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I disagree. I think they're doing the right thing here. Most users shouldn't need to manage their battery performance actively at all. What's next? Users shoul

I disagree. I think they're doing the right thing here. Most users shouldn't need to manage their battery performance actively at all. What's next? Users should manage their own RAM usage? Absolutely not. They're giving away batteries for free, and giving users more visibility into the health of their battery in an upcoming update. That's the right thing.

PacketPaul 9y ago
The batteries are not free. How about a user replaceable battery design?
- austenallred 9y ago
  The trade-offs that come with that would completely destroy everything that makes iPhones great.
  - jhack 9y ago
    Maybe if they made their iPhones that fraction of a millimetre thicker, they'd have the courage to bring back a headphone jack into their $1000 phones.
    - ceejayoz 9y ago
      Wasn't the point to have better waterproofing? IIRC the keynote mentioned it being the main spot for water intrusion.
      - mad182 9y ago
        I have a waterproof phone with jack.
    - austenallred 9y ago
      I know it's not common for people to say this out loud, but I spent $1200 on an iPhone last month, and a. I don't care about a headphone jack, at all; I use Airpods and the experience is phenomenal b. Consider me crazy, but I actually like my phones getting smaller and lighter What if Apple is just making a phone for people like me, and is comfortable with those trade-offs?
      - matwood 9y ago
        I'm with you. The iPhone X is the best iPhone I've ever used. The headphone jack uproar was a tempest in a teapot. Apple saw the stats that either a) people use the headphone that come with the phone or b) they upgrade to wireless headphones. The small group of people using expensive wired headphones can afford an additional $7 permanent attachment. Yes, Apple prioritizes size and design over everything else. Removable batteries add size, weight, and likely impact the water proof ability of the device. Even when I had a phone that could easily swap batteries I never bought additional ones because they were not cheap and would be discarded when I got a new phone. I'll also say that I'm happy with the change Apple did here. They failed at communicating it, but I have been on the receiving end of an older phone that would shutdown/crash with plenty of battery left, and would have preferred it to slow down so I could at least use it.
        thanatropism 9y ago
        I'm just an anecdote, but I lamented the removal of the headphone jack because it means my 6SE is my last iPhone. I take pills for attention deficit disorder. I lose stuff. I lose corded and cordless headphones multiple times a month. And hey, I know my inattentiveness to be an annoying end of a spectrum. People have things going on in their lives. Not everyone neatly takes care of their in-separate-ears tiny bluetooth speakers. We're a segment of the market. They're betting that they can do better without the likes of us -- lose some, earn more from the rest. Maybe their cash position enables them to take such risks.
        EdSharkey 9y ago
        Companies like Apple actually take accessibility really seriously though, which I applaud. That said, there's a pecking order to disabilities that these companies have to service. I can tell you that blindness is top of the heap and cognitive disabilities are bottom of the heap. It's a crummy situation for users like you when a disability doesn't weigh as heavily as the product design goals - grumble, the world is broken. I imagine a headphone jack must use a lot of space within the case, which creates a lot of hardware design headaches that go beyond waterproofing. I see some people at my workplace who walk around all day with a full bluetooth headset around their neck (not earbuds, like the big cans type) even when not in use, almost as a fashion accessory or statement. Perhaps you could experiment with those kinds of bluetooth headsets if you upgrade to a new iPhone. Obviously that doesn't solve your headset needs for running though, grumble grumble.
