Apple could be using shady tactics to cash in on iPhone battery replacements

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iPhone battery
Find new ways to make money? That doesn't sound like the world's most profitable company.
Photo: iFixit

Apple’s iPhone battery replacement initiative was supposed to be a way of Apple getting out of trouble, after news about its iPhone battery throttling was released last year.

But according to a new report, Apple is being a bit shady about its replacement policy by finding minor faults with iPhones that it charges users to correct before giving them their replacement batteries.

Profiting from its iPhone battery replacement scheme?

One example cited by a BBC Watchdog investigation involved a U.K. citizen who sent his iPhone off for a battery replacement in February. However, soon afterwards he received an email from Apple, drawing his attention to a small dent to the edge of his iPhone, and saying that he would need to pay 200 pounds ($272) before the battery could be replaced.

“They’re trying to regain trust and they come back to you with, ‘Give us more money than you were planning to initially.’ I think it’s just shocking, they’ve got enough money, they’re Apple,” he told the BBC.

The investigation cited another instance in which a user’s iPhone appeared to be in good condition, only for him to be told that there was damage inside the phone. He was quoted $340 to fix the front microphone and speaker before Apple would replace the battery.

In Apple’s defense, its own repair website does note that, “if your iPhone has any damage that impairs the replacement of the battery, such as a cracked screen, that issue will need to be resolved prior to the battery replacement.” This apparently extends to “any and all” damage.

Still, it’s easy to see why customers would be upset — particularly since this was intended as a “make good” to begin with!

Source: BBC

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