Apple's iPhone slowdowns have customers hurrying to court

iPhone users have begun racing to courthouses, infuriated by an Apple Inc. software update that slowed down the operation of their smartphones.

At least two groups of customers sued Apple over the deterioration of their phones’ performance.

One group, in Chicago federal court, claims the software updates that throttle down the performance of iPhone 5, iPhone 6 and some iPhone 7s were intentionally put out to induce customers to buy newer iPhones such as iPhone 8 and iPhone X. That one retails for as much as $1,149 in the U.S.

A second group sued in Los Angeles federal court claiming Apple breached an