The cost of replacing a battery in the US was $99 for the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max which was already on the steep side, but it seemed that Apple felt that price was too low, and Apple fanboys would stump up extra cash to keep their shiny toys running as advertised.

Now Apple Stores will replace the battery inside an iPhone 16 Pro or iPhone 16 Pro Max for $119. This is a 20 per cent increase to the fee, which includes the cost of a new battery and service by an Apple Store. The fee may vary at third-party Apple Authorized Service Providers.

However, the fee remains $99 for the standard iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus, which means that this is just another attempt by Jobs’ Mob to force users to upgrade using the battery as a reason. Jobs’ Mob has a history of tinkering with the battery to give its owners an incentive to upgrade or spend a fortune on its AppleCare+.

Customers with AppleCare+ can still get an iPhone 16 Pro battery replaced for free, but only if the battery retains less than 80 per cent of its original capacity.

Apple says all four iPhone 16 models are equipped with larger batteries, and all of the devices received an internal redesign for improved heat dissipation. A metal enclosure was rumoured for at least some iPhone 16 batteries, but we are still waiting for teardowns to get a proper look inside the devices.

Apple had already increased its battery replacement fee from $69 to $99 starting with all four iPhone 14 models, so this is the second increase in recent years.