Broken Buttons, Broken Promises: Apple's Planned Obsolescence Exposed

In August 2025, a customer faced a frustrating issue with their iPhone - the side buttons had stopped working, rendering basic functions like Apple Wallet and volume control unusable. Seeking a fix, the customer visited the Apple Store, where they were met with a brutal diagnosis: the repair would cost around $700, nearly half the price of a new phone.

Determined to find a solution, the customer held out for two weeks, learning to live with the glitch. However, the situation became unbearable, and they returned to the Apple Store, ready to replace the entire phone. To their surprise, once the data was transferred to the new device, the old phone's buttons suddenly sprang back to life, working perfectly.

The incident raises questions about Apple's business practices. The company's iconic slogan of "Think Different" seems at odds with its approach, where short-lived iPhones pile up under a shroud of environmental destruction and corporate hypocrisy. Apple's claims of sustainability and green values are undermined by the reality of its products' disposable nature and the harsh conditions in which the raw materials are extracted.

The article also highlights the Apple Store's strict policies, where even the employees are not allowed to have a sip of water on the shop floor, creating a "hellscape" environment for those tasked with fixing the company's thousand-dollar gadgets.

As the customer walked out with a new phone, they couldn't help but wonder if their old device was only "obsolete" due to a temporary mechanical failure. This raises concerns about Apple's planned obsolescence tactics, where the company pushes customers into an endless cycle of upgrades, one overpriced handset at a time.