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Apple’s Tim Cook comments on iPhone 6/s battery case: It’s for overnight trips, not daily charging

iphone6ssmartbatterycase

There’s been no shortage of controversy surrounding the new iPhone 6/s battery case released yesterday. Most complaints were around the capacity which is at the low end, the shape, or its actual existence which would seem to indicate that Apple made the iPhone 6 with too small a battery.

Tim Cook, in discussing with Mashable the new accessory, had an alternate take on its use:

“if you’re charging your phone every day, you probably don’t need this at all. But if you’re out hiking and you go on overnight trips… it’s kind of nice to have.”

Cook expanded on some of the nuances of the battery pack design:

“As you probably know from being a user of this now,” said Cook as he grabbed my iPhone 6, which was sporting the new case, “one of the real insights here is, have you ever used other cases and tried to get them on?” If you make this solid all the way across,” said Cook, indicating the spots where the Apple case’s embedded battery stops and you just have the soft fluoroelastomer casing, “in order to get it on, you’d find it very difficult to get it on and off. So the guys had this great insight to put the bend in along with making it a smart case,” Cook explained.

Oh and about that “hump”...

“You know, I probably wouldn’t call it ‘the hump,’” said Cook, who added he was aware of the comments surrounding the Smart Battery Case.

Perhaps the best way to describe the new product was given by Apple’s VP of software engineering Cheryl Thomas who distilled it down to a catch phrase:  “When you need it, you need it.”

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Comments

  1. xprmntr - 8 years ago

    for the most part I like it, wish it didn’t take away from the iPhone’s rounded edge so much though, and would’ve been nice to eliminate or shorten that chin

  2. I am not that guy, but anyway here I go.
    We weren’t using it right.

    • mojodk - 8 years ago

      This were once a fun sentence – now it’s just lame. Now it’s kinda like having your grandpa saying urban stuff.

  3. rogifan - 8 years ago

    It’s actually a sad commentary on the world today that a silly battery case that most people will never use can cause so much controversy and noise on the internet.

    • kjl3000 - 8 years ago

      I think most complaining about it (like I do) are worried about Apple loosing it in general (see latest design desasters like Magic Mouse 2’s and pencils charging “solution”, Apple TV 4 & remote design, iPhone 6, Apple Watch charging dock, etc.) … Apple has been well known for perfection of their products that set new Industry and Design standards. This is why they are the worlds most valuable brand now. But if they give up on innovation & perfection in every single detail, like they used to at least before Steve passed away, they won’t stay at the top because they will loose customers that have been willing to pay premium prices for premium products. It’s that simple.

      • rnc - 8 years ago

        “Loosing it”?

        What’s the problem of those products?

        The Apple pencil? Charging that way is only for emergency situations, you don’t even GET TO KNOW THE PRODUCT, yet the armchair designers are all over it, it comes with a male to female piece to charge it normally.

        Compare to the competition, like Microsoft stupid idea of using a battery size that nobody uses, and no brand sells rechargeable AAAA batteries, not only that, but the surface pen has two batteries you need both, one coin cell and another AAAA battery.

        Yet NOBODY makes fuzz about it, the verge is not making another complaint post, nothing, not a single mention, no one gives a single f*ck about not only an inconvenience, but also the complete disrespect of nature by adopting a solution that’s doesn’t even give an option of recharging!

        Yet, “Apple are stupid” by providing an emergency recharge.

        Go back to MKBHD circlejerking. Seriously.

        And what’s the problem with IPhone 6?

        What’s the problem with ATV4 and its remote, where it fails, I don’t know? That bullsh** people complaining about text entry? Try that with Android or roku or whatever, where you have also an on-screen keyboard, where you have to move from letter to letter, one click at a time… Yet, “Apple are stupid” by providing a superior text entry solution…

        Seriously, shut up, and where is a better solution to the Apple Watch charging dock? Magnetic? Check, it doesn’t fall off, like other do! Wireless? Check, no problems with dirt or sweat or water. What you want more?

      • iSRS - 8 years ago

        Having seen it, and the guys at the Apple Store allowing me to take one and put it on my iPhone and try it out, it is well designed. Most Apple complaints about design always say “form over function” where this one is both, at least to me, when I saw it.

      • taoprophet420 - 8 years ago

        What about the shit ugly 5c dot cases? This it not Apple’s first ugly accessory. The worst the iMac hockey puck mouse. The bulge in the camera on iPhone 6 and bulge o. These cases are poor design choices and is part of a trend of Apple loosing some of its iconic industrial design. I for one hate the curved edge of iPhone 6 and 6 s plus the antenna gaps.

