The French National Frequency Authority issued an announcement on September 12 local time that the test results showed that the electromagnetic radiation value of Apple's iPhone 12 mobile phone exceeded the EU standard, and Apple had been asked to temporarily remove the phone from the French market from the same day.
Apple later responded that the iPhone 12 has been certified by multiple international bodies to meet global radiation standards.
The iPhone 12 was controlled to exceed the radiation standard
Apple responded
The announcement said that the French National Frequency Authority, as a regulator of the wireless communication industry, recently tested a number of mobile phones, including Apple's iPhone 12, to check whether the specific absorption rate of mobile phones meets the standard. The specific absorption rate reflects the level of radiation absorbed by the body when people are exposed to electromagnetic radiation. The test results showed that the specific absorption rate of the iPhone 12 mobile phone was 5.74 watts per kilogram, exceeding the upper limit of 4 watts per kilogram set by the European Union.
According to the requirements of the announcement, Apple must immediately take all necessary measures to suspend the sale of iPhone 12 phones in France. For those iPhone 12 phones that have been sold, Apple must also take the necessary corrective actions to bring them into compliance as soon as possible. Otherwise, the company will be ordered to recall the relevant phones. France's National Frequency Authority also said it will share iPhone 12 detection information with all EU member states.
On the same day, Apple used the USB Type-C charging interface for the first time in the newly released iPhone 15 series products, replacing its unique lightning charging interface. According to EU requirements, by autumn 2024, the USB Type-C interface will become the standard charging interface for small and medium-sized portable electronic devices such as mobile phones, tablets and cameras in the EU. The EU said the move was to reduce e-waste and make life easier for consumers.
Regarding the thermal energy generated by the electromagnetic waves of mobile phones, it is usually expressed by the SAR value, that is, the electromagnetic wave energy absorption ratio. At 6 minutes, it is stipulated that the amount of electromagnetic radiation absorbed per kilogram of brain tissue cannot exceed a certain standard, and this radiation amount also includes the thermal effect of electromagnetic waves. The standard in the United States is 1.6W/kg, while in Europe it is 2.0W/kg. The higher the SAR value, the greater the impact on the human body.
In this regard, Apple said in a statement that the iPhone 12 launched in 2020 has been certified by multiple international agencies and meets global radiation standards. Apple has provided multiple results from the company and third-party labs proving that the phone meets the requirements of France's national frequency authority, and is challenging the agency's findings.
Rodney Croft, chairman of the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection, said France's national frequency authority's approach to assessing radiation may differ from other regulators. French government sources also said the tests in France differed from the methods used by Apple.
France's move has sparked the possibility of further European bans on the iPhone 12. Germany's Federal Network Agency (BNetzA) said it could initiate a similar procedure and was in close contact with French authorities.
Apple's new product accused of "lack of innovation"
Along with the "radiation exceeded" storm, there is Apple's latest release of the iPhone 15 series of mobile phones, which are also not optimistic about the market.
Just a day ago, in the early morning of September 13, Beijing time, Apple's 2023 new product conference arrived as scheduled, and the much-watched iPhone 15 series was officially released at this conference.
The Chinese theme of this Apple conference is "curiosity", but most of the product features displayed on the scene do not seem to satisfy people's curiosity.
According to reports, this time the changes of the iPhone 15 series are mainly focused on chips, interfaces, imaging systems and fuselage, and the appearance has not changed much. The biggest "highlight" is that the iPhone 15 series officially switched from the Lightning interface to the USB-C interface. This means that you don't have to carry two cables to get other mobile phones when you go out. From social platforms, users generally believe that Apple's new products lack "novelty".
On the contrary, the price of the iPhone 15 series has increased again. Apple's official website shows that the most basic iPhone 15 National Bank starts at 5999 yuan, while the most expensive iPhone 15 ProMax National Bank starts at 9999 yuan, of which the top version is priced up to 13999 yuan. Once again, the price record of the iPhone was broken.
Embarrassingly, after the press conference, the term that topped the hot search on Weibo was "Huawei press conference", and the former "Apple Night" scenery was no longer there.
The industry is also not optimistic about iPhone sales. UBS Securities pointed out in the report that Apple's iPhone 15 series new machine shipments were lowered from 80-90 million to 78 million. Analysts at Mizuho Bank of Japan had lowered their expectations from 84 million to 73 million.
Apple's market value lost 580 billion yuan in two days
In fact, before the exposure of the iPhone 15 series of products, the world was highly optimistic about Apple's performance, believing that "Apple can bring amazing".
However, as soon as the launch ended, the prescient capital market was the first to react. As of the close of the press conference, Apple's stock price fell 1.71% to $176.3 per share, and the total market value evaporated more than $47 billion (about 340 billion yuan) overnight, falling below $2.8 trillion.
On September 13, Apple's stock price continued to fall, falling 1.19% to close at $174.21 per share, and its market value lost more than $80 billion (about 580 billion yuan) in the past two days.
A number of Wall Street investment banks also lowered Apple's price target, Bank of America lowered Apple's price target from $210 to $208, and Goldman Sachs lowered Apple's stock price target from $222 to $216.
It is worth noting that on the day of the release of the iPhone 15 series, the iPhone 14 series was fully reduced in price, with a maximum reduction of 1,000 yuan. Some analysts said that in view of the pressure on performance, it is not ruled out that Apple will allow channel vendors to reduce the price of the iPhone 15 early next year.
Apple has always been the representative of high-end products and high-end brands in the mobile phone industry. In recent years, with Apple's lack of innovation and the rise of domestic Android manufacturers, Apple will encounter greater challenges in China's high-end mobile phone market.
Apples are slowly losing their "taste".
Netizen comments
Source: Chao News Qianjiang Evening News comprehensive from the global network, surging news, polar news, netizen comments, etc