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Judge clears way for $500M iPhone throttling settlements
(appleinsider.com)
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this post was submitted on 12 Aug 2023
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Strongly disagree. Current draw is a well-known design consideration for a device like this. Unless otherwise stated, devices are generally assumed to function at full performance for the lifetime of the device. It’s expected that battery life will degrade over time, but not processing performance and responsiveness. Most manufacturers will account for degradation in peak current by limiting TDP to the peak demand for the device’s future current capacity. Throttling the SOC is not something customers expect, which is why the case has succeeded.
How exactly does one limit TDP without lowering CPU power needs? You could limit the screen brightness, but users are definitely going to notice that and be unhappy.
By designing the device properly? It’s why they don’t put a 170W Ryzen in your phone. TDP is not a dynamic property - it is a design aspect, usually one of the first ones decided upon when building a new device.
Your battery is going to age no matter what. At some point, it won't be able to keep up with the power draw of your OS when more and more features keep being added years into owning the device.
Replace the aging battery with a new one and the phone will run full speed again. This applies to Android as much as iOS.
Also, Apple is the current king of power and efficiency in their chips. Your Ryzen hyperbole isn't applicable to their designs.
Yes, and this happens immediately as soon as it comes off the line, which is why a 6W SOC will be designed with a battery capable of delivering 7-8W of power. Current capacity specifically is generally spec’d so that it’s sufficient for the lifetime of the device, even if total charge capacity (battery life) drops. When the 6S was designed, Apple either knew they would need to throttle the SOC starting at around 2 years after purchase, or they miscalculated the current capacity degradation curve for the battery they chose. The former is shady and misleading, and the latter is just embarrassing. In either case, I am in full agreement with the court that Apple should be held liable for selling a product that does not matched advertised functionality as understood by the typical consumer.
Well you clearly have an axe to grind if you think an average lithium ion battery is going to perform like new years after purchase. Your argument is that it should work perfectly forever, which isn't logical whatsoever.
I never said that. My point is that if a device requires 1200mA peak current draw to function at full performance, the battery needs to be selected so that it can deliver that demand for the lifetime of the device. The support lifecycle for iPhones is about 7 years, so if the minimum discharge of the battery drops to 80% after 7 years, the battery should be selected to have a nominal discharge current of about 1500mA.
That would increase cost and probably also the size of the phone, likely to unacceptable proportions.
I just don't think your position is reasonable. We don't expect car manufacturers to produce engines that never lose horsepower or never need oil changes. Why would we expect similar from electronics that cost a fraction of a car?
But you know, I still support your right to hold that position even if I disagree.
Probably, but that’s why you make trade-offs in the design process. With a BOM of $236 and a MSRP of $750, it’s not like we’re starting from a razor-thin margin here.
Doubtful - total charge capacity does depend on volume, but nominal discharge current is mostly orthogonal.
Of course not. But if a car manufacturer designed their transmission so that after 40,000 miles, gear 7 and 8 stopped working because the gear teeth were too worn down by that point, and the automatic selector would top out at gear 6 to avoid stalling the engine, you’d definitely have a lawsuit and recall on your hands.
This is all about norms of consumer expectations. People expect that battery life of their devices will degrade over time. They don’t expect that performance will do the same.