New EU labels: Apple criticizes test methods, downgrades iPhone and iPad

Apple has started to implement the new EU energy labels for its products. They have been mandatory since last Friday as part of the EU Commission's so-called ecodesign requirements, and are likely to confuse some users rather than make their purchasing decisions easier. At least that's what the iPhone company believes: on the weekend, it published a 40-page paper detailing how it implements the regulation and what it considers worthy of criticism. At the same time, Apple stated that it had reduced the ratings for reasons of caution. For example, the current iPhone 16 only receives a “B” efficiency label from Apple, although the company expects to actually achieve an “A”. It gets even wilder with the iPad: Three series, the standard iPad, the Pro and the Air, get the worst efficiency rating of “G” from Apple. Only the iPad Mini achieves a better value of “E”, but still the third-worst level.

Criticism of EU test criteria

“The new EU regulation on energy labeling for smartphones and tablets prescribes several preliminary test procedures that contain unclear wording,” writes Apple in its paper. “As a result, some energy label claims are influenced by the decisions of manufacturers and testing laboratories interpreting the regulation.” Apple's own test results have therefore been “voluntarily downgraded” in order to “account for possible differences in interpretation”. The company hopes that it will be possible to resolve the problem of “ambiguities in the testing procedures” with the Commission and other stakeholders in the future. In Apple's opinion, the consultation before the introduction of the energy label apparently failed to achieve this.

In addition to the methods for measuring energy efficiency, Apple has also made other downgrades. These include the new value for the drop resistance of the devices – i.e., how badly they are damaged if they fall to the floor, for example. According to Apple, the EU conditions do not specify which surface must be used, such as which type of wood or steel the devices will hit. The EU energy label now also shows a value for repairability (the iPhone and iPad both have a “C” here) and an IP value for resistance to liquids and dust. The possible battery life in charging cycles and the “battery life per cycle” are also stated.

Apple does not want to be tied down when it comes to updates

When it comes to updates, the Ecodesign Directive would like to stipulate that updates must be issued for at least five years after the end of sales. Although Apple usually complies with this without any problems, the company does not want to guarantee this. When asked, the company merely referred to its existing practice for security patches for old devices and its longevity approach.

It will now be interesting to see how the EU Commission reacts. Regulation 2023/1670 makes it mandatory for “manufacturers, importers or authorized representatives” to provide software updates for devices sold for at least 5 years. Whether this must also be guaranteed in writing remains to be seen.

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