It was reported late last month that some iPhone users are facing battery issues in that their phones were abruptly shutting down even with sufficient battery life remaining. After hearing multiple complaints, Apple issued a replacement process for those iPhone 6s users who were facing such shutdowns.
Apple has now issued a statement on its Chinese website regarding the issue. Though there have been reports of non-iPhone 6s models also facing similar issues, the company is firm on the opinion that the problem is limited to a few iPhone 6s users with certain serial numbers. Apple also reiterated that the problem was hardware related and not an iOS 10.1.1 bug that was earlier reported, a theory that gained popularity after the problem was reported with several iPhone models.
"We found that a small number of iPhone 6s devices made in September and October 2015 contained a battery component that was exposed to controlled ambient air longer than it should have been before being assembled into battery packs," Apple's statement on the subject. "As a result, these batteries degrade faster than a normal battery and cause unexpected shutdowns to occur. It's important to note, this is not a safety issue."
The statement further reads that if you iPhone shuts off randomly, it's actually part of Apple's safety feature and not a bug, though it's unlikely to be any consolation to anyone who's facing this problem.
"We also want our customers to know that an iPhone is actually designed to shut down automatically under certain conditions, such as extremely cold temperature. To an iPhone user, some of those shutdowns might seem unexpected, but they are designed to protect the device's electronics from low voltage."
Business Insider on Saturday reported that Apple Store employees have been receiving a lot more complaints than what Apple is suggesting. Staff at Apple Stores reportedly say that the issue is very common and that a lot more people than just the iPhone 6s users have been affected.
Apple on Thursday introduced a tool for users to know if their iPhone is eligible for a free battery replacement. Those who seem to be facing such an issue can head over to the webpage and enter their phone's serial number. If the serial number is eligible, users can go to an Apple authorised service provider to have their battery replaced. This is applicable only for iPhone 6s users facing the unexpected shutdown issue.
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