A couple for California has filed a lawsuit against Apple Inc. after the new “Wi-Fi Assist” feature caused a dramatic increase in their phone bill.
The “Wi-FI Assist” feature on Apple devices is new with the IOS 9 update. The newest feature automatically connects one’s phone to a cellular data network to boost connectivity whenever a Wi-Fi signal is weak, while saying your phone is still on Wi-Fi. It is a default setting.
The problem with this feature is most people do not know about it’s exists, causing them to use more data than they believe. “Wi-Fi Assist” raises the price of many people’s phone bills, which is what the couple is suing Apple Inc. over, especially for those who have limited data plans.
William Scott Phillips and Suzanne Schmidt Phillips filed the lawsuit on October 23rd. The couple states they who say they were unaware of “Wi-Fi Assist” being turned on automatically when they downloaded the newest software update, caused their phone bills to become “excessively large.”
While the Phillips are the only iPhone users who suing Apple over their newest feature, many dislike the feature. Many Twitter users have complained about the newest feature. Alex Heath, who’s tweet is being used as evidence in the lawsuit, summed up the problem. “Something is wrong. Data usage since upgrading to IOS 9 is off the charts. Snapchat: 20GB. Instagram: 16GB. Facebook: 10GB. Tweetbot: 47 GB.”
To turn off Wi-Fi Assist, go to settings-cellular data. Then scroll all the way to the bottom. Click the green button to turn off the data-eating feature.