--- title: "Apple Update Cracks Down on “Unauthorized” iPhone Batteries" description: "Tech giant Apple is activating a software lock on its latest iPhones, causing an annoying message to show up and hide the overall health of the battery." date: "2019-08-08" modified: "2019-08-08" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/apple-iphones-official-batteries" categories: - "Future Society" tags: - "apple" - "iPhone" - "lithium ion battery" - "right to repair" - "the digest" --- # Apple Update Cracks Down on “Unauthorized” iPhone Batteries ![Tech giant Apple is activating a software lock on its latest iPhones, causing an annoying message to show up and hide the overall health of the battery.]() *\Image: Apple/Victor Tangermann\* ## Software Lock Tech giant Apple is activating a [software lock]() on its latest iPhones, causing an annoying message to show up on any devices that are using third party batteries not authorized by Apple — and hiding data about the health of the battery. Big picture, it seems like an obvious attempt to stamp out third-party repair shops. "You can’t put a battery in a customer’s phone and have them see ‘service’ without them saying something," Justin Ashford, who designs aftermarket iPhone parts in China, [told *Motherboard*](). "It erodes trust from the clientele, and makes us look like we don’t know what we’re doing." ## Eroding Trust Just like a "Check Engine" light in your car, the "Service" message won't go away, even if iPhone owners opt to later change the battery for an official one. *Motherboard* [called it]() a "nightmare scenario for independent iPhone repair companies." Even older battery replacements from Apple itself won't make the message go away. The only way to get rid of the message is — you guessed it — to take it to an Apple Store or Apple Authorized Service Provider and get them to "authenticate" the battery. It sends a damning signal to those who want to fix their iPhone themselves without bringing it in to an Apple Store — and shelling out substantially more money in the process. **READ MORE:** [Apple Is Locking iPhone Batteries to Discourage Repair]() \[*iFixit*\] **More on Apple:** *[Apple Contractors Hear Sex Acts, Drug Deals in Siri Recordings]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()