Since iOS 4 was released in mid-June, iPhone 3G and 3GS owners have complained that the software has their phones seemingly grinding to a halt: slow keyboard response time, frozen unlock screens, and a battery that drains faster than with previous versions of the software.

Now a deeply unsatisfied customer is taking her iOS 4 complaints to court.

On Friday, San Diego resident Bianca Wofford sued Apple for violating the Consumer Legal Remedies Act, unfair business practices, and false and deceptive advertising. In the suit she claims that iOS 4 rendered her iPhone 3GS completely unusable and that Apple support has provided no recourse outside of buying a new iPhone 4--and paying AT&T's early upgrade fee--or jailbreaking her phone to downgrade it to some version of iOS 3, which would void her warranty.

She also says that Apple knew that the update would cause slowness on older model phones--the 3G and 3GS--and went ahead with the problematic update anyway.

The court papers (embedded below) state:

"Apple's intent was to ... proliferate its new iOS 4 into the marketplace. Plaintiff is further informed and believes that Apple engineers knew that iOS 4 would substantially undermine, impede, degrade, and decrease speed for consumers who owned third-generation iPhones rather than the newly release iPhone 4..."

She also alleges that Apple concealed this and if she and other iPhone 3G and 3GS owners had known that iOS 4 would degrade their phones' performance they would never have upgraded in the first place.

Apple hasn't said much publicly about the issue. Steve Jobs allegedly told a customer in August that an update was "coming soon"that would fix the problems, though the authenticity of the e-mail wasn't confirmed.

Wofford is seeking class action status for her suit, and is asking for unspecified damages as well as $5,000 for every person whose phone was bricked by iOS 4, and an injunction on Apple's current marketing of iOS 4.

iOS 4 Lawsuit

If you have a question or comment for Erica Ogg, you can submit it here. However, because our editors and writers receive hundreds of requests, we cannot tell you when you may receive a response.

Submit your question or comment here: 0 of 1500 characters

Erica Ogg is a CNET News reporter who covers Apple, HP, Dell, and other PC makers, as well as the consumer electronics industry. She's also one of the hosts of CNET News' Daily Podcast. In her non-work life, she's a history geek, a loyal Dodgers fan, and a mac-and-cheese connoisseur. E-mail Erica.