Apple: Difference between revisions

Apple had numerous hardware design issues in the 2010s, often poorly acknowledged by the company and frequently charging exorbitant amounts for repair.  

*The announcement and cancellation of Apple AirPower<ref>{{Cite web |title=Apple cancels AirPower product, citing inability to meet its high standards for hardware |url=https://techcrunch.com/2019/03/29/apple-cancels-airpower-product-citing-inability-to-meet-its-high-standards-for-hardware/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190401040644/https://techcrunch.com/2019/03/29/apple-cancels-airpower-product-citing-inability-to-meet-its-high-standards-for-hardware/ |archive-date=2019-04-01 |website=TechCrunch}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Clover |first=Juli |date=2018-09-12 |title=After No Sign of AirPower at Today's Event Apple Wipes Most Mentions From Website |url=https://www.macrumors.com/2018/09/12/no-sign-of-airpower-at-september-event/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211124170507/https://www.macrumors.com/2018/09/12/no-sign-of-airpower-at-september-event/ |archive-date=2021-11-24 |access-date=2025-10-26 |website=MacRumors}}</ref> due to overheating{{CitationNeeded|reason=no archived article mentioning overheating specifically}}

====Recent attempts to do better====

This includes:

*Opening an online [[Apple Self Service Repair|Self Service Repair]] parts store.

Many of these items have sparked allegations of [[Malicious Compliance]] and being introduced purely to make stricter right for repair legislation appear unnecessary to legislators while not doing much to improve the situation for consumers. <!-- woah there with the accusatory tone -->  

*Full Security: Only the currently signed macOS version trusted by Apple can boot.

===Class action lawsuit===

Once a new OS version is installed, there is no opportunity to go back. This also restricts the user's choice to {{Wplink|iOS jailbreaking|jailbreak}} the device, as the latest version naturally has patches for the latest jailbreak exploits. App developers also require access to earlier iOS versions to test that their app works correctly. The alternative, Xcode's iOS Simulator, is not a complete replacement for real hardware, as it does not have all features of a physical device.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Vajpai |first=Shreeti |date=24 Jun 2024 |title=iOS Emulators / Simulators vs Real iOS Devices |url=https://contextqa.com/test-on-ios-emulators-simulators/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250519081214/https://contextqa.com/test-on-ios-emulators-simulators/ |archive-date=19 May 2025 |access-date=22 Jun 2025 |website=ContextQA}}</ref> Instead, app developers are forced to purchase several test devices, and remember to ''never'' allow them to update.

Many parts are not available directly from Apple. Those that are available directly from Apple may be more expensive than paying Apple to repair your device. Parts available to certified repair centers are extremely limited. Apple does not stock current generation iPad parts within GSX (See Certified Repair Centers). A limited selection of iPad parts are available from iFixit, however this can exclude some flex PCBs necessary for repairing headphone jacks.

===Diagnostic software availability===

===Certified repair centers===

In 2014, Apple and the band U2 partnered to give all iTunes users a free digital copy of their newest album at the time, ''Songs of Innocence'', which was marketed as "the biggest album release ever in history".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2014/09/09Apple-U2-Release-Songs-of-Innocence-Exclusively-for-iTunes-Store-Customers/|title=Apple & U2 Release “Songs of Innocence” Exclusively for iTunes Store Customers|date=2014-09-09|work=Apple Newsroom|access-date=2025-06-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250405230217/https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2014/09/09Apple-U2-Release-Songs-of-Innocence-Exclusively-for-iTunes-Store-Customers/|archive-date=2025-04-05|url-status=live}}</ref> Many users who didn't want the album couldn't remove it from their iTunes library due to the album being listed as a "past purchase" on their account (however the album could always be "hidden").<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.wired.com/2014/09/apples-devious-u2-album-giveaway-even-worse-spam/|title=Apple's Devious U2 Album Giveaway Is Even Worse Than Spam|date=2014-09-16|first=Vijith|last=Assar|work=WIRED|access-date=2025-06-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250530112829/https://www.wired.com/2014/09/apples-devious-u2-album-giveaway-even-worse-spam/|archive-date=2025-05-30|url-status=live}}</ref> Some reports speculated the deal was worth 100 million dollars and was done due to the band's declining popularity.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.npr.org/2014/09/15/348612823/apples-u2-album-promotion-backfires|title=Apple's U2 Album Promotion Backfires|first=Nathan|last=Rott|date=2014-09-15|work=NPR|access-date=2025-06-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250601154245/https://www.npr.org/2014/09/15/348612823/apples-u2-album-promotion-backfires|archive-date=2025-06-01|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2022, Bono, a member of U2, wrote in his memoir how Tim Cook reportedly said how "there’s something not right about giving [U2's] art away for free" and "the whole point of what we’re trying to do at Apple is to not give away music free. The point is to make sure musicians get paid".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://fortune.com/2022/10/24/tim-cook-said-free-u2-album-itunes-was-not-right/|title=Apple CEO Tim Cook thought U2 putting its album on your iPhone was ‘not right’—even though he did it anyway|first=Tristan|last=Bove|date=2022-10-24|work=Fortune|access-date=2025-06-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250127191141/https://fortune.com/2022/10/24/tim-cook-said-free-u2-album-itunes-was-not-right/|archive-date=2025-01-27|url-status=live}}</ref>

===AirDrop censorship (''2022'')===

==="Peanuts" TV Special Takeover===

===2024 Antitrust Lawsuit===

*Restricting compatibility of third party smart watches.

===European Union USB-C Directive 2022/2380===

This regulatory measure directly addresses consumer frustration with incompatible chargers types and aims to significantly reduce electronic waste. <ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-12-28 |title=USB-C-Standard: Schluss mit dem Kabelwirrwarr |url=https://www.zdfheute.de/wirtschaft/ladekabel-usb-c-standard-apple-entsorgung-elektroschrott-100.html |access-date=2025-09-02 |website=zdfheute |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260215214259/https://www.zdfheute.de/wirtschaft/ladekabel-usb-c-standard-apple-entsorgung-elektroschrott-100.html |archive-date=15 Feb 2026}}</ref> The legislation allows manufacturers to unbundle chargers from devices, potentially saving consumers money, and ensures charging speed harmonization across compatible devices.  

===Elon Musk Lawsuit===

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===Greenwashing<!-- This section needs more work and more sources. It might also make sense to move it to a page of its own -->===

Customers are lead to think that their purchases and frequent replacement of their devices do not have a negative impact on the environment, which is not the case.

====Green energy pooling====

====CO<small>2</small> Certificates and forest projects====

====The packaging trick====

This deliberately distracts from the fact that only a negligible fraction of the environmental footprint of an electronic device comes from the packaging, as it is made of siginificant amounts or rare earth minerals, metals and mined components and consuming vast amounts of energy, water and fuel in manufacturing and transport.

====Shredding vast amounts of fully functional devices====

====iPhone recycling robot mostly a publicity stunt====

==Products==