Q: iPhone restore error 53 - not listed anywhere, what is the problem? has anyone seen it before???

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This is a technical support forum, not a place to debate whether you believe Apple's policy is 'reasonable'.

It is what it is. Try reading the Apple Support Communities Terms of Use.

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Does EU and UK law allow the owner to damage the product?

I can't offer technical advice to people over Error 53 because there is no technical advice to offer. Their phone is bricked

All anyone is doing on this entire thread is debating or moaning and I predict Apple is about to face another set of EU based law suits over this.

And why would I call a lawyer? I'm just letting people know that Apple (and any company for that matter) cannot actually limit you to one year warranty.

It certainly doesn't allow for monopoly of trade by banning all 3rd party repairs.

3rd party repairs are not banned.  The user has a choice - repair & maintenance by Apple OR repair & maintenance by others.  The only limitation is that you can't have it both ways.

Actually they can limit you to a one year warranty depending on the type of warranty claim. They can also cancel your warranty for 3rd party repairs and refuse to work on the device. They can also refuse to sell parts to unauthorized repair sites. You still have the choice of using a 3rd party repair site and if they are a reputable company they will not attempt to work on the TouchID/cable and will compensate you if they damage it. They also will have a hard time right now replacing iPhone 6s and 6s Plus screens.

tiggerj wrote:

 

 

And why would I call a lawyer? I'm just letting people know that Apple (and any company for that matter) cannot actually limit you to one year warranty.

This might be what you are referring to: http://www.apple.com/uk/legal/statutory-warranty/

They actually can limit you to a 1 year warranty. The terms of the EU consumer protection laws make it difficult (but not impossible) to file a warranty claim after the manufacturer's warranty has expired. The burden of proof is on the consumer to demonstrate that the product is defective by design after the expiration of the manufacturer's warranty. So if you want to make such a claim you probably will need a lawyer. You'd probably win, but at what price? You'd have a much better chance of success by approaching Apple and politely pleading your case. Apple has been pretty reasonable with people who are reasonable, on a case by case basis.

This is the equivalent of a car manufacturer bricking your car because you got a tire changed at an unauthorised dealers.

This is hitting all the major headlines now. This is going to severely damage Apples reputation and profits. It may well go down as one of the worst mistakes in the history of marketing.

I have been a fan of iphones for a long time, also have an ipad air. However any company that resorts to this in order to inflate phone sales will not get my business.

Jay 75 wrote:

 

This is the equivalent of a car manufacturer bricking your car because you got a tire changed at an unauthorised dealers.

 

This is hitting all the major headlines now. This is going to severely damage Apples reputation and profits. It may well go down as one of the worst mistakes in the history of marketing.

 

I have been a fan of iphones for a long time, also have an ipad air. However any company that resorts to this in order to inflate phone sales will not get my business.

No, it's the equivalent of a car manufacturer disabling your engine because the car's computer detected that the tire that was installed was not a safe tire and it was installed improperly, so using your vehicle could cause serious injury or death.  Safety takes precedence over convenience.

It has nothing to do with 'inflating' iPhone sales.  It's about security, which is something for which Apple has a pristine reputation.  No iOS device has ever been remotely hacked.  No iCloud account has ever been breached.  This is from the same cloth.

But hey, thanks for being concerned about my stock prices.  Personally, I'm not worried. 

Apple, I've bought my last iOS device.

Already considering how to sell my iPhone 5s, so I can get a repairable device from competitor. My iPad Mini has a regular button, so I guess it's safe for now ....

I live 120K's away from closest Apple Store and on the top - I'm not rich!! I can't pay for travel and expensive Apple-fix!!

And finally - what about the planet?

You sound like you have the most over-inflated opinion of Apple.

Insead of disabling the entire phone, why not just disable the touch-pad and force the user to either use a pin or have no security on their phone?

why brick the whole phone? What's the point?

