There have been widespread criticisms online following Apple’s battery controversy. Apple users had been alerted to a new software lock put in place by Apple. The lock is such that some features will not be available on phones whose batteries were not replaced by an Apple Authorised Service Provider. For example, the Battery Health feature found in the Settings menu will not work. The only way to get it to work again would be to fix the device at an authorised Apple service centre.

 

Apple manufacturers included this feature in iPhones. Thus, if Apple cannot certify that the repair was done by a certified partner, an error message will pop up. The message will read:

“Important Battery Message. Unable to verify this iPhone has a genuine Apple battery. Health information not available for this battery.”

 

 

This move caused widespread panic among Apple users. They believe Apple is making it even more expensive to maintain the already pricey device. This is obviously because it will most likely cost more to replace a faulty battery at an Apple certified service centre.

 

Repairing Apple batteries

In the most recent update, Apple now claims that it added the new feature added to iOS to look out for the customer’s safety. They say when an unauthorised repair shop swaps an iPhone’s battery, there will be an error message. Notwithstanding if the battery being used is actually a genuine one.

 

 

Apple admits that the warning comes from a micro-controller that only authorised Apple technicians can configure. If the device can detect the right micro-controller, then it will continue to show a healthy battery status. The tech giants have also now gone ahead to leave a statement to this effect.

 

They say:

“Last year we introduced a new feature to notify customers if we were unable to verify that a new, genuine battery was installed by a certified technician following Apple repair processes. This information is there to help protect our customers from damaged, poor quality, or used batteries which can lead to safety or performance issues. This notification does not impact the customer’s ability to use the phone after an unauthorised repair.”

 

Going to authorised centres to fix the batteries of Apple devices could prove a little problematic for Nigerian iPhone users. The truth is there are only a few Apple service centres across the country. They are also only available in major cities, so this may be a problem for people living out of the cities. Although, an iPhone is a high-end device even in Nigeria. Judging by this, maybe the Nigerian market is not one Apple really worries about.