iPhone 6(S)/Plus iPhone 6 swollen battery redress

[dpks]

Personally, from my experiences, I really do believe it's who you talk to and how the situation is handled. Sometimes it needs to go beyond the normal Apple representative on the phone to reach a positive result.

Sure, I'm willing to believe I lack the necessary powers of persuasion/charisma to get a free replacement in this case. FWIW, I think my interaction with the Apple Store employee was polite/honest/reasonable, but who knows, maybe I'm a horrible judge of that too.

In any case, my main purpose is really to let people in the same situation (i.e. out-of-warranty swollen battery) know that a free replacement is truly YMMV, not "always". It might be easier with the iPhone 5 since there's a publicly advertised Quality Program that covers it, but not for other models.

 

[Newtons Apple]

Still betting that the device with a swollen battery will be replaced without question 9 out of 10 times due to possible liability. Even a phone out of warranty that catches fire is bad publicity these days.

It amazes me this is turning into an argument.

 

[Matthew.H]

I didn't realise how common this swollen battery problem is in an iPhone. I've owned mobile phones since the 90s and never had such a problem with any of them. In fact I have a 15 year old Nokia phone here and the original lithium ion battery still works/holds a charge.
Are Apple using poor quality batteries?

I guess the old saying is true .. they don't make em like they used to!

I think it's just luck sometimes. I have a gameboy advance sp with the original battery which still holds charge fine. My sisters old windows laptop battery was shot after a year and she didn't even use it much.

 

[dpks]

Still betting that the device with a swollen battery will be replaced without question 9 out of 10 times due to possible liability. Even a phone out of warranty that catches fire is bad publicity these days.

It amazes me this is turning into an argument.

It's not an argument, these are the facts - the sample size of the reports on this forum is so small that it's impossible to assert hard numbers like "9 out of 10" (the willingness of you to "bet" on it carries no weight to the actual numbers).

All we can say is some have success getting a free replacement, some do not, aka YMMV.

 

[borgsauce]

I didn't realise how common this swollen battery problem is in an iPhone. I've owned mobile phones since the 90s and never had such a problem with any of them. In fact I have a 15 year old Nokia phone here and the original lithium ion battery still works/holds a charge.
Are Apple using poor quality batteries?

I guess the old saying is true .. they don't make em like they used to!

It's not that they use poor quality batteries. It's just that battery capacities has increased alot compared to those old phones. So much power cramped into tight space is bound to create certain issues such as mentioned above. It's one of the issues manufacturers are facing today. Just compare the battery size/ mAh of the old phones vs modern batteries.

 

[Newtons Apple]

It's not an argument, these are the facts - the sample size of the reports on this forum is so small that it's impossible to assert hard numbers like "9 out of 10" (the willingness of you to "bet" on it carries no weight to the actual numbers).

All we can say is some have success getting a free replacement, some do not, aka YMMV.

I am not disagreeing with you but in my eyes you are proving my point.

Have a great weekend, I am done here.

 

[macfacts]

I have an IPhone 6 with a swollen battery that is exactly 2 years old. I took it to Apple and they told me I'd have to pay $80 to get it replaced since it's out of warranty. Is there something specific I need to say to get them to replace it for free? I told them it was a safety issue. They still said $80

No but you get unlimited tries when playing the Apple lottery. If Apple doesn't have it in writing, it depends on the mood of the tech.

 

[44267547]

Sure, I'm willing to believe I lack the necessary powers of persuasion/charisma to get a free replacement in this case. FWIW, I think my interaction with the Apple Store employee was polite/honest/reasonable, but who knows, maybe I'm a horrible judge of that too.

In any case, my main purpose is really to let people in the same situation (i.e. out-of-warranty swollen battery) know that a free replacement is truly YMMV, not "always". It might be easier with the iPhone 5 since there's a publicly advertised Quality Program that covers it, but not for other models.

Besides the fact your being overly facetious, yes; I understand what 'YMMV' means and you have quoted this multiple times on this thread.