    - jsz0 9y ago
      The iPhone X is thicker than previous generation models.
  - megaman22 9y ago
    It was pretty fantastic on the Samsung hardware that was contemporaneous with many iPhone designs. Sadly the Galaxies have jumped on that bandwagon.
    - austenallred 9y ago
      Do you ever wonder if there's a reason why that's the case?
      - megaman22 9y ago
        I'm sure it's cheaper to solder it in, and you don't have to make the components sturdy enough to stand up to repeated assembly and dissassembly. I still hate it. It was nice to be able to have a stack of charged batteries and not worry about being away from an outlet for three or four days. Especially with a phone that had its USB port melted by a shoddy cable.
        austenallred 9y ago
        I don't think it's just about it being cheap; I think it's about literally making some sizes and configurations of phones work. If you look at where the battery is currently (https://d3nevzfk7ii3be.cloudfront.net/igi/2oa2QHEoq4Ke16su.medium https://d3nevzfk7ii3be.cloudfront.net/igi/2oa2QHEoq4Ke16su.m...) there's no way to make the battery accessible without letting you easily open the entire case. It's just a trade-off, and a replacable battery isn't worth the trade-offs. I 100% agree with Apple on this.
        MBCook 9y ago
        Which all of a sudden makes it EXTREMELY hard to waterproof compared to what you’re working on right now, which was a big win on the 6S and seven.
        xbkingx 9y ago
        Galaxy S5 was waterproof with a removable back. All the current waterproof phones have SIM card trays, mic holes, cord connectors, speakers, etc, so it might not be as 'extreme' as you're thinking. Just need a continuous rubber gasket and a tight fit. Of course making your phone out of materials that bend or shatter instead of flexing becomes a bigger problem, especially since the former offers no practical benefit beyond 'feel'.
- looiid 9y ago
  The battery is user replaceable. If a minimum wage earner in the mall can do it with a few basic tools it isn’t that difficult.
  - goialoq 9y ago
    How do you know the wage for battery replacement?
  - oneeyedpigeon 9y ago
    If replacing the battery voids the warranty, that doesn't count as 'user replaceable' in my book.
    - MBCook 9y ago
      If the phone is in warranty then they’ll take care of it for you. If it’s out of warranty then it doesn’t matter.
  - scarface74 9y ago
    If replacing the battery voids the warranty, that doesn't count as 'user replaceable' in my book. If the phone is under warranty, why wouldn't you take it to Apple and let them replace it for free?
blensor 9y ago
So you think a Popup "Hey you're battery is going bad. Do you want to [keep the performance] or [save the battery life]?" Would be too much??
- JoeAltmaier 9y ago
  Or maybe "How long do you want your battery to last?" Choose 6 hours, or 8, or 12.
  - mikeash 9y ago
    “How often do you want your phone to suddenly shut off without warning?” [Never] [Sometimes] [Often]
    - oneeyedpigeon 9y ago
      Do we actually know the numbers (e.g. battery life and expected number of shutdowns) required to make any of these points more than moot? Because there are definitely values that would win hands-down for either side.
      - mikeash 9y ago
        I don’t think we have any numbers, but the sudden shutdown problem was pretty frequent, enough that Apple issued a recall for one model and a lot of people saw it happen.
- mikeash 9y ago
  It’s not about battery life. It’s about not pulling so much current that it suddenly shuts down the entire device. Why do so many people think this is just about making a charge last longer?
  - PhasmaFelis 9y ago
    The hardware/software behavior could be 100% justified and it still wouldn't excuse the fact that they've hidden it all this time, driving millions of people to buy new phones when they really just needed a new battery.
CaptSpify 9y ago
Yeah, why should we let users manage the devices they own? That'd be absurd! /s

PacketPaul 9y ago

The batteries are not free. How about a user replaceable battery design?

austenallred 9y ago
The trade-offs that come with that would completely destroy everything that makes iPhones great.
- jhack 9y ago
  Maybe if they made their iPhones that fraction of a millimetre thicker, they'd have the courage to bring back a headphone jack into their $1000 phones.
  - ceejayoz 9y ago
    Wasn't the point to have better waterproofing? IIRC the keynote mentioned it being the main spot for water intrusion.
    - mad182 9y ago
      I have a waterproof phone with jack.
  - austenallred 9y ago
    I know it's not common for people to say this out loud, but I spent $1200 on an iPhone last month, and a. I don't care about a headphone jack, at all; I use Airpods and the experience is phenomenal b. Consider me crazy, but I actually like my phones getting smaller and lighter What if Apple is just making a phone for people like me, and is comfortable with those trade-offs?
    - matwood 9y ago
      I'm with you. The iPhone X is the best iPhone I've ever used. The headphone jack uproar was a tempest in a teapot. Apple saw the stats that either a) people use the headphone that come with the phone or b) they upgrade to wireless headphones. The small group of people using expensive wired headphones can afford an additional $7 permanent attachment. Yes, Apple prioritizes size and design over everything else. Removable batteries add size, weight, and likely impact the water proof ability of the device. Even when I had a phone that could easily swap batteries I never bought additional ones because they were not cheap and would be discarded when I got a new phone. I'll also say that I'm happy with the change Apple did here. They failed at communicating it, but I have been on the receiving end of an older phone that would shutdown/crash with plenty of battery left, and would have preferred it to slow down so I could at least use it.
      - thanatropism 9y ago
        I'm just an anecdote, but I lamented the removal of the headphone jack because it means my 6SE is my last iPhone. I take pills for attention deficit disorder. I lose stuff. I lose corded and cordless headphones multiple times a month. And hey, I know my inattentiveness to be an annoying end of a spectrum. People have things going on in their lives. Not everyone neatly takes care of their in-separate-ears tiny bluetooth speakers. We're a segment of the market. They're betting that they can do better without the likes of us -- lose some, earn more from the rest. Maybe their cash position enables them to take such risks.
        EdSharkey 9y ago
        Companies like Apple actually take accessibility really seriously though, which I applaud. That said, there's a pecking order to disabilities that these companies have to service. I can tell you that blindness is top of the heap and cognitive disabilities are bottom of the heap. It's a crummy situation for users like you when a disability doesn't weigh as heavily as the product design goals - grumble, the world is broken. I imagine a headphone jack must use a lot of space within the case, which creates a lot of hardware design headaches that go beyond waterproofing. I see some people at my workplace who walk around all day with a full bluetooth headset around their neck (not earbuds, like the big cans type) even when not in use, almost as a fashion accessory or statement. Perhaps you could experiment with those kinds of bluetooth headsets if you upgrade to a new iPhone. Obviously that doesn't solve your headset needs for running though, grumble grumble.
  - jsz0 9y ago
    The iPhone X is thicker than previous generation models.
- megaman22 9y ago
  It was pretty fantastic on the Samsung hardware that was contemporaneous with many iPhone designs. Sadly the Galaxies have jumped on that bandwagon.
  - austenallred 9y ago
    Do you ever wonder if there's a reason why that's the case?
    - megaman22 9y ago
      I'm sure it's cheaper to solder it in, and you don't have to make the components sturdy enough to stand up to repeated assembly and dissassembly. I still hate it. It was nice to be able to have a stack of charged batteries and not worry about being away from an outlet for three or four days. Especially with a phone that had its USB port melted by a shoddy cable.
      - austenallred 9y ago
        I don't think it's just about it being cheap; I think it's about literally making some sizes and configurations of phones work. If you look at where the battery is currently (https://d3nevzfk7ii3be.cloudfront.net/igi/2oa2QHEoq4Ke16su.medium https://d3nevzfk7ii3be.cloudfront.net/igi/2oa2QHEoq4Ke16su.m...) there's no way to make the battery accessible without letting you easily open the entire case. It's just a trade-off, and a replacable battery isn't worth the trade-offs. I 100% agree with Apple on this.
        MBCook 9y ago
        Which all of a sudden makes it EXTREMELY hard to waterproof compared to what you’re working on right now, which was a big win on the 6S and seven.
        xbkingx 9y ago
        Galaxy S5 was waterproof with a removable back. All the current waterproof phones have SIM card trays, mic holes, cord connectors, speakers, etc, so it might not be as 'extreme' as you're thinking. Just need a continuous rubber gasket and a tight fit. Of course making your phone out of materials that bend or shatter instead of flexing becomes a bigger problem, especially since the former offers no practical benefit beyond 'feel'.
looiid 9y ago
The battery is user replaceable. If a minimum wage earner in the mall can do it with a few basic tools it isn’t that difficult.
- goialoq 9y ago
  How do you know the wage for battery replacement?
- oneeyedpigeon 9y ago
  If replacing the battery voids the warranty, that doesn't count as 'user replaceable' in my book.
  - MBCook 9y ago
    If the phone is in warranty then they’ll take care of it for you. If it’s out of warranty then it doesn’t matter.
- scarface74 9y ago
  If replacing the battery voids the warranty, that doesn't count as 'user replaceable' in my book. If the phone is under warranty, why wouldn't you take it to Apple and let them replace it for free?

blensor 9y ago

So you think a Popup "Hey you're battery is going bad. Do you want to [keep the performance] or [save the battery life]?" Would be too much??

JoeAltmaier 9y ago
Or maybe "How long do you want your battery to last?" Choose 6 hours, or 8, or 12.
- mikeash 9y ago
  “How often do you want your phone to suddenly shut off without warning?” [Never] [Sometimes] [Often]
  - oneeyedpigeon 9y ago
    Do we actually know the numbers (e.g. battery life and expected number of shutdowns) required to make any of these points more than moot? Because there are definitely values that would win hands-down for either side.
    - mikeash 9y ago
      I don’t think we have any numbers, but the sudden shutdown problem was pretty frequent, enough that Apple issued a recall for one model and a lot of people saw it happen.
mikeash 9y ago
It’s not about battery life. It’s about not pulling so much current that it suddenly shuts down the entire device. Why do so many people think this is just about making a charge last longer?
- PhasmaFelis 9y ago
  The hardware/software behavior could be 100% justified and it still wouldn't excuse the fact that they've hidden it all this time, driving millions of people to buy new phones when they really just needed a new battery.

CaptSpify 9y ago

Yeah, why should we let users manage the devices they own? That'd be absurd! /s