phones not honest

The China Consumers' Association says the U.S. tech company Apple Inc. was not being honest with its customers when it slowed down older iPhones without their customer's knowledge, reports Chinanews.com.

The company admitted that it made changes to its software a year ago that limited the maximum performance of iPhones with older batteries. The company says this was done to prevent the phones from shutting down suddenly.

[File photo: IC]

This has led many consumers to question whether Apple purposely slows down older phones to encourage them to buy newer iPhone models. 

The Consumers' Association said that Apple has infringed on the rights of Chinese consumers to be informed about and agree to changes to their phones. 

"Consumers have the right to know what the situation is and decide for themselves whether to upgrade the software based on their needs, according to China's Law on Protection of the Rights and Interests of Consumers," said Chen Jian, a senior head of the China Consumers' Association.

On December 28, 2017 Apple issued an apology for slowing down phones with older batteries, and lowered the price for battery replacement by $50 - from $79 to $29.

Despite this offer, in the United States alone, a total of 17 lawsuits have already been filed against Apple for slowing down devices without notifying consumers.

Apple should offer an overall solution instead of just temporarily giving discounts for the replacement of the batteries, added Chen.