Aside from your understated persuasive powers (As you stated), I understand the battery replacement program requirements. That said, it would behoove one to escalate the situation to a higher level pending the circumstances. Its not uncommon or unusual for Apple to make exceptions to the rule when handled accordingly. Being you're new here, There are many threads that alleviate exactly what I am referring to in very similar fashions. Clearly in Canada, you have bad luck or "Horrible" judgement, either or.

This discussion is exhausted and Moving on.

 

[Septembersrain]

I think it's just luck sometimes. I have a gameboy advance sp with the original battery which still holds charge fine. My sisters old windows laptop battery was shot after a year and she didn't even use it much.

True. Battery technology right now is pretty iffy. I've got an 8 year old Huawei Ascend with original battery that still turns on and I haven't left the battery out of it as it sat. On the other hand, I've got my Note 3 that has gone through 3 OEM batteries. It's really a coin toss. Both phones are modified with custom recovery and a ROM.

 

[deano1972]

It's not that they use poor quality batteries. It's just that battery capacities has increased alot compared to those old phones. So much power cramped into tight space is bound to create certain issues such as mentioned above. It's one of the issues manufacturers are facing today. Just compare the battery size/ mAh of the old phones vs modern batteries.

That's a fair point about capacity.

I'm sure I saw something about a recent breakthrough in battery technology though but never read the article properly as I didn't have time.

 

[stelios94]

I was told, by a Genius, that any iPhone with a swelling battery, which is less than three years old, will be replaced free of charge.

This, of course, included my iPhone 5, which I took in 3 years, 5 days after purchase. After a quick manager approval for the 5 day overage, I was on my way with a "new" white-box replacement.

Please tell me which store did u go??Because i went here in Czech Republic where i study and they told that i have to pay 400 euros for a new iphone and i have the same problem with my iphone 6 the battery is startin to expand thus the screen is starting to come off

 

[Peter K.]

Please tell me which store did u go??Because i went here in Czech Republic where i study and they told that i have to pay 400 euros for a new iphone and i have the same problem with my iphone 6 the battery is startin to expand thus the screen is starting to come off

I'm sorry you're having trouble, but my experience might not help you. The store I went to is in Thousand Oaks, CA (a far northern suburb of Los Angeles).

 

[Aandhi]

In Singapore it might cost over 280 USD to replace the phone if they decided not serviceable when warranty over

Do you know anyone in Singapore who got the replacement for free ? They are charging me USD 200

 

[google]

Had my wife's ip6 replaced recently at Apple for swollen battery without paying. Once I mentioned that this could be a potential hazard he immediately got a managers approval.

 

[beacad95]

Hi, my 1yr and 8mos old iphone6 has a swollen battery so I went to istore customer service and they offered me a replacement battery for 9,000 Philippine peso. I am willing to take that offer but then I heard about this store called Power Mac and brought my phone there. They told me that they can replace my phone with a new unit if there are no other problems with my phone, free of charge. I was really happy when I heard that so I came back to the store after I backed up my datas and reset my phone only to find out that they can't replace it anymore since they found a small crack at the bottom of the screen I ask them if it's ok if I just buy that replacement battery from iStore customer service instead of having my whole unit replaced(for Php21,000+), she said no because it might swell again since there might be parts of the unit that is damaged by the swollen battery. I asked her again if it's ok to use it with swollen battery she then told me that there are no history of exploding/burning batteries yet. Is it ok to continue using my phone? It drains out quickly and I have to bring powerbank everywhere since it already relies on charging.

 

[Pamela M.]

Hoping this info is helpful to those with this problem. We have three iPhone6 that we purchased in September 2014. Two weeks ago my husbands phone started to overheat and the battery would drain faster than normal. After a couple of days of this he noticed the glass separating from the phone. We took it to Apple and they replaced his phone. They charged us $79 plus tax, the service fee for a battery replacement. They told us the battery is swelling which pushes the glass off of the phone. Well two weeks later, this past Thursday my phone started to have the same problems. Now the glass is separating off of the phone. Called Apple and no recall yet and no large numbers of problems. Of course they aren't going to share the number of damaged phones with me. We have two out of three that have gone bad so far, just waiting now for the third one to go. Not good odds. Have an appointment this evening to have my phone looked at which will probably be replaced. The customer service rep did tell me if they issued a recall then we would be refunded the service fees. Just have to watch the news and see.

 

[LoliS]

I bought my 5 in 2012. It swelled up mid 2014 and now mid/late 2016 the free replacement has done the exact same thing :/

That's the nature of these batteries. Time for you to get a new phone, the iPhone 5 is from 2012.
[doublepost=1489870837][/doublepost]

They did say it would be a completely new (non-refurb) phone, not just a battery swap.

Idk how it works in Canada, but in the US you would get a refurb.
[doublepost=1489871358][/doublepost]

Called Apple and no recall yet and no large numbers of problems.

It is normal that a certain percentage of these batteries will do that. That is the nature of these Li-ion batteries. They are basically controlled bombs. A certain percentage will fail every year and when they do, they swell.

There is no need for a recall, this is expected given the technology.

What happened with Samsung's Note 7 is that a much higher than normal percentage of devices had melting batteries (none exploded, that was media sensationalism/fake news). That warranted a recall even though the total number that did that was small compared to the number sold.

Do you expect the battery in your car to last forever? Of course it won't. Same with the battery in your cell phone - it won't last forever. The difference is that your car battery is not as dangerous as your cell phone battery when it fails.

 

[Pamela M.]

Hoping this info is helpful to those with this problem. We have three iPhone6 that we purchased in September 2014. Two weeks ago my husbands phone started to overheat and the battery would drain faster than normal. After a couple of days of this he noticed the glass separating from the phone. We took it to Apple and they replaced his phone. They charged us $79 plus tax, the service fee for a battery replacement. They told us the battery is swelling which pushes the glass off of the phone. Well two weeks later, this past Thursday my phone started to have the same problems. Now the glass is separating off of the phone. Called Apple and no recall yet and no large numbers of problems. Of course they aren't going to share the number of damaged phones with me. We have two out of three that have gone bad so far, just waiting now for the third one to go. Not good odds. Have an appointment this evening to have my phone looked at which will probably be replaced. The customer service rep did tell me if they issued a recall then we would be refunded the service fees. Just have to watch the news and see.

That's the nature of these batteries. Time for you to get a new phone, the iPhone 5 is from 2012.
[doublepost=1489870837][/doublepost]
Idk how it works in Canada, but in the US you would get a refurb.
[doublepost=1489871358][/doublepost]It is normal that a certain percentage of these batteries will do that. That is the nature of these Li-ion batteries. They are basically controlled bombs. A certain percentage will fail every year and when they do, they swell.

There is no need for a recall, this is expected given the technology.

What happened with Samsung's Note 7 is that a much higher than normal percentage of devices had melting batteries (none exploded, that was media sensationalism/fake news). That warranted a recall even though the total number that did that was small compared to the number sold.

Do you expect the battery in your car to last forever? Of course it won't. Same with the battery in your cell phone - it won't last forever. The difference is that your car battery is not as dangerous as your cell phone battery when it fails.

That's the nature of these batteries. Time for you to get a new phone, the iPhone 5 is from 2012.
[doublepost=1489870837][/doublepost]
Idk how it works in Canada, but in the US you would get a refurb.
[doublepost=1489871358][/doublepost]It is normal that a certain percentage of these batteries will do that. That is the nature of these Li-ion batteries. They are basically controlled bombs. A certain percentage will fail every year and when they do, they swell.

There is no need for a recall, this is expected given the technology.

What happened with Samsung's Note 7 is that a much higher than normal percentage of devices had melting batteries (none exploded, that was media sensationalism/fake news). That warranted a recall even though the total number that did that was small compared to the number sold.

Do you expect the battery in your car to last forever? Of course it won't. Same with the battery in your cell phone - it won't last forever. The difference is that your car battery is not as dangerous as your cell phone battery when it fails.

Thank you for the info. Went to Apple last night and according to the tech "battery swelling is not normal behavior. The battery should retain its normal form. " I never expect anything to last forever, that's a very long time. Apple is replacing these phones with new phones, not refurbished per our tech. These phones are overheating when they swell. The heat in my pocket is what alerted me to the problem. We were told not to take the back off of the phone because it could puncture the battery which could cause it to explode. That is why Apple is replacing the phones and not just the battery. It is a safety hazard to their techs. All I had to pay for was the battery service. So all is good again.

 

[LoliS]

Apple is replacing these phones with new phones, not refurbished per our tech.

No, you are getting a refurb whether the tech realizes it or not. The iPhone 5 is out of production. The refurb will have a new battery though.

 

[Pamela M.]

No, you are getting a refurb whether the tech realizes it or not. The iPhone 5 is out of production. The refurb will have a new battery though.[/

No, you are getting a refurb whether the tech realizes it or not. The iPhone 5 is out of production. The refurb will have a new battery though.[/QUOTE

[doublepost=1489952368][/doublepost]M iphone is a 6 not a 5. Not sure where the confusion is but sorry if I mislead you.

 

[LoliS]

[doublepost=1489952368][/doublepost]M iphone is a 6 not a 5. Not sure where the confusion is but sorry if I mislead you.

Ok, well same thing. The iPhone 6 is not in production any longer either. Whether the tech realizes it or not, you are getting a refurb. The refurbs come with new batteries, new screens and new housing so it will look brand new. But it is a refurb.

What carrier are you on? If it is Verizon, let me know. Otherwise it doesn't matter.

 

[BrianBaughn]

[doublepost=1489952368][/doublepost]M iphone is a 6 not a 5. Not sure where the confusion is but sorry if I mislead you.

Did the iPhone display any other symptoms, battery-wise, before the swelling occured?

 

[-google-]

My iPhone 6 is also having a battery issue, I purchased it in april 2015. In the past days i noticed that my phone would turn off even tho my battery was at 50% there was a tiny gap between the glass and the metal frame but I thought it was due to a fall or something, but the next day the gap was much bigger and still had some weird turning off at 40% battery. After all the note 7 stories in the news I got scared and called apple support and they told me that it was a battery issue and that I should turn it off immediately and go to an apple store. But since my phone is out of warranty I asked him if they still wouldn't replace my phone for free since this can be potentially dangerous, he said no I will have to pay 330€ to replace the phone or 130€ to replace the battery but in my case I'd have to replace the phone probably. Tomorrow I have an appointment at the genius bar.

 

[BrianBaughn]

My iPhone 6 is also having a battery issue, I purchased it in april 2015. In the past days i noticed that my phone would turn off even tho my battery was at 50% there was a tiny gap between the glass and the metal frame but I thought it was due to a fall or something, but the next day the gap was much bigger and still had some weird turning off at 40% battery. After all the note 7 stories in the news I got scared and called apple support and they told me that it was a battery issue and that I should turn it off immediately and go to an apple store. But since my phone is out of warranty I asked him if they still wouldn't replace my phone for free since this can be potentially dangerous, he said no I will have to pay 330€ to replace the phone or 130€ to replace the battery but in my case I'd have to replace the phone probably. Tomorrow I have an appointment at the genius bar.

View attachment 694371

If the battery swelling has caused peripheral damage then Apple would only replace the iPhone...makes sense. Only way to know would be to replace the battery then check the operation.

I recently swapped out a battery on my iPhone 6 (here at home). I followed the iFixit instructions and ran into issues with removing the adhesive strips. I should have paid heed to one commenter who suggested applying heat to the back of the phone to loosen them before pulling them out. Anyway, it got done successfully and a new, third-party battery with adhesive strips and without tools was $20 from Amazon.

My battery didn't swell but was showing the signs of dying.

 

[-google-]

I just came back from the Apple store and they gave me a new iPhone 6 for free, I'm really happy. They said that for that issue they replace the phone for free withing two years of the purchase even if its not covered by apple care. I'm so lucky because I purchased it 14of april 2015 the problem happened 31st march 2017