[ti:Mystery Solved: Apple Admits it Slows Some Older iPhones] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:00.04]Many people have long believed Apple intentionally [00:04.98]slows down performance of iPhones [00:08.64]in an effort to get users to buy new ones. [00:14.00]For the first time, Apple has admitted to slowing some iPhones down. [00:20.28]But the company explained it only took the action last year [00:25.48]to prevent battery-related shutdowns. [00:30.64]Apple's action – and the company's decision to keep it secret [00:36.60]- led to widespread criticism from industry analysts and iPhone owners. [00:45.12]Owners of iPhones in several states are suing Apple. [00:50.24]They accuse Apple of violating fraud laws [00:54.56]by purposely limiting performance without informing iPhone owners [01:00.60]that the problems might have been fixed by replacing the device battery. [01:07.20]This, they argue, forced them to spend more money to buy new iPhones. [01:14.64]The issue of iPhone slowdowns in certain phones was recently noted [01:22.16]in an online post by the founder of software maker Primate Labs. [01:29.56]In his post, John Poole cited test results [01:34.80]suggesting repeated reductions in iPhone performance over time. [01:41.47]The tests included the iPhone 6s and iPhone 7, [01:48.20]with several different operating system versions. [01:52.88]Results of the tests blamed aging batteries [01:57.35]for causing the reduced device performance. [02:01.84]Poole said his company's software that measures processor performance [02:08.64]found that some users who replaced their iPhone batteries [02:13.56]reported much improved results. [02:17.04]But he was not convinced that old batteries were the whole problem. [02:24.28]He came up with a theory. [02:26.64]He believed Apple must have made changes to the iOS software [02:32.24]to limit iPhone performance when battery capacity reached a certain point. [02:39.72]A few days later, Apple released a statement [02:43.84]admitting it made the software change. [02:48.08]It said the action was needed to prevent certain devices from suddenly shutting down. [02:56.68]The problem, Apple said, was connected to lithium-ion batteries inside the iPhone. [03:05.60]The batteries can fail in certain conditions [03:09.32]– such as hot or cold - or as they age over time. [03:15.52]This can sometimes cause older iPhones to shut down, Apple said. [03:23.28]Apple said it released the new feature last year for the iPhone 6, [03:28.88]iPhone 6s and iPhone SE. [03:34.36]It later added the iPhone 7 with iOS 11.2 [03:39.96]and plans "to add support for other products" in the future. [03:45.35]"Our goal is to deliver the best experience for customers, [03:51.48]which includes overall performance and prolonging the life of their devices," [03:58.64]the Apple statement said. [04:01.84]But many iPhone owners were not very forgiving of Apple's decision, [04:07.76]as evidenced on Twitter: [04:10.36]In his reporting of the latest developments, Wired magazine's Jordan McMahon [04:18.04]pointed out several ways Apple could have handled the situation [04:22.96]before deciding to secretly slow the phones. [04:28.72]He suggested Apple could have informed iPhone owners [04:32.72]about the lithium-ion issues beforehand [04:36.60]and given them a chance to get the batteries replaced. [04:42.08]Or the company could have even launched a program [04:45.60]to sell owners battery replacement kits. [04:50.52]Apple has always strongly resisted having owners buy [04:54.67]and replace their own iPhone batteries. [04:59.12]There are many companies that sell do-it-yourself kits [05:04.04]or will do the service for you. [05:06.84]Apple has its own battery replacement service [05:11.80]– either in Apple stores or through the mail [05:15.08]- and charges $79 for any iPhone model that is no longer under warranty. [05:23.64]But based on the huge negative reaction to Apple's change, [05:28.60]it seems many people are not aware of that possibility. [05:34.28]They have complained about being forced to either buy a new, [05:38.32]expensive iPhone, or switch brands to fix the problem. [05:45.32]Several economic analysts have lowered predictions [05:49.64]for 2018 shipments of the iPhone X [05:54.52]as some news reports also suggested there will be much lower demand. [06:01.40]Taiwan's Economic Daily reported Monday [06:05.00]that Apple could cut its sales targets for the iPhone X [06:09.48]in the first quarter from 50 million to 30 million. [06:15.52]I'm Bryan Lynn. [06:17.36]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM