Selected iPhone Users to Get Around $65 From Apple Over ‘Batterygate’ Scandal

By Abdullah Shahid ⏐ 2 years ago ⏐

2 min read

According to details, all iPhone users who filed claims related to the slowdown of older iPhones before October 2020 will get the $65 settlement

Remember ‘Batterygate’, a 2020 scandal where Apple received a ton of user complaints regarding slowdown of old phones and finally accepted that it was deliberately slowing down its older phones, even agreeing to pay up to $500 million in settlements? Well, it’s finally sending out those payouts, giving a $65 dollar settlement to each complainant.

Can you file for a payout? Well, unfortunately no, since Apple is only paying out users who filed a complaint before October 6, 2020 and has to have owned the iPhone since before 2018, with even a list of claim eligible models including iPhone 6, 6 Plus, 6s, 6s Plus, 7, 7 Plus, and SE.

According to Apple, its tactic and motivation behind slowing down older iPhone models stemmed from the idea that slowing down older iPhone models will force Apple loyal customers to switch towards newer models thus bringing in more customers for its newer models and creating a recurring revenue pattern for the company.

Why the name ‘Batterygate’?

Apple inorder to slow down its mobile performance over the years, was using aging batteries, which depleted over time and caused performance issues. Previously unnoticed, these aging batteries first started coming into light during 2017, when users noticed that all of their iPhone performance-related issues are disappearing after a simple battery replacement.

Justifying the slowdown of its iPhones, Apple said that it makes its phones slow down after a certain time period because as phone batteries get older, there is a risk of the phone suddenly shutting down.

Investigations were quick to deny the claims and Apple also decided to not extend the pricey legal battle, simply reaching a settlement agreeing to pay $310 – $500 million, depending on the amount of claims filed.