You know that happy feeling that flows from head to toe when you receive your biweekly paycheck? (At least until you’re forced to subtract your rent, utilities and student loan owed from the total sum.) Well, it’s similar to the emotions of a lot of iPhone 4 users who recently began to be presented with $15 checks from Apple.
With the first money being sent out as of April 17, Apple says the settlement checks were sent after the company “misrepresented and concealed material information in the marketing, advertising, sale, and servicing of its iPhone 4 – particularly as it relates to the quality of the mobile phone antenna and reception and related software.”
The iPhone 4 class action lawsuit was prompted after multiple users complained that because of their smartphone’s new design -- which was highlighted for having its antenna built directly onto a metal band that ran around the edge of the phone -- they were continuously losing their network signal and suffering through the frustration associated with dropping calls.
In spite of the fact that $15 is likely not even enough to pay your tab for lunch, the technological thought-leadership firm will actually be doling out nearly $53 million in total, due to the negative consequences caused via what is being coined as the “Antennagate Scandal.”
Originally to fix the problem, Apple had intended to give customers a free bumper case to alleviate the quality issue but not enough were made for every iPhone 4 that was purchased. But, it is interesting to note that the cases originally intended to remedy the situation were worth $29 as opposed to the $15 settlement checks. So this opens up the question to the public who is the real winner here is—Apple or its end-users?
In related company news, just last week it was revealed that currently Apple is now considered the go-to brand for American teenagers at least looking to get their paws on the hottest capabilities a smartphone has to offer. In a study that involved nearly 1,600 teens from high-income families and 3,600 teens from average income families, nearly 48 percent of participants revealed that they already own an iPhone while 62 percent of this group plans to purchase the gadget as their next mobile device in the near future.
To read the full report, click here.Edited by
Rory J. Thompson