        The iPhone 4 was like holding a Leica camera and was classic industrial design.since then Apple design has been lacking. Having your lead designer working on cabinets and tables for stores instead focusing on your core products is a bad idea. Even worse is designing packaging from other accessory makers.

      • kjl3000 - 8 years ago

        @rnc Apple needs customers like you, more than ever before.

      • Anthony Tam (@anth07am) - 8 years ago

        I love Apple products, but the Pencil had me scratching my head.
        “Compare to the competition, like Microsoft stupid idea of using a battery size that nobody uses, and no brand sells rechargeable AAAA batteries, not only that, but the surface pen has two batteries you need both, one coin cell and another AAAA battery.”

        Okay, I didn’t know the MS Pen needed ‘two’ obscure batteries. However, given that you only need to change them once a year, instead of the more frequently charging Apple Pencil (which, like all battery tech, degrades in time), is not alarmingly bad. Also, the MS Pen has a clip, can be stowed magnetically, has a button AND an eraser option on its end AND you can even replace the nibs.

        Given all these features, you’d think the company that used to innovate like crazy, would have upped the features of the pencil upon release.

      • Paul Andrew Dixon - 8 years ago

        I agree with you – they are losing the plot…

        The pencil that takes away battery time from your ipad – plus sticks out and can easily get knocked (granted it’s 15secs for a quick charge, but anything could happen in that time)…

        The magic mouse was hilarious – with the old one you just had to change the batteries and off you go…with the new one you have to sit around waiting for it to charge before you can use it again… what were they thinking?

        The apple TV 4 is huge – it is not designed for the future… with something that big they should have an optical port… considering it is for storing content such as videos, photos, apps, and games – expandability is kinda important… what is wrong with using a micro SD slot…

        the iphone 6 with the camera sticking out was laughable… just keep the thickness until the camera tech evolves enough and fill the space with more power.

        Apple products were also built to last a long time… you could easily find repair shops, or just open it up and upgrade yourself — now, everything is sealed in and covered in glue — computer can no longer be upgraded — i seriously cant imagine a macbook 12″ lasting 4 years, never mind 7 years like my friends macbook (the old one)…

        I hope next year is better – but they need new designers and younger blood — more of their ideas are old and boring by todays standard.

      • craigmc27 - 8 years ago

        To the guy complaining about the way you have to charge the Magic Mouse 2 get over it, it’s a fast change device! 2 mins and you get 9 hours of juice! Wait you can wait 2 mins whilst it needs charging?, you can’t go to the toilet? Get yourself a drink? Um I dunno cry to mummy that you have to wait that long and secondly regarding the pencil! Doesn’t it have a dock you can buy for it and an adapter where by you can plug it into any lighting connection not just the iPad? And with battery case some might see it as stupid and ugly or I don’t need that or this but at the end of the day once you sit back and realise as most people end up doing they will appreciate the simplicity the thought and care and how easy it is to put on and then remove the battery and the fact that it is only one piece not too unlike the mophie case and many others! Apple do things for a reason and with good ittentions, just stop being haters!

    • Boris (@taillarb) - 8 years ago

      It not really causing any controversy or noise all over the Internet though. Just some criticism on Apple dedicated websites. Is it that sad that a new Apple product is triggering discussions on Apple dedicated websites?

  4. srgmac - 8 years ago

    Ridiculous — It’s a battery case. Why not team up with Mophie or something? Why make it themselves? Do they REALLY need this much money??? No one is going to want this compared to a Mophie or similar beautiful / intelligent designed battery case.

    • rnc - 8 years ago

      That sell the morphie in their stores, you want the morphie? Buy a morphie, want something different? You can.

      Apple doesn’t need or want to put morphie out of business

      • srgmac - 8 years ago

        I know that — they should have teamed up with them and promoted their cases — put them in a commercial or something. Making their own battery case was a stupid move IMHO no matter how you spin it.

  5. srgmac - 8 years ago

    Apple is making a lot of poor choices lately, since the AW launch, there have been some *issues* — the new iPhones have been a huge success though.

    • rnc - 8 years ago

      Don’t buy

      • srgmac - 8 years ago

        Wow, epic advice! What about when I want one of their products but I have to wait TWO MONTHS for it to ship to me, like the AW 1.0? I can’t criticize your beloved Apple for that? Piss off mate, lol.

