Apple is finally addressing two of the biggest problems plaguing the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6S, but the company refuses to admit design defect and blames customers.
This week, Apple finally faces the countless cries and pleas of its iPhone 6 and iPhone 6S user base: the Touch Disease for the iPhone 6 Plus and the unexpected shutdown problem of the iPhone 6S. It’s been quite a while since issues of the said iPhone units have surfaced, rousing immense dissatisfaction from the iPhone users and even a class action lawsuit against Apple .
Apple faces class action lawsuit over iPhone 6 and 6 Plus ‘touch #law #legal #lawyers https://t.co/2YMI3eAMgx pic.twitter.com/vHvAxStOWj
— PrMediaLink (@PrMediaLink) November 10, 2016
Apple has remained tight-lipped regarding the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6S problems, even going as far as ignoring the various lawsuits against the company for the iPhone 6 defect called the Touch Disease. The Touch Disease, as reported previously by Inquisitr , is an iPhone 6 defect which causes the touch feature of the screen to malfunction, and has been dubbed by Vice as an extreme case of flawed design engineering.
Now, months after the merged class action lawsuit regarding the iPhone 6 Touch Disease started to gain momentum, Apple is finally speaking up and taking action—but in a drastically twisted way from what we expected. The Mercury News reports that although Apple is finally recognizing the existence of the mysterious case of the iPhone 6 Touch Disease, the company is not acknowledging the issue as a design defect but a user-made conundrum.
Forbes has caught an Apple quote as follows.
“It should be noted that Apple is not acknowledging any flaw in the design of the iPhone 6 Plus, so this is not seen as an issue that would be covered under warranty. Neither is the iPhone 6 covered by this new repair procedure. Users who have already paid for a service on their 6 Plus can contact Apple for a reimbursement if they were charged more than the $149 charge now in place.”
The official Multi-Touch Repair Program announcement on the Apple website reads as follows.
“Apple has determined that some iPhone 6 Plus devices may exhibit display flickering or Multi-Touch issues after being dropped multiple times on a hard surface and then incurring further stress on the device.
“If your iPhone 6 Plus is exhibiting the symptoms noted above, is in working order, and the screen is not cracked or broken, Apple will repair your device for a service price of $149.
“Apple will contact customers who may have paid for a service repair related to this issue either through Apple or an Apple Authorized Service Provider to arrange reimbursement. If you have not been contacted but paid for a repair that you believe was related to this issue, please contact Apple .
“The reimbursement amount will equal the difference between the price you paid for the original service to your iPhone 6 Plus and the $149 service price.”
This has come as bad news for the thousands of iPhone 6 Plus users whose units have been suffering from the Touch Disease, some even without history of dropping their devices.
Apple’s repair offer for iPhone ‘touch disease’ angers customers: https://t.co/htFe73RuAw
— CBC News Alerts (@CBCAlerts) November 19, 2016
Meanwhile, on another iPhone generation news, the battery issue plaguing iPhone 6S units which is forcing an unexpected shutdown has also been addressed by Apple, albeit a little more positively. Geek reports that Apple is making the move to replace all iPhone 6S batteries suffering the unexpected shutdown issue, following a complaint lodged by the Chinese Consumer Agency.
Apple promptly reacts to unexpected iPhone 6s shutdown issues with free battery replacement https://t.co/PgUpNgUmCE
— Pocketnow (@Pocketnow) November 21, 2016
The official Apple post regarding the iPhone 6S unexpected shutdown issues follows.
“Apple has determined that a very small number of iPhone 6s devices may unexpectedly shut down. This is not a safety issue and only affects devices within a limited serial number range that were manufactured between September and October 2015.
“If you have experienced this issue, please visit an Apple Retail Store or an Apple Authorized Service Provider and have your device’s serial number checked to confirm eligibility for a battery replacement, free of charge.”
It seems that with this new program, iPhone 6S users can rest a little easy and save a couple of bucks since Apple is taking care of everything, free of charge. For iPhone 6 Plus users, however, who are still suffering from the Touch Disease, it may be it’s time to upgrade to the iPhone 7.
[Featured Image by Cole Bennetts/Getty Images]