Was it really necessary for Apple to slow down old iPhones?
Apple yesterday confirmed that a long-held and controversial conspiracy theory actually contains some truth. The company says that, starting last year, it started slowing down older iPhones with lower-capacity batteries, mainly to prevent accidental shutdowns. The news set off a wide-ranging debate about smartphone reusability and longevity. But why does Apple need to do this in the first place?
First off, think of a battery like a system of pipes with water, says Marca Doeff, a battery expert at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Over time, natural side reactions between battery chemicals cause these pipes to clog up, so the water can’t flow as quickly and gets stuck. This causes batteries to deliver less power, and a single charge...