A group of Chinese students have filed a lawsuit against Apple, urging the company to provide a charger for an iPhone they bought.
Apple stopped shipping its new iPhones with power adapters or earphones from 2020 due to their mission to reduce carbon emissions and the use of precious materials.
However, according to a report by Vice, the University students from Beijing and Shanghai argued to the court, demanding Apple provide a wall charger for an iPhone 12 Pro Max purchased by one student and pay 100 yuan ($16) for breach of contract, and cover the legal fees.
In an online hearing, it was argued that the Lightning to USB-C cable Apple includes with the iPhone 12 isn’t compatible with a number of chargers on the market. Therefore, they were not able to charge the phone as advertised on Apple’s website, the plaintiffs said.
An Apple representative argued that it was common for phone makers to sell smartphones and charging adapters separately, however the students rebutted that several Chinese phone makers were offering packages with and without adapters for consumers to choose from.
The plaintiffs also argued that Apple was only using environmental concerns as an excuse to promote its MagSafe chargers, since wireless chargers waste more energy than wired chargers, according to the report.
The two parties were in the process of supplying the court with additional evidence, the report said. The case was presented at a competition for public interest lawsuits this month.
Many internet users have expressed support for the students for standing up for consumers’ interests. Some said they had been forced to purchase new chargers and adapters when upgrading to an iPhone 12, but others worried Apple would pass the costs on to consumers if it was asked to give out free adapters.
Apple is also facing pressure in other countries regarding iPhone chargers.
More soon.