Samsung, LG Join Chorus Of Android OEMs That Don't Throttle Older Phones
Lithium-ion batteries degrade over time, that is just the way is, unfortunately. To deal with that, Apple made the unpopular decision to throttle the performance of some older iPhone models by way of an iOS update, and then hid that fact from the public until a collection of benchmarks essentially outed the company. Striking while the iron is hot, several Android phone makers have come and said they have not (and will not) slow down older handsets.
Samsung and LG, two of the biggest Android phone players on the playground, are the latest to issue statements on the matter. Both of them told Phone Arena in no uncertain terms that they are against the practice of throttling older phones to deal with degraded batteries.
"Never have, never will! We care what our customers think," LG said. The latter part of LG's statement can be viewed as a jab at Apple, insinuating that Tim Cook and company care more about profits than customers. Or may we are reading too much into it. Either way, LG's bigger point is that it has never intentionally slowed down its smartphones, and is not something it would ever consider doing in the future.
"Product quality has been and will always be Samsung Mobile's top priority. We ensure extended battery life of Samsung mobile devices through multi-layer safety measures, which include software algorithms that govern the battery charging current and charging duration. We do not reduce CPU performance through software updates over the lifecycles of the phone," Samsung said.
Samsung's statement doesn't have the same accusatory air as LG's and instead explains what alternative methods are in place to prevent having to throttle its devices. Of course, Samsung has its own battery issues to deal with—there was the Galaxy Note 7 debacle, in which defective batteries were overheating and catching fire, and more recently some Galaxy Note 8 owners complained that their handsets are no longer charging after abruptly turning off.
As it pertains to performance throttling, though, Samsung and LG have joined a growing chorus of Android phone makers that also include HTC and Lenovo/Motorola. All four companies have now gone on record saying this is not something they do. Meanwhile, Apple has issued an apology for not being more transparent, and also cut the price of its in-house battery replacement service from $79 to $29, valid through the end of next year.
Samsung and LG, two of the biggest Android phone players on the playground, are the latest to issue statements on the matter. Both of them told Phone Arena in no uncertain terms that they are against the practice of throttling older phones to deal with degraded batteries.
"Never have, never will! We care what our customers think," LG said. The latter part of LG's statement can be viewed as a jab at Apple, insinuating that Tim Cook and company care more about profits than customers. Or may we are reading too much into it. Either way, LG's bigger point is that it has never intentionally slowed down its smartphones, and is not something it would ever consider doing in the future.
"Product quality has been and will always be Samsung Mobile's top priority. We ensure extended battery life of Samsung mobile devices through multi-layer safety measures, which include software algorithms that govern the battery charging current and charging duration. We do not reduce CPU performance through software updates over the lifecycles of the phone," Samsung said.
Samsung's statement doesn't have the same accusatory air as LG's and instead explains what alternative methods are in place to prevent having to throttle its devices. Of course, Samsung has its own battery issues to deal with—there was the Galaxy Note 7 debacle, in which defective batteries were overheating and catching fire, and more recently some Galaxy Note 8 owners complained that their handsets are no longer charging after abruptly turning off.
As it pertains to performance throttling, though, Samsung and LG have joined a growing chorus of Android phone makers that also include HTC and Lenovo/Motorola. All four companies have now gone on record saying this is not something they do. Meanwhile, Apple has issued an apology for not being more transparent, and also cut the price of its in-house battery replacement service from $79 to $29, valid through the end of next year.
