Apple Testifies on iPhone Throttling Before Canadian Parliamentary Committee

Apple's Canada division and Geekbench maker John Poole today testified before a House of Commons committee on industry, science, and technology in Canada to address the power management features Apple introduced in older iPhones in iOS 10.2.1, reports iMore.

Poole was on hand because back in late December, he used his Geekbench platform to confirm the link between degraded iPhone batteries in older iPhones and processor slowdowns, which Apple had not, at the time, clearly explained.

iphone 6s battery
Apple Canada was there to answer questions and share facts about why Apple implemented the feature in the first place, a topic that's been previously covered in support documents and a letter to customers.

As part of Apple's testimony, Jacqueline Famulak, Apple Canada's Manager of Legal and Government Affairs, provided a lengthy statement that largely repeats prior statements Apple has offered in the United States.

Famulak reiterated that Apple would "never intentionally" shorten the life of an Apple product to drive customer upgrades, and she explained that Apple added power management features in iOS 10.2.1 to allow customers to continue to use iPhones with aging batteries. A portion of the statement shared by iMore:

First, Apple would never intentionally do anything to shorten the life of any Apple product or degrade the user experience in order to drive customer upgrades. Apple's entire philosophy and ethic is built around the goal of delivering cutting-edge devices that our customers love. Our motivation is always the user.

Second, Apple's actions related to performance of iPhones with older batteries were designed specifically to prevent some older models from unexpectedly shutting down under certain circumstances. And we communicated this publicly. Let me explain.

In order for a phone to function properly, the electronics must be able to draw power from the battery instantaneously. But, as lithium-ion batteries age, their ability to hold a charge diminishes, and their ability to provide power to the device decreases. Very cold temperatures can also negatively affect a battery's performance. A battery with a low state of charge may also cause the device to behave differently. These things are characteristics of battery chemistry that are common to lithium-ion batteries used in all smartphones, not just Apple's.

If power demands cannot be met, the iPhone is designed to shut down automatically in order to protect the device's electronics from low voltage.

We do not want our customers to experience interruptions in the use of their iPhones, whether that is making an emergency phone call, taking a picture, sharing a post, or watching the final minutes of a movie. To address the issue of unexpected shutdowns, we developed software that dynamically manages power usage when, and only when, an iPhone is facing the risk of an unexpected shutdown. This power management software helps keep iPhones on when they otherwise might turn off - it does this by balancing the demand for power with the available supply of power.

The sole purpose of the software update in this case was to help customers to continue to use older iPhones with aging batteries without shutdowns - not to drive them to buy newer devices.

Third, Apple regularly provides software updates for iPhone and our other devices. These software updates can include everything from new features, to bug fixes, to security updates. Whenever we issue a software update, we include a ReadMe note which has a description of the contents of the update for the customer to review prior to the software installation. In the case of iOS 10.2.1, we stated that it "improves power management during peak workloads to avoid unexpected shutdowns on iPhone."

Famulak went on to explain that Apple is offering $35 battery replacements in Canada, down from $99 ($29 in the U.S., down from $79) and that iOS 11.3, coming this spring, will offer customers more information about the health of their iPhone's battery and allow the power management features to be turned off.

The House of Commons is aiming to make sure Canadian consumers are being treated fairly by Apple, and it's possible that the Competition Bureau in Canada, also at today's committee meeting, will launch an investigation. Apple will also be facing government inquiries in other countries, including the United States.

The full text of the statement Apple provided to the House of Commons committee can be read over at iMore.

Top Rated Comments

BootsWalking Avatar
79 months ago
The sole purpose of the software update in this case was to help customers to continue to use older iPhones with aging batteries without shutdowns - not to drive them to buy newer devices.

Apple is still tiptoeing around the fact this problem is likely a design defect specific to iPhone 6/6+ and should have necessitated a recall of those models, and that the software change was their attempt to avoid that costly outcome. They keep using the "older phones" euphemism to conceal that fact.
Score: 25 Votes (Like | Disagree)
meaning-matters Avatar
79 months ago
"Apple would never intentionally do anything ... to drive customer upgrades."

What about the missing capacity option in iPhones???

Precisely the option that's best for most users is missing, driving people into upgrades either at purchase, or some time later.

For example now it's 64GB (too little) or 256GB (too much and very expensive), for many years.

I hate this, because I want to love and believe Apple.
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
rafark Avatar
79 months ago
Charging to temporarily fix a defective component and making it seem like they're the good ones trying to help you. God, Apple marketing is truly brilliant.
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Smartass Avatar
79 months ago
Eh, Apple.

- They produced phones with cheap batteries (iPhone 6/6s/7) that, in some cases, couldnt even whitstand powering CPU after only one year(i7)

- They decided to solve this problem by throttling the CPU of these phones without telling anybody about it.

- When people got the new iOS and saw all the lag, they logically concluded that the phone's hardware is not on par with the new software, hence the phone is slow and they need a new one. At this point apple was well aware of this problem but was quiet about it.

- When crap hit the fan, and the news about bad batteries got out, people went to Apple store only to be reminded by their "geniuses" that, according to their Apple-made-battery-inspecting-software, their batteries are completely fine. So iphone owners were now, as far as Apple is concerned, facing two decisions: Either buy a new phone, or stick with the laggy one.

