Apple to Revise Out-of-Warranty iPhone Battery Replacement Price on January 1

Apple had reduced the pricing for out-of-warranty battery replacement last year, in the wake of lawsuits and consumer outrage after it said it slowed older iPhones with flagging batteries. The company had at the time said pricing would be reduced until December 2018. Now, post December 31, Apple will have new prices for out-of-warranty battery replacement on iPhones, and these prices will come into effect from January 1, 2019. The temporary $29 price slash (roughly Rs. 2,000) will be discontinued, to give room for more expensive rates. To recall, earlier Apple used to charge $79 (roughly Rs. 5,600) for an out-of-warranty battery replacement for iPhone 6, and later devices. In India, the cost of out-of-warranty battery replacement was approximately Rs. 6,500 inclusive of taxes, as per industry sources. However, last year, Apple slashed the price to Rs. 2,000 exclusive of taxes.

After 2018 comes to an end, all iPhone 6 and later devices will now have a battery replacement price tag of $49 (roughly Rs. 3,500), while the new iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, iPhone XR, and even the iPhone X will cost $69 (roughly Rs. 4,900). Apple notes that all the other eligible models will cost $79 (roughly Rs. 5,600) for a battery replacement. It is important to note, that even though the prices have been increased, they aren't as much as it was before the price slash, except for the very old iPhones, for which users will have to shell out $79. Apple has refreshed its support page, to reflect the new prices.

Of course, all of these prices are applicable only to those who are using iPhones that are out-of-warranty. People with iPhones that are in warranty, or are covered by AppleCare+ won't have to pay for battery replacements. We've contacted Apple on the refreshed out-of-warranty battery replacement prices for the Indian market, and will update this copy when we hear back.

After the throttling mess, Apple released an update bringing a new battery health feature, to allow users to check their iOS device's battery health. This feature was in beta with iOS 11, but will now move out of beta with iOS 12. The latest iOS 12 update will arrive for all iPhone 5s and later models, all iPad Air and iPad Pro models, iPad 5th generation and later models, iPad 6th generation and later models, iPad mini 2 and later models, and the iPod touch 6th generation on September 17.

Will Apple ever launch reasonably priced iPhones in India? We discussed this on Orbital, our weekly technology podcast, which you can subscribe to via Apple Podcasts or RSS, download the episode, or just hit the play button below.