  6. kjl3000 - 8 years ago

    So the reason it looks ugly as hell is because it’s smart? Got it. I think we just have to learn to compromise …

    • jiggerslovesthemapples - 8 years ago

      The smart ones are usually ugly. The pretty ones are usually not so smart.

      • yojimbo007 - 8 years ago

        Thats why Apple has been dangerously attractive. And soooooooo successful.
        It is Both smart and pretty .

        Lose one and it loses its significance !

    • mytawalbeh - 8 years ago

      You are just complaining about everything ! it’s so simple if you see that case doesn’t fit you, just don’t buy it. It is JUST a case.

      • kjl3000 - 8 years ago

        Apple told us for years they are constantly working the hardest to create the best products on earth, seeking for perfection in every detail. Now that they obviously don’t do this anymore you think we should just shut up and stop buying Apple products? I don’t think so… Apple needs to be reminded their own words, that’s why everybody is complaining. That simple.

  7. yojimbo007 - 8 years ago

    All this talk and bs dancing around the real issue. Its a crapy design… simple ! And that’s not what apple is all about.
    It does not deserve the Apple logo..
    IF anything apple is biased more to design than ergonomics.. But threir magic has been trying to balance both in reasonable way.
    This product fails Apple criteria
    The ipad pro keyboard case fails it.
    The way the Pencil get charged on iPad pro fails it .
    The charge port at the back of the mouse fails it .
    The new music app ui fails it.
    The new TvOS ( well feels very rushed and half baked .. Ill wait and see what happenes there )

    There are bogus decisions made at apple recently. 2015 has been riddled with disarray at Apple.
    Hope in the coming year they get back to their normal greatness!

    Someone in charge is making follish calls Tim… Too many yes-s to bad ideas .

    • kjl3000 - 8 years ago

      You forgot the way Magic Mouse 2 charges, the Apple Watch charging dock, Apple TV 4 and remote (to me, it’s completely out of proportion compared to the 3rd gen) and of course the iPhone 6 (in general, but especially the antenna borders, the bulged camera and the round edges that makes it slippy unless you use a case, but there’s one out now as we all know). Otherwise I couldn’t agree more!

      • kjl3000 - 8 years ago

        You didn’t forget the mouse, sorry :)

      • yojimbo007 - 8 years ago

        Agree with the Apple tv.. They just made it thicker with no consideration for proportions.. Lazy design.
        But i love the new remote..
        It needs to be tweeked a bit to function properly.. Specially accidental touches on the touch pad …and touchpad responsiveness algorithm.. (But easly solved through software upgrade )

        The lower half of the remore is a complete waste..
        Why not put another touch pad there and allow it to be double joystick controller for games when held horizontly .. …
        Distinguish the top and bottom on it… Put some very subtle led light on each end .. Maybe red and green.. ( also indicating left and right when in game controler mode) …..in dark room its hard to have a tactile feel of the remote orientation .

        But hey maybe that is intended for the next iteration …??

        All in all apple products of 2015 dont have the deep thinking and detail oriented solutions as they did before?

        I pray this changes in the coming year.

      • taoprophet420 - 8 years ago

        Problem with the Apple TV was they started working in this design over 2 years ago and faced delays and they never updated the physical design. tvOS is fine to me, besides lack of support of Bluetooth keyboards, dictation and other things it should had from the start.

  8. chrisl84 - 8 years ago

    That iPhone 7 is gonna be paper damn thin now that Apple wants us to by battery cases to keep our phones alive! SWEEEET

  9. But for overnight trips I could just get one of these right?

    http://www.mi.com/en/pb5000/

    Which actually looks like something Apple designed (unapologetically, perhaps). For only $9.99 USD this thing can also charge an iPad and iPhone 6+ too :)

    It’s just bizarre that the same company who created the most elegant terraced battery design for the 12 inch MacBook then created this case, which is almost the opposite of elegant.

  10. gauntlet23 - 8 years ago

    Ugly, can you imagine Jobs reaction if s product manager wanted to ship this…yea…

  11. whatever tim, it’s still an expensive, ugly PoS

  12. bdkennedy1 - 8 years ago

    I guess what pisses me off about this is that it’s another comprise from a company that in the past would rather not make the product at all than compromise. Apple didn’t used to have (very many) products that people would make fun of.

    Now over the past several years we have the Mac Pro trash can, an iPhone 6 with a protruding camera and plastic striping, a hole-y iPhone 5c case, a Magic Mouse you can’t charge while using it and internal battery that doesn’t save any space, an anemic, expensive MacBook stripped of all but one port, an Apple TV with barely any apps, and now an iPhone case with a hump on the back.