- When Apple issued an apology, they gave their iphone users a chance to replace the battery for only 20$. Apple at that point knew damn well, that producing new batteries for older phones, and changing them all in some reasonable time, was all but science fiction. So did they give their users a chance to at least downgrade their laggy iphones to older iOS? Nope. Let them keep waiting for months to get a new battery and maybe, they'll just buy a new iphone when they get tired of waiting.


If Apple wins this case, it'll be only due to good lawyers.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
s15119 Avatar
79 months ago
Charging to temporarily fix a defective component and making it seem like they're the good ones trying to help you. God, Apple marketing is truly brilliant.
What's defective ?
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
JesperA Avatar
79 months ago
I have lived with a <80% iPhone 6 for about half a year now until i replaced the battery yesterday, i never realized how slow my phone was thanks to the safeguard implemented by Apple.

But seriously, my phone is 4 years old now and lithium batteries wear out, cant expect them to last forever, no-one should, my old battery had almost 1500 cycles during these 4 years and yesterday i extended my phones life for 2 years atleast (although i will upgrade to the next X in the fall) for 29 dollar, the cost of 3-4 pizzas so i really dont get what all the fuzz is about, battery replacement was cheap before too and Apple gave the phones extended lives through software to safeguard the phones from crashing/turning off thanks to low voltage with the old and crappy batteries.

Dont know why some people are upset by all this
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

reset password request iphone

Warning: Apple Users Targeted in Phishing Attack Involving Rapid Password Reset Requests

Tuesday March 26, 2024 4:34 pm PDT by
Phishing attacks taking advantage of Apple's password reset feature have become increasingly common, according to a report from KrebsOnSecurity. Multiple Apple users have been targeted in an attack that bombards them with an endless stream of notifications or multi-factor authentication (MFA) messages in an attempt to cause panic so they'll respond favorably to social engineering. An...
iPhone Home Screen Gradient Blank Spaces 1

Sources: iOS 18 Lets Apps Be Placed Anywhere on Home Screen Grid

Sunday March 24, 2024 1:33 pm PDT by
iOS 18 will give iPhone users greater control over Home Screen app icon arrangement, according to sources familiar with the matter. While app icons will likely remain locked to an invisible grid system on the Home Screen, to ensure there is some uniformity, our sources say that users will be able to arrange icons more freely on iOS 18. For example, we expect that the update will introduce...
maxresdefault

Apple Announces WWDC 2024 Event for June 10 to 14

Tuesday March 26, 2024 10:02 am PDT by
Apple today announced that its 35th annual Worldwide Developers Conference is set to take place from Monday, June 10 to Friday, June 14. As with WWDC events since 2020, WWDC 2024 will be an online event that is open to all developers at no cost. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. WWDC 2024 will include online sessions and labs so that developers can learn about new...
iPad Pro 2024 Landscape Camera Feature

New iPad Pro Again Rumored to Feature Landscape Front-Facing Camera

Monday March 25, 2024 5:43 am PDT by
The next-generation iPad Pro will feature a landscape-oriented front-facing camera for the first time, according to the Apple leaker known as "Instant Digital." Instant Digital reiterated the design change earlier today on Weibo with a simple accompanying 2D image. The post reveals that the entire TrueDepth camera array will move to the right side of the device, while the microphone will...
Generic iOS 18 Feature Purple

iOS 18: What to Expect From 'Biggest' Update in iPhone's History

Wednesday March 27, 2024 11:10 am PDT by
At least some Apple software engineers continue to believe that iOS 18 will be the "biggest" update in the iPhone's history, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Below, we recap rumored features and changes for the iPhone. "The iOS 18 update is expected to be the most ambitious overhaul of the iPhone's software in its history, according to people working on the upgrade," wrote Gurman, in a r...
apple maps 3d feature

Apple Maps May Gain Custom Routes With iOS 18

Tuesday March 26, 2024 3:10 pm PDT by
Apple may be planning to add support for "custom routes" in Apple Maps in iOS 18, according to code reviewed by MacRumors. Apple Maps does not currently offer a way to input self-selected routes, with Maps users limited to Apple's pre-selected options, but that may change in iOS 18. Apple has pushed an iOS 18 file to its maps backend labeled "CustomRouteCreation." While not much is revealed...
sonoma desktop wwdc

Apple Releases macOS Sonoma 14.4.1 With Fix for USB Hub Bug

Monday March 25, 2024 10:10 am PDT by
Apple today released macOS Sonoma 14.4.1, a minor update for the macOS Sonoma operating system that launched last September. macOS Sonoma 14.4.1 comes three weeks after macOS Sonoma 14.4. The ‌‌‌‌macOS Sonoma‌‌ 14.4‌.1 update can be downloaded for free on all eligible Macs using the Software Update section of System Settings. There's also a macOS 13.6.6 release for those who...
Generic iOS 18 Feature Purple

iOS 18 Will Finally Bring This Android Feature to iPhone

Monday March 25, 2024 6:42 am PDT by
iOS 18 will allow iPhone users to place app icons anywhere on the Home Screen grid, according to sources familiar with development of the software update. This basic feature has long been available on Android smartphones. While app icons will likely remain locked to an invisible grid system on the Home Screen, our sources said that users will be able to arrange icons more freely on iOS 18....