Apple Sued Over iPhone Signal Strength

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jrmilleropsman,
User Rank: Apprentice
11/8/2011 | 7:42:08 PM

re: Apple Sued Over iPhone Signal Strength

Tom, I have to side with you on this one. I agree that Apple took steps to correct the problem; whether they were aware of the issue before release is debatable although if they were unaware, then it speaks against their pre-release testing. The fact that Apple has begun to hide signal strength data from users suggests that feel that they in fact have something to hide. In general, transparency encourages trust and goodwill.

And any provision that forces the losing party to pay the winning party's legal fees in order to cut down on frivolous law suits would simply serve as a tactic to prevent the average consumer from seeking restitution even in just circumstances. I would rather allow some frivolous suits than to silence an injured party. However, I think understand the point: if the court weighed in favor of every frivolous suit, innovation would grind quickly to a halt in fear of unwarranted litigation. Once again, a balanced justice is most apt to keep everyone honest.

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Tom LaSusa,
User Rank: Apprentice
11/8/2011 | 4:20:55 PM

re: Apple Sued Over iPhone Signal Strength

Great counter points jasonscott -- thanks!

Tom LaSusa
InformationWeek

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jasonscott,
User Rank: Strategist
11/7/2011 | 9:49:45 PM

re: Apple Sued Over iPhone Signal Strength

@Tom ... I disagree. The article clearly states that the faulty formula negatively affects iPhone resale value and that owners should be compensated for that impact.

The problem is: Apple offered a free patch for ALL iPhones that corrected the flaw.

I'll concede that -- ideally -- the iPhone wouldn't have had a faulty formula in the first place. But if we assume that it wasn't intentional (which I know many folks are unwillling to do), then it was merely a glitch like any other in any computing device and Apple rectified it with the free iOS update.

In addition, they need to prove that the value of a used iPhone was negatively impacted by the faulty formula -- and not just that the price plummets after new models come out. That's a tricky thing to prove.

Lastly, to pick up on your analogy, automakers put out cars all the time with flaws ... and they often issue voluntary recalls to encourage owners to bring them back to the dealer for fixes -- everything from seatbelt anchor bolts, floormat anchors, accelerator pedal modifications or new assemblies, and -- yes -- firmware updates for things like braking systems and engine and transmission management systems. Happens just about every week. Some more publicly than others.

This strikes me as a lawyer trying to dip his/her hand into Apple's deep pockets. Sure, Apple messed up -- but it owned up to it and offered a free fix, which every rational person would have installed at that point, and which one could probably argue increased (or sustained) the value of aging hardware by adding new features.

Just another example of why this country needs a provision that forces the losing party to pay the winning party's legal fees, in order to cut down on frivolous law suits.

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Tom LaSusa,
User Rank: Apprentice
11/7/2011 | 4:22:26 PM

re: Apple Sued Over iPhone Signal Strength

I think part of the logic here is that people expect when they buy a product, it should come out of the box fully functioning as advertised. You don't buy a car and go to pick it up only to be told that the steering wheel and gas pedal aren't available at the moment but will come out in a few weeks as part of a special "drivability patch."

So yes, they provided a patch to fix the incorrect formula. But the point being made here is the device should never have been released that way in the first place -- the product was faulty before it got into user hands. And Apple's admission as such is just the fuel this lawsuit needs to burn.

Tom LaSusa
InformationWeek

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