User sues Apple saying Siri not as smart as advertised

iPhone 4S user Frank Fazio wants his money back and is suing Apple to get it. According to a post at CNET News, the disgruntled consumer says that the company has dramatically oversold the capabilities of its Siri information system.

In the commercials from what the lawsuit calls Apple's "multi-million dollar advertising campaign," the operating system functions like a highly capable digital personal assistant. Many iPhone 4S users, however, are finding that their experiences with Siri are more like the story documented in Fazio's complaint.

"When [Fazio] asked Siri for directions to a certain place, or to locate a store, Siri either did not understand what Plaintiff was asking, or after a very long wait time, responded with the wrong answer," it says.

Because Siri does not perform as advertised, court documents say, the iPhone 4S is "merely a more expensive iPhone 4." Citing the Consumers' Legal Remedies Act, California's Unfair Competition law, the suit maintains that Apple is "in breach of warranty" and has "committed both intentional and negligent misrepresentation."

Fazio's attorneys are seeking a halt to sales of the iPhone 4S and unspecified damages. The suit also cites an Ars Technica study alleging that Siri makes disproportionate use of users' data plans, rapidly pushing some consumers over their contractual limits.

Apple released Siri in "beta" form, an unusual move for the company which rarely releases software or devices that are still under development. Some features have been added in recent firmware updates, including Japanese language support, but Apple has declined to indicate what other fixes or features might be in the works.

This would not be the first suit by users against Apple regarding the iPhone 4 product line. A collection of 18 separate suits were brought against the company with regards to the original iPhone 4's faulty antenna, which would cause the phone to drop calls if held in a certain way. Claimants were awarded vouchers for rubber bumpers to insulate the devices in a settlement that was reached last month.

Earlier this year, a California woman named Heather Peters successfully sued the Honda corporation in small claims court, claiming that the company had exaggerated the mileage expectations of its hybrid vehicles. The Los Angeles Superior Court found in favor of Peters and awarded her $9,867, saying that Honda had, in fact, misled her about the mileage of its Hybrid Honda Civic.

(image via Flickr Commons)