Apple hit with multiple lawsuits after admitting it slowed down iPhones

Apple are facing several lawsuits after it revealed that it slowed down ageing devices to help diminishing battery life.

Cases have been launched in the US, France and Israel with more expected to follow after the revelation from the technology giant.

The US lawsuits, issued in New York, California and Illinois, have been filed as class action suits which could potentially see millions of iPhone users across the US represented.

Last week, the California based company admitted that as part of an update released in 2016, the iPhone 6, iPhone 6s, iPhone SE and iPhone 7 included a feature which slowed down parts of the phone in order to help lengthen battery life.

One of the lawsuits filed has suggested that "rather than curing the battery defect by providing a free battery replacement for all affected iPhones, Apple sought to mask the battery defect."

That case is being represented by Jeffrey Fazio, who forced Apple to reach a $53m settlement over the handling of iPhone warranty claims.

In a statement, Apple simply stated that "our goal is to deliver the best experience for customers, which includes overall performance and prolonging the life of their devices."

Lawyers representing two residents in Los Angeles said that the company should have revealed to customers sooner about the capabilities of phone batteries.

The pair, Stefan Bogdanovich and Dakota Speas, said: "We bought Apple's smartphones in part because they were able to run applications quickly.

"That is part of what we bargained for. When Apple admitted to this secret practice, it was clear we needed to take legal action."

IPhone users who have seen their performance throttled are able to purchase a new battery, at a cost of around £80.

Apple claim that if they did not reduce the performance of the phones, there was a potential that other internal components could be damaged.