Payouts begin in Apple's $500 million iPhone slowdown lawsuit

Apple has started issuing payments to iPhone users who participated in a class-action lawsuit accusing the company of intentionally slowing down older devices. The lawsuit stemmed from earlier legal complaints that Apple's software updates were deliberately throttling the performance of specific older iPhone models.

According to the Associated Press, Apple agreed in 2020 to pay between $310 and $500 million as part of a settlement. The company did not deny that certain iPhones were slower after the updates, but claimed the move was necessary to keep the older phones' batteries from causing unexpected shutdowns. Critics suspected more nefarious motivations, such as pushing users to buy new phones. Apple did not admit to any wrongdoing when agreeing to settle.

Long-Awaited Payments Finally Arrive for Affected iPhone Users

Despite the settlement being reached years ago, claimants had been waiting for payment due to lengthy court procedures and appeals. However, in August 2023, the law firm representing Apple customers announced that an appeal challenging the lawsuit was dismissed, allowing the settlement to be distributed.

MacRumors, an unofficial website covering Apple-related news, reported that some claimants began receiving their payments, totaling $92.17 each, over the weekend. Numerous Twitter users also reported receiving the payments.

The official settlement website, in an update this week, confirmed that payments started on January 5th and will be disbursed on a "rolling basis." All qualifying claimants are expected to be paid by the end of the month.

Eligibility for Apple's iPhone Slowdown Settlement Payout

To be eligible for a payout, users must have filed a complaint before October 2020 and owned an iPhone 6, 6 Plus, 6s, 6s Plus, or SE device that ran iOS 10.2.1 software (or a later version) before December 21, 2017. The same eligibility requirements apply to users who had an iPhone 7 or 7 Plus and downloaded iOS 11.2 or later before December 21, 2017. More information can be found on the settlement website, or iPhone users can call 1-833-649-0927 to find out if they had previously qualified for a payout.