(WSVN) - Apple has taken the unusual step of directly apologizing to its customers, after the tech company admitted earlier this month that they have slowed down older iPhone models.
The move comes a week after a class-action lawsuit was filed against Apple by unhappy users, who argued they never agreed to let the company slow down their phones.
Apple released their lengthy statement Thursday, addressing their controversial decision to slow down older models.
“We know that some of you feel Apple has let you down. We apologize. There’s been a lot of misunderstanding about this issue, so we would like to clarify and let you know about some changes we’re making,” the company wrote on its website. “First and foremost, 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. Our goal has always been to create products that our customers love, and making iPhones last as long as possible is an important part of that.”
Apple goes on to explain how a software update originally was meant to improve power management on aging phones’ batteries in order to prevent unexpected shutdowns. However, this ended up resulting in reduced performance on older models, the company said.
In response to the angry outcry from iPhone users, Apple says it is slashing the cost of their iPhone battery replacement, reducing the price from $50 to $29 for anyone with an iPhone 6 or later. The company says the move is their way to “regain the trust of anyone who may have doubted Apple’s intentions.” The price drop will go into effect in late January, and will be available through December 2018.
The company says it will also release another software update early next year, giving iPhone users the ability to check on the health of their device’s battery and performance.
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