iPhone battery replacements to be delayed: report

An Apple iPhone 6 is seen on display at the Apple store on 5th Avenue in the Manhattan borough of New York City, July 21, 2015. REUTERS/Mike Segar

iPhone users looking to replace their batteries will have to wait, with iPhone 6 Plus batteries possibly out of stock till March.

MacRumours reported that iPhone 6 Plus replacement batteries were in short supply and won't be available until late March to early April in the United States and other regions. 

It quoted an internal document distributed to Apple Stores and Apple Authorised Service Providers, that states a shorter wait of "approximately two weeks" for iPhone 6 and iPhone 6s Plus battery replacements.

Meanwhile, batteries for other models including the iPhone 6s, iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus, and iPhone SE were expected to be available "without extended delays" in most countries.

The document said lead times may vary in some regions, including the Middle East, Africa, Latin America, Russia, and Turkey.

A check at a local Mac retailer confirmed that there would be delays due to supply issues, with iPhone 6 replacements to take upwards of two weeks and iPhone 6 Plus only available after March.

It was reported that iPhone users were facing reduced performance on older models, after being updated to the latest iOS.

On Dec 28 last year, Apple responded to the controversy over its slowing down the performance of older iPhone models to extend battery life by discounting replacement batteries from US$79 (RM321) to US$29 (RM117).

Following this, local retailers Machines and Switch offered replacement batteries at RM129, while battery replacements for iPhone 5, 5C and 5S were still priced at RM399.