Apple on Right to Repair: We Want Customers to Be Confident Their Products Will Be 'Repaired Safely and Correctly'

[Expos of 1969]

And if you're buying a second hand phone, how do you know it's repair history?
And if you're on a plane or in a hotel, how do you know the repair history of your fellow travellers / lodgers?
The risk of bad repairs is not taken solely by the owner at the time and bad repairs involving these batteries are a threat to life.

But you are ok with cars speeding down the roads not knowing what kind of person has repaired the brakes, wheel bearings etc.? If there is no law overseeing car repairs, why should laptops and phones be different? Life is full of risks and I am very content to let Apple products loose on the street which have been repaired by non-Apple agents.

 

[David1964]

Fortunately,in 9 years of owning Apple products...numerous iPhones,iPads,2 iMacs,4 Apple watches,i’ve yet to have needed a repair.

 

[Timemaster]

Sure Apple. We believe you. Umm no. Nice complete and utter bold face lie.
It is a utter and completely display of corporate greed

 

[heov]

How do you keep a secure enclave secured, if everyone can physically access it?

Certainly you're not implying the secure enclave is only secure because of limited access lol. Because then you're saying the 1800+ service providers and their employees are the weak link to security on the iPhone.

This is just Apple trying to maintain revenue for repairs. Auto industry did the same **** decades ago.

 

[GoodWheaties]

What better way to ensure the repair is done correctly than to do it myself?

 

[gavroche]

I'm a fan of the Apple products that I own, but this is a load of bs. If the repair is not repaired 'correctly', that's between the consumer and the repair shop. Places that do bad repairs will become known as such and people will avoid them. In the mean time, places that do good repair work will save consumers thousands of dollars every year, which is money that wouldn't go to Apple, hence why they don't want anyone else repairing the hardware they make.

While this sounds great and all, we all know that it won't stop people from blaming and suing Apple regardless of it being a third party repair shop. Who has deeper pockets.
It reminds me of the old coffee lawsuits against McDonald's. A person should have the right to choose how hot they want their coffee, right? Didn't stop them from suing when they got just what they asked for and accidentally dropped it on themselves. (And won millions).
There is too much case history of people getting exactly what they asked for, yet suing (and winning) because they didn't like what they got (even when warned of potential outcomes).

 

[SSD-GUY]

This is terrible legislation and over reach.

Yes. Apple absolutely should be allowed to void warranties based on self repair.

No. Apple should never be forced to sell parts.

They aren’t running a charity.

You can **** right off. I bought my device with my hard earned money. I'm not asking for charity, just the right to repair something, instead of Apple replacing the whole damn Logic board for a small repair.

 

[JDGwf]

He may hate apple, but he has a point when it comes to apple's anti-consumer stance of fighting the right to repair.

He doesn’t hate Apple per se, he hates unrepairable products. He gripes about Surface tablets much more than any Mac

 

[salukimike]

Then the case would immediately be thrown out as Apple would not be the responsible party. The place that did the repairs would be.

I take it you don't have any experience with litigation.

 

[gavroche]

Sure Apple. We believe you. Umm no. Nice complete and utter bold face lie.
It is a utter and completely display of corporate greed

No, it's a trend that has spread across much of technology. I'm old enough to remember that most consumer devices (fridges, televisions, whatever) used to always get repaired). You could easily find a tv repairman, etc. How many are here now? It is far cheaper to just replace for new. And this isn't the right place to debate the pros and cons of that... but responses like yours strike me as very ill informed of the issues (and extensive lawsuits) a company like Apple faces.

 

[jona2125]

I went in for the unresponsive screen issue with my iPhone X last month, supposed to be just a screen swap not a big deal at all. They told me the device was un-repairable and handed me a "new" X with none of my data and completely wiped my old X so I had lost all the data that was on it. Had I not had my backup on my computer before hand that would have been really questionable practice in my opinion. I received my old phone back and replaced the screen myself and it was working absolutely fine. So am I still supposed to trust Apple that only they know best?

 

[masteroflondon]

But you are ok with cars speeding down the roads not knowing what kind of person has repaired the brakes, wheel bearings etc.? If there is no law overseeing car repairs, why should laptops and phones be different? Life is full of risks and I am very content to let Apple products loose on the street which have been repaired by non-Apple agents.

So we should go for the lowest common denominator? I prefer to move things in a better direction. Maybe car repairs should be limited when it comes to brakes etc.

On a side note, how do you think this would work? If they have to make the phones repairable, would they not then be required to make them safely repairable? Would that mean batteries being safely packaged so not easily damaged? And would that not add bulk and weight?

 

[leoborges]

Sent my iPhone 7 to replace screen at Apple authorized repair and they scratched the bottom of the phone. I paid premium price for a ****** service. That's Apple nowadays: premium price for ****** products and services. They replaced my MacBook mobo under graphics repair program for a brand new ****** mobo that broken soon after. And put the product labeled as "vintage" so they don't have to repair anymore. Even if you want to pay for it. Thank you, ****** apple.

 

[benlukes]

How do you keep a secure enclave secured, if everyone can physically access it?

...what?

 

[44267547]

What better way to ensure the repair is done correctly than to do it myself?

.....Which 99% of consumers don’t have the tools or basic knowledge to do that. Plus, by making the repair yourself, you relinquished all liability what else could go wrong if the repair is not made properly. I would rather allow a company like Apple to make the repair versus someone who watches a ‘YouTube video’