Samsung and Apple under investigation in Italy over planned obsolescence

19 January 2018
Reducing chipset performance via software updates does not sit well with the Competition and Market Authority.

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  • E
  • Eske Rahn
  • s0x
  • 19 Jan 2018

Good job Italy! Let us hope the rest of the EU follows!

...and they could have a look at non user-replaceable batteries as well.
The point is to make it so complicated and/or expensive too swap a battery, so people do not give their old device to someone else on upgrades, but throw it away.
And that is for sure planned obsolescence!

Be decent, and give us replaceable back-battery-packs! This way they could ALSO offer different pack sizes for different usage of the same device. (e.g. A slim for fitting in the jacket, and a large for trekking) I'm sure at lot of users would buy at the least both a thin and think pack. They could even be clever and use the same backs for high-, mid- and low-end devices of the same form factor, thus reducing their costs.

A slim pack would have the camera slightly protruding, a std pack would offer a flush back, and a heavy usage pack(s) would be bulky with the camera like a navel.

    Planned obsolence is something every product-making company do to encourage cyclical consumption. And they do this to maximize profits. It would be no surprise that Samsung and Apple slow down phones to make people to buy new devices and keep the system going.

      • ?
      • Anonymous
      • Fht
      • 19 Jan 2018

      Herocoder, 19 Jan 2018I am a owner of Samsung Note 4 since 2014 March. After the ... moreOnly 4 years ? change the disks and it should be fine for another 5 !

        • D
        • AnonD-715936
        • yfA
        • 19 Jan 2018

        Kyo, 19 Jan 2018Every phone slows down after software updates and this has ... moreWhat are you talking about? Look at old phones from One Plus or Xiaomi, they only get faster after each update.

          • H
          • Herocoder
          • MSU
          • 19 Jan 2018

          I am a owner of Samsung Note 4 since 2014 March. After the last update, the Device has started lagging and getting slower. I see no reason for this as I still have enough memory on my discs and never faced a problem before the last update. I can only find this article to be true and infuriating if the money I paid for is being treated as useless after almost 4 years.

            • ?
            • Anonymous
            • Js%
            • 19 Jan 2018

            These two love to copy each other.

              • Z
              • ZloiYuri
              • S4m
              • 19 Jan 2018

              Kyo, 19 Jan 2018Every phone slows down after software updates and this has ... moreThey can get access to source code. Judge can order that. Throttle cycles or processor speed sliw can be revealed and that is proof.
              By the way - Philips and General Electric invented this obsolescence. But people still buy their crap.

                Lol at fishing. Because consumer reports are soooo reliable.

                  • D
                  • AnonD-664474
                  • Kg{
                  • 19 Jan 2018

                  Kyo, 19 Jan 2018Every phone slows down after software updates and this has ... moreWhatever it is, it should've been told by the manufacturers to us. We paid for their devices so we have the right to know what are they doing to our phones.

                  Besides, keeping this thing a little secret and only revealing it after someone has discovered it, is a creative way of lying. See, they have been fooling us all this time, and if no one has actually ever discovered it, I'm pretty sure they'll never decrease the battery replacement price from $79 to $29.

                    • K
                    • Kyo
                    • PEr
                    • 19 Jan 2018

                    Every phone slows down after software updates and this has been true since symbian S60 days.But how will lawyers prove that:
                    a new software is intentionally made to slow down a phone
                    Vs
                    if the phone is old and just cannot handle new(never to be used or even noticed) features and thus slows down.

                      • ?
                      • Anonymous
                      • a0A
                      • 19 Jan 2018

                      Twerps think they have the right to rob our money using "software updates"

                        • L
                        • Luxor
                        • tVk
                        • 19 Jan 2018

                        Why only Italy? What did Italy ever done to you Samsung??

                          • D
                          • AnonD-729015
                          • yA8
                          • 19 Jan 2018

                          doubt this 2 companies only slows down performance, there should be other companies too doing the same thing.