Apple is misleading consumers by not putting a charger in the box of an iPhone 12, the Brazilian consumer watchdog has decided.
Anyone who buys an iPhone 12, Apple’s latest smartphone, no longer gets a charger in the package. The device comes with a cable from USB to its own Lightning connection, but chargers for the electricity network have to be bought separately, or you can use those from an older device.
It is primarily the latter that Apple probably refers to when it indicates that the decision has to do with the environment. Apple says it should now use fewer raw materials for every iPhone sold.
However, for people who don’t have six old iPhones in their closet, it is an extra cost, says the Brazilian consumer organization. Apple has fined Apple two million dollars for “misleading advertising, selling a device without a charger and unfair terms of use.”
The charger is one of the heavier elements in the box of a new smartphone these days.
By omitting these, Apple can save raw materials and ship smaller and much lighter boxes, which costs a good sip on the logistics drink. The devices themselves are not cheaper at first sight now that they do not contain a charger.
