Date: 27-December-2018

Subject: Apple to Repair / Replace faulty iPhone 7/7 plus phones with Audio IC issue without any repair or replacement cost

Users worldwide have reported Audio IC Issues while using Apple 7 / 7 plus phones within first 2 years of usage. The widely reported issue causes the microphone to become unusable, making phone calls impossible. The speaker button is greyed out and the user is not able to use speaker phone or use Siri. The problem also causes the phones to sometimes get stuck in a boot loop (approximately 5 minutes) when powering on.

Many owners have approached Apple support centers with this issue, but Apple turned down requests for support for those phones out of warranty. Many users have experienced and reported on social media, and on Apple Discussions boards that this issue has happened after their update from iOS 11 to iOS 12. But Apple support center customers are being told that it is a hardware failure. Reports suggest a manufacturing defect with soldered points on the Audio IC chip.

Considering that Apple products are sold at a premium price, the quality with which these phones are manufactured is not up to the mark, and hardware starts to fail within first 2 years of use. This is not about one or two instances; the people who have signed this petition have faced the same issue.

For better description about this issue, one can refer following YouTube videos:

1) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NOl_CtMBgW8
2) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0JblsFS2R4M
 
There are tons of videos on YouTube if you search "iPhone 7 Audio IC Issue"

This petition is to bring this in attention to Apple Inc, so that Apple recalls all Apple 7 / 7 plus phones OR starts a replacement / repair program, specifically for Apple 7 / 7 plus phones for customers worldwide who have reported this issue. Apple's gesture of accepting their manufacturing defects supports their loyal customers.

We hope Apple addresses this issue worldwide very soon, as many customers who have signed this petition from various parts of the world are impacted.