  13. tonywmd23 - 8 years ago

    Back at home Tim Cook must be sighing: “Damn those asinine buttholes who designed this thing. Why did I approve? Now I have to make up stories and lie in public to defend this ugly product.”

  14. Every one is acting as if they forgot that Steve Jobs also oversaw products and services that failed here and there. He is dead now and so can become some kind of god? He is my hero genius too but you guys should just give it a rest with all this “Steve would never”. Yes, Steve would! And you know what? Steve was also an ideologue that held Apple back in a number of ways. Steve never even liked a case at all. he said it would hide the beauty of the phone or the iPad. Apple didn’t make phone cases for a long time until they saw 3rd party cases flying off the shelf. Steve only originally sanctioned an iPad cover that leaves the back exposed. Again because, he didn’t want to cover the beauty of it. Apple is a corporation, not a museum of Art. Much as it is not very pretty to see a phone case that has a small slab for extra juice (which I’d definitely buy for long trips across the world or lengthy conferences), Apple should sometimes be able to make something because it meets the needs of lots of people and they are willing to pay for it. It is a business, not an Art class. People who sit on their computers all day like you and I and live in countries with ubiquitous clean power and signal no longer possess the imagination we need to fully understand the iPhone user as a global person living in more countries than the one you know. There are needs out there. There are workmen who leave home and work in the field for over 14 hours. They don’t want dongles, they don’t want to stop and charge. They run their credit cards on that device. Field workers who use it to collect medical information during the day don’t want to stop and charge. They just want to work until they are done. They just want to use their iPhone. People in countries where electricity supply is erratic or signal is weak don’t want a pretty cover. They want a phone that will stay alive until they come home.
    Apple has been sitting in the store watching equally ugly, yes ugly, 3rd party battery cases fly off the shelves like hot doughnut. They have the facts and figures. They have a duty to their shareholders to tap into that gold rush. They have the facts and figures, people! You just have what? A keyboard, a foul mouth and time to spare? Sorry, that’s no qualification for running the largest corporation in the world.
    Customer feedback is one thing. Smacking everything because you think you know better is something that has happened to every (EVERY) single product Apple ever made. Everyone of them had people laugh at it. Apple one ran a rendition of the meanest of the attacks for products which the world now know are world bestsellers of all time. Products which changed the world were derided when they were released.
    Maybe you should figure out how to make a single-piece case that is easy to put on and take off with end-to-end battery, has no overheating and signal impedance (especially NFC issues), and then create your own startup. In a few years, come back and review what you typed today and you will see how different your perspective would have changed by knowledge.

    • Paul Andrew Dixon - 8 years ago

      Steve did make a few mistakes BUT not as many as apple have made this year.

      Steve did hold apple back, he instead focused them — before apple had a few top sellers keeping them a float and then all these half-baked products that were only just acceptable. He got rid of all that and aimed to have a few products, all of which sells well – if it doesnt sell well, scrap it… He took time on the iphone trying to get it right, the same with the imac, and the macbook — him and Ive had a vision that these products are something that people use everyday and so they should be beautiful so that people would want to use them … maybe you forgot about the big chunky keyboards and the big beige CRT monitors or the endless products in the office that just werent fun to use…
      There is nothing wrong with technology being art – why can’t something be practical and beautiful???

      IBM is a business – look what happened to them… Microsoft is a business, but even they are now designing in house and taking control of what they think a high end product should be.
      If you want to sell to a call centre or an office with all the fun sucked out of it, then go with dell and IBM etc – both of which are doing soso … but when dealing with people who have a personality and want ways to express themselves and show their self-worth, then design and art of the product is very important…

      I don’t think apple should make cases… they should focus on the design of the phone and improve it’s strength – the bend crisis and protruding camera was a huge failure for them… Cases add protection, but they are mostly for expressing yourself – Apple can not compete with this…so wasting money on a case similar to other cases, the difference is an apple logo and 3-4times the price…
      As for battery sales – most people are buying portable batteries… battery cases are not that popular… so it would seem that apple realised they couldnt compete with the portable batteries but possibly could with a battery case — they will probably sell a few, but not enough to warrant apple having spent time designing and making it…
      It also shows a lack of confidence in their phone… which, most people who own an iphone 6 will say it struggles to get through the day — i have the iphone 6 plus, i have days where that struggles to get through a day… so again, apple went too small at the cost of the battery and now they have had to add an option to try and solve this problem.

      When the iphone 6 plus came out, they tweaked the coding for their ios — certain apps are created specifically for the iphone 6plus and look different, and the ios makes the icons fit better… yet when they brought out the ipad pro they had a lack of pro apps (of which many you had to pay for even if you already had the regular version) and the ios was not tweaked and reminded me of how the original ipad looked when it used the iphone os…
      The ipad, apple watch, and apple TV are all prototypes – they are still in beta testing mode and not finished products yet they are sold to us and we are told that they are the finished products…

      We are not the experts, but we are the ones who use these products on a daily basis…we know what works and what doesnt and it is up to apple to find away to make sure things work the way they are supposed to.
      No-one is smacking EVERY single product – mostly just the ones this year…
      Can you honestly say you are happy to sit waiting for you mouse to charge because apple thought it would be great to put the lightning port underneath… are you apple that the Apple TV is huge, yet has no expandability, no optic port, and no 4K… are you happy that you have to stick your pencil in the end of the ipad pro to charge it… are you really happy with the smaller batteries and camera sticking out on the phones…or that apple forced people down to a single port when really you needed 2 on the macbook… are you really happy with their stuff this year???

  15. freediverx - 8 years ago

    I would think twice before trusting my $800 iPhone with a $5 charger/flashlight, but thanks for that suggestion Seth.

  16. lkernan - 8 years ago

    So it’s a case you only use in special occasions.. um, right.

  17. Laurent Seroude - 8 years ago

    Then, why not release a case for the 6plus and 6Splus?

  18. rettun1 - 8 years ago

    Okay, I thought the Galaxy S5 looked like a band-aid, but that last picture…. Wow

    I truly don’t think the other colors, or the whole case itself, looks too bad.

  19. kjl3000 - 8 years ago

    “What we make testifies who we are. People can sense care and can sense carelessness. This relates to respect for each other and carelessness is personally offensive.”

    Jonathan Ive

  20. Paul Andrew Dixon - 8 years ago

    The case reminds me of the case with the card holders…

    But yeah… if this is for over night trips then $99 is rather expensive when you could probably get a bigger portable batter that could also charge your other devices on an overnight trip… a portable battery would enable you to charge you ipad, iphone, and apple watch — with this case you’ve spent all that money just to charge your phone — apple are seriously losing the plot and beginning to annoy me with their stupidity…

  21. kjl3000 - 8 years ago

    “Make each product the best it can be. Focus on form and materials. What we don’t include is as important as what we do include.”

    Jonathan Ive

  22. viciosodiego - 8 years ago

    Oh, my, fucking, god.
    Peepe are now complaining about apple’s choices.
    you wanted a rechargeble mouse, apple makes it.
    But then, you say, nope I don’t like charging the mouse, Ide rather prefer AA batterys.
    What the hell.
    The apple tv is not designed well enough.
    What, you want to show it off?its because of you people that apple is prioritizing design over function. but but, I need to charge my apple pencil. of course you do. dumbass
    Sorry, but I just had to speak the cold hard truth to the, apple crybabys. they always have to find something bad about an apple product. nothing is perfect.
    If you stopped finding faults about the product, you will have a better experience.

  23. uniszuurmond - 8 years ago

    It amazes me how people (and even Tim!) are defending Apple with the likes of “you’re not using it every day” or “charging the Magic Mouse 2 only take a few minutes for a long charge” or “charging the Apple Pencil in that position is only for emergencies”.

    Apple is all about industrial design, attention to detail, and getting things perfectly right, not almost right. Even if it’s just for the camping weekend. Or to charge the mouse than 1 minute while you’re still working. Or to not have the pencil stick out like an antenna for a short while. Because then they’re missing what they are about. Did everyone forget that Steve Jobs famously even worried about the INTERIOR design of the first production Mac? Or that he created a unique beige colour for it that had just the right friendliness?

    I urge all people who are defending Apple to the grave to also realise their mistakes, and warning signs when things start to slip (as they did in the 90s), as this is the only way Apple will work harder. So yes, it IS important to moan about the design of a case. And yes, it is a first world problem, but Apple is a first world company. So it comes with the territory, and the price point they’re pitching themselves at.

  24. Tom Byrne - 8 years ago

    Tim Cook sure has a lot of opinions and excuses..getting tired of his MO. Try designing good products TImmy.

  25. DanG (@Ingila_Bear) - 8 years ago

    Okay Cook, we call it iHump!

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