New iPhones Have A Great Secret Feature

 Apple 'Confirms' New iPhones Have A Great Secret Feature

 

has its hands full with not one, but two major problems. So the company has shown perfect timing to reveal a great secret feature which is at the heart of every new iPhone… 

‘Great Secret Features’ and ‘Nasty Surprises’ are my regular columns investigating the best features / biggest problems hidden behind the headlines.

Apple

Apple new iPhone X, iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus will deliver superior battery longevity

In a new support document, Apple has stated that the headline-grabbing battery and performance problems which have seen it face numerous class action lawsuits and enquiries from governments around the world, will not affect the iPhone X, iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus. It explained:

“iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and iPhone X models use a more advanced hardware and software design that provides a more accurate estimation of both power needs and the battery’s power capability to maximize overall system performance. This allows a different performance management system that more precisely allows iOS to anticipate and avoid an unexpected shutdown. As a result, the impacts of performance management may be less noticeable on iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and iPhone X.”
Apple does go on to warn that: “Over time, the rechargeable batteries in all iPhone models will diminish in their capacity and peak performance and will eventually need to be replaced”, but the benefit is clear: don’t expect the company’s new iPhones to face the same degree of performance throttling as the iPhones which have come before.
Given performance throttling can start at little more than a year old and iPhones can cost well over $1,000 now, this is both great news for owners and an essential promotional message for Apple to get across to those who may be questioning the long-term value of such a significant investment.

Apple

Apple iOS 11 will not give new iPhone owners control over their batteries

Apple has also attempted to promote this message via a second avenue: iOS. The latest iOS 11.3 beta introduces the long-awaited battery monitoring and manual performance controls Apple promised in response to the throttling debacle. But for the reasons Apple makes above, they have not been made available to iPhone X, iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus owners.
Of course, the cynical response to this is: performance throttling doesn’t begin for at least a year so a) the controls aren’t yet needed for these models anyway, and b) Apple could simply introduce them after a year when they have been replaced by the new, latest, greatest iPhones. But I’m prepared to give Apple the benefit of the doubt at this point.
Besides, if Apple is playing a trick here it would only come back to hurt the company long term. And with three flagship iPhone X models arriving in 2018 at even higher prices, blowing its reputation for short-term gain is the last thing Apple needs...