Apple are going from weakness to weakness and it doesn't seem like it's going to change, and the next bout of lawsuits (after the more recent bouts of lawsuits concerning AppleCare where Apple lost a substantial sum for fraudulent misrepresentation) will only be a further hit to the public opinion of this money hungry company.

Also what do you mean iCloud wasn't breached? Do you not remember the recent leaks of pictures Of celebrities?

The action in the UK is being treated as criminal damage, a company that knowingly destroys its customers products in the interest of further profit will not have those customers for long.

jakob.joergensen wrote:

 

Apple, I've bought my last iOS device.

 

Already considering how to sell my iPhone 5s, so I can get a repairable device from competitor. My iPad Mini has a regular button, so I guess it's safe for now ....

I live 120K's away from closest Apple Store and on the top - I'm not rich!! I can't pay for travel and expensive Apple-fix!!

And finally - what about the planet?

1. You're not talking to Apple here.  Use the Feedback Channel at www.apple.com/feedback instead.

2. Post it on eBay or craigslist or whatever equivalent you have in your area.  Make sure to import all your pictures and transfer things like your contacts & calendars & notes to your computer and then erase it and set it up as new before you sell it.

3. There are mail-in options, and if you use locate.apple.com you can find the nearest legitimate service center.

4. If you can afford an iPhone, you can afford the related service options.  If you can't, then buy another product.

5. And what, exactly, about the planet?  What does any of this have to do with 'the planet'?

You are attempting to defend the indefensible. This is a very unfair move by apple, people with slightly damaged phones that have been working for months are now being intentionally bricked.

While I appreciated some people have fanatically unconditional brand loyalty, your support for this is unethical. 

tiggerj wrote:

 

You sound like you have the most over-inflated opinion of Apple.

 

Insead of disabling the entire phone, why not just disable the touch-pad and force the user to either use a pin or have no security on their phone?

 

why brick the whole phone? What's the point?

 

Apple are going from weakness to weakness and it doesn't seem like it's going to change, and the next bout of lawsuits (after the more recent bouts of lawsuits concerning AppleCare where Apple lost a substantial sum for fraudulent misrepresentation) will only be a further hit to the public opinion of this money hungry company.

 

Also what do you mean iCloud wasn't breached? Do you not remember the recent leaks of pictures Of celebrities?

No, simply an unbiased & informed opinion.  I've got plenty of criticism for Apple; I just don't do it on a technical support forum, since this isn't the appropriate place for that.  I know where to go to properly voice my opinion about Apple to Apple. 

You're asking me to speculate on why the entire phone is disabled instead of just part of it?  That's not allowed by the terms of this forum.  Please read them again.

Please cite your source for the AppleCare lawsuit.  You mean the one that got thrown out by the judge?  [http://9to5mac.com/2016/01/08/apple-care-class-action-rejected/]  The one where the judge stated the plaintiff's lawyer was incompetent, and that it appeared to be orchestrated intentionally?  Exactly who much did Apple lose there?

iCloud was not breached.  Those 'leaked celebrity pictures' were acquired by people that were able to guess the passwords to those celebrity accounts, or able to gain access to the email associated to the Apple ID, and other used that password to download the iCloud backups or reset the password via email and then do that.  No one got into the iCloud servers.  Someone used the actual passwords or rise the passwords.  The only security breach in any of those instances was being able to get into the emails, not the iCloud.  It's not a security breach when someone uses a legitimate password to access iCloud contents.

If you used a simple numeric passcode like '1234' for your home security system, and a burglar typed that in to disable the alarm, is that a security breach, or poor passcode choice of the user?  If your ATM PIN is '1234' and someone gets your ATM card and pulls money out of your account, was the ATM breached?  No.

The media loved to jump all over that one, but as soon as Apple explained that it wasn't a breach, but simply poor security choices by those celebrities, the story died within a few days after that.  It's not 'entertaining' to the masses if it was simply a dumb password issue.