iFixit Releases Tablet Repairability List, Puts Most Apple Tablets Near the Bottom

[MacRumors]

Today iFixit released*its first "Tablet Repairability" list, which ranks some of the more popular tablets by ease of repairability. The majority of Apple's tablets found themselves near the bottom of the list with a rating of 2/10.

The list was based on iFixit's findings from its teardown work. Two of the biggest reasons for low repairability scores were excessive adhesive and a high probability of breakage during disassembly. The majority of Apple's iPad family were guilty of one or both of those symptoms.

The lone Apple tablet with a good repairability rating was the original iPad with a 6/10, notching in below the Nexus 7 on the list. The only negative for the original was that the battery was difficult to remove or replace.

The list doesn't include every tablet released, but it does include some of the more popular ones like the various Kindle Fire models and the Samsung Galaxy Tab. The top tablet on the list was the Dell XPS 10 with a 9/10, while the Microsoft Surface Pro scored worst with a 1/10.

In the past other Apple products, like the 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro, which received a 1/10, have also received criticism for being difficult to repair from the iFixit team.

Article Link: iFixit Releases Tablet Repairability List, Puts Most Apple Tablets Near the Bottom

[GeekLawyer]

I can't imagine any scenario in which I would want to attempt to fix or repair my iPad.

AppleCare pushes the score to 10 for me.

[AngelOfSoul]

That's so obvious.

[Speedy Gonzalez]

Who cares...

[Fresh Pie]

They should have another rating to the right, showing how likely these devices will need repairing.

[Tankmaze]

Its easier to repair an iPad in the apple store

[troop231]

Not surprising, but the quality makes up for it

[david shapiro]

Surface is just bad in every way... kinda sad.

[aDRock1154]

And this is news..

[Candlelight]

Originally Posted by Tankmaze

Its easier to repair an iPad in the apple store

Cheaper to do it yourself though.

[Swift]

If you want a computer you can fix and so on, you'll need something fairly big that you can see into, with enough room to turn a screw and pull out wires and so on, and then put things together. In other words, a big beige tower. Well, get one. Try to imagine an iPad that's easy to fix. It's about twice as big, it has screws and stuff all over. It weighs another twelve pounds. It would cost a lot more. Sadly, iFixit misses the point.

[Yamcha]

Originally Posted by Fresh Pie

They should have another rating to the right, showing how likely these devices will need repairing.

Image

Depends on who's using it. My almost three year old brother shattered the glass of the iPad 2 within 3 months of use. The tablet is still functional though.

So while the internals of the iPad are very unlikely to fail, the glass is easy to break, and will require repair. In fact I think it's very common occurrence with tablets in general.

[iMacC2D]

Originally Posted by Speedy Gonzalez

Who cares...

Originally Posted by Speedy Gonzalez

Who cares...

Everyone that wants to repair their own hardware out of warranty, hardware technicians...

If you don't see the purpose in iFixit's materials, then you're not in their target audience. Although they are trying to expand that audience.

Originally Posted by Fresh Pie

They should have another rating to the right, showing how likely these devices will need repairing.

The iPad is as likely to fail as any other tablet. Apple's batteries, displays and logic boards aren't made from anything special or with any special processes. I took delivery of two brand new iPads about an hour ago, both dead on arrival. Seeing faulty batteries, wireless hardware, SIM slots and charging circuits among others is not uncommon.

Originally Posted by Swift

If you want a computer you can fix and so on, you'll need something fairly big that you can see into, with enough room to turn a screw and pull out wires and so on, and then put things together. In other words, a big beige tower. Well, get one. Try to imagine an iPad that's easy to fix. It's about twice as big, it has screws and stuff all over. It weighs another twelve pounds. It would cost a lot more. Sadly, iFixit misses the point.

The iPhone 4S was put together with screws and was much smaller. Very similar internal hardware, but with a smaller screen and battery. The earliest iPads used low profile clips to secure the display assembly to the internal frame. Although the first generation was thicker, it was the battery and display assembly that contributed to the majority of the thickness differences.

Besides, I think iFixit gets the point extremely well. If you're the kind of person that wants to disassemble or service a unit, runs a service business or one that takes repairability into mind at purchase time then iFixit's analysis is spot on. They're much more accurate and easy to follow than Apple's own guides, at least.

iFixit is a repairers resource. Unless you're a repairer or someone that takes an interest at the insides of devices for one reason or another, you won't find what they do to be useful.

[jonnysods]

Boy that's a real shame. I was hoping up upgrade the ram and processor in my iPad 3.

[leman]

Well, iFixit makes money out of repairs. They are approaching the point where they are not able to repair them for less than what Apple charges. Of course they will be furious. I do find it hilarious though how they complain about difficulties of battery change on the rMBP and yet Apple will do it for you for $200.

[thepowerofnone]

Originally Posted by Swift

If you want a computer you can fix and so on, you'll need something fairly big that you can see into, with enough room to turn a screw and pull out wires and so on, and then put things together. In other words, a big beige tower. Well, get one. Try to imagine an iPad that's easy to fix. It's about twice as big, it has screws and stuff all over. It weighs another twelve pounds. It would cost a lot more. Sadly, iFixit misses the point.

Surely I am not the only one who thinks that YOU have missed the point? I have never ever read an article by iFixit attacking tablets for not being user-repairable, only computers, and to be fair they have a point - non-user replaceable RAM in a 21" all in one is an absolute joke, especially considering the Apple Tax and that Apple doesn't offer its Mac in the highest theoretical configurations they can adopt (as often illustrated by OWC). Soldered RAM and a special SSD is also a bit much, and all this comes from the keyboard of one of those same laptops.

Not all consumers want repairability, and I imagine very few people buying a tablet especially desire it: what are they going to do - upgrade the RAM themselves? Of course not, they much prefer the additional battery capacity offered by the use of glues, allowing for a bigger battery, which is one of the reasons the iPad is popular - when Apple say 8 hours battery life with light tasks, they build a device which is actually capable of it.

However, the iFixit scores are ACCURATE in so much as the iPad 2 onwards are undeniably difficult to user-repair, and so what exactly did they miss? Most people don't care that they are difficult to repair, since they have AppleCare (or trust themselves not to break their toy), and so won't give the score much weighting when deciding which tablet is right for them. But I'll tell you what - if I wanted a laptop which I could take apart and modify to my heart's content, and for some reason I bought a Retina Macbook having seen a high repairability score on iFixit, I'd be mighty pissed off when it arrived all sealed with glue/pentalobe screws.

The Retina and Air are difficult to user-repair; so is the iPad. Fact. iFixit missed nothing. You did.

[taxiapple]

Originally Posted by AngelOfSoul

That's so obvious.

What is so obvious?

----------

Originally Posted by Speedy Gonzalez

Who cares...

Maybe someone who has a screen needing to be replaced.

Maybe someone might like to increase the ram.

Or maybe even someone who might want to replace the battery

[DavidTheExpert]

If you're surprised about this, raise your hand.

Hmm? No one?

Seriously though, this is part of what makes Apple products so user friendly. They can't get inside to tinker with them, therefore the general consumer isn't scared of them. Ever seen an average joe look at a laptop with its case removed? They freak out and back up like something is about to blow up.

[Kaibelf]

Originally Posted by Candlelight

Cheaper to do it yourself though.

Not if you are in the one-year Mfg warranty window or had the basic foresight to get AppleCare

[charlituna]

Originally Posted by Candlelight

Cheaper to do it yourself though.

Not if you screw it up, blow your warranty and have to buy a full retail one.

----------

Originally Posted by iMacC2D

Apple's batteries, displays and logic boards aren't made from anything special

They are made from dragon scales and unicorn tears. That's what makes them magical

[ifij775]

Yep, if you want to repair your tablet on the cheap, don't buy an Apple product. If you don't, be sure not to drop it or get AppleCare.

[bwhli]

Well, isn't this obvious...

[turtlez]

Originally Posted by taxiapple

What is so obvious?

----------



Maybe someone who has a screen needing to be replaced.

Maybe someone might like to increase the ram.

Or maybe even someone who might want to replace the battery

Or maybe they could do the obvious and not buy Apple products. People buy Apple for looks and UX. Unfortunately that comes with the disability for self repair jobs but fortunately there is Apple Care and fortunately Apple mobile devices are the least likely to break according to the other graph released a few days ago. Bottom line - Don't like it, don't buy it.

----------

Originally Posted by jonnysods

Boy that's a real shame. I was hoping up upgrade the ram and processor in my iPad 3.

ahahaha

[Dagless]

Apple are getting great at manufacturing things that don't have a long shelf-life by forcing users to upgrade hardware to get the latest firmware. I doubt I'll be able to keep my current iPad as long as my oldest Apple machine (Powerbook) since once it's out of warranty and Applecare I won't be able to open it up and fix it.

[tdtran1025]

Use until something breaks and sell it on Craigslist for parts, 👎!