Apple sued over “deceptive” device storage space due to iOS 8 size
The bulging size of the latest OS has at least a couple Apple users fuming
Smartphones and tablets always have less usable storage than what’s mentioned on the box, but although common knowledge, it didn’t stop a couple of angry Apple users from filing suit against the company this week.
Miami, Florida residents Paul Orshan and Christopher Endara employed three law firms to file the class action suit on their behalf on Tuesday, which takes Apple to task for allegedly misrepresenting the amount of storage space available to consumers on iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch devices.
Specifically, the suit notes that the iOS 8 upgrade takes up a much larger portion of the available user space than anticipated, and claims that Apple knowingly attempts to sell iCloud storage to make up the difference. In a move to tug at heartstrings, the suit says Apple takes advantage of users in “desperate moments,” like when “trying to record or take photos at a child or grandchild’s recital, basketball game or wedding.”
While Apple doubled the storage capacity of its two pricier iPhone and iPad models with each recent refresh, the entry-level version still offers just 16GB on both ends. After formatting and the space taken by iOS 8, users are left with a few gigabytes less of actual, usable space. The suit claims that the amount is between 18.1% and 23.1% less than advertised depending on model.
As The Verge notes, this isn’t the first time Apple has been sued for such concerns: a class action suit filed in 2007 went after supposedly misleading iPod Nano storage promises, and it was eventually dismissed. More recently, Microsoft was sued over storage availability on the original Surface, which allowed less than half of the noted space for user files.
To the tech-inclined reader, this kind of suit may generate an eye roll and a sigh; that’s just how device storage works, right? But clearly, some smartphone and tablet owners don’t see it that way, and it’ll be interesting to see if this gains traction and becomes a lingering nuisance for Apple like its recently-won iTunes battle, or if it just loses steam like others before it.
[Source: The Verge]
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Andrew Hayward
Freelance Writer 
