As iOS battery issues persist, Apple has issued another statement regarding the iPhone shutdown plague affecting many iPhone 6s owners.
The company says it plans to release a new diagnostic tool with a future update, aiming to help gather information about battery issues and allow the company to better manage performance levels and potential mishaps.
iPhone 6s Battery Bug
Many iPhone owners have been complaining of a battery bug draining their smartphones and causing random shutdowns around the 30 percent battery mark. Apple said it was a limited issue affecting only a small number of iPhone 6s units manufactured between September and October 2015.
The company launched an iPhone 6s battery replacement program to address this issue and subsequently released a tool to let users check whether their iPhone 6s qualifies for a free battery replacement.
As user complaints kept piling up, Apple issued a statement last week on its Chinese website, arguing that the iPhone is actually designed to shut down under certain circumstances. The company reiterated that only a small number of iPhone 6s units actually had battery issues and denied having an iOS 10 battery bug plaguing its smartphones.
Battery Issue Bigger Than Initially Thought
While the company still hasn't acknowledged whether there is an iOS 10 battery bug or not, it has now admitted that the iPhone 6s battery issues are not as limited as it initially thought.
In a new statement on its Chinese website, the company now reckons that the issues affect a wider range of customers, not just owners of iPhone 6s units made between September and October 2015. Apple now says that upon discovering more customers outside of the affected range who have also been struggling with random iPhone 6s shutdowns, it will include a diagnostic tool in an update set to roll out next week.
"Outside the affected area, a small number of customers reported an unexpected shutdown. Some of these shutdowns may be normal, because the iPhone will shut down to protect its electronic components. To gather more information, we will add an additional diagnostic feature to the iOS software update that is released next week," Apple says (translated).
The company explains that its diagnostic tool will gather various information to help improve the algorithms used for managing battery performance and shut down operations. After collecting and analyzing the data it collects with this tool, Apple will determine whether it can improve its techniques and, if so, it will deliver the improvements in further software updates.
Apple still makes no mention of other battery issues affecting smartphones other than the iPhone 6s.
