Apple to face lawsuit in US court for knowingly sold defective MacBook Pros

Apple expects the next class action lawsuit in the US. The company is said to have knowingly sold defective devices. Specifically, the IT giant is accused of deliberately selling the 2016 MacBook Pro with a display cable that was too weak. Apple is fighting back.

In the US, IT giant Apple expects the next class action lawsuit. A larger group of affected users around Mahan Taleshpour accused the company of knowingly selling defective MacBooks in relation to the so-called Flexgate bug. As reported by Macrumor's site, Judge Edward Davila now sided with the injured party and rejected Apple's motion to dismiss. The proceedings will be continued accordingly. (PDF)

According to Davila, Apple must have tested the MacBook Pros before they went on sale and noticed the vulnerability in the process. The error called Flexgate is noticeable in an initially irregular illumination of the display panel, which can ultimately lead to a total failure of the screen. Apple knowingly sold the 2016 MacBook Pro with a display cable that was too weak and should have foreseen the defect.

Accusation of cover-up

Above all, the plaintiffs accuse Apple of maliciously handling the situation. According to Taleshpour, Apple even tried to cover up Flexgate after constant denial, because relevant posts had been deleted from the company's help forum. The court sees this accusation as further possible evidence that Apple must have known about the problem and still produced and sold corresponding devices. With the release of the MacBook Pro in 2018, Apple tackled the supposedly unknown problem. From then on, a longer and stronger display cable were installed. An exchange program also followed - but only after massive public criticism and a petition signed by 15,000 people affected.

However, the Californian company vehemently defends itself against the allegation of having deliberately sold defective devices. Taleshpour, for example, bought his MacBook Pro in 2017 and used it for three years before the error even occurred. Tests before the sale could not show such a long-term error, says Apple. The allegations would be based on false assumptions rather than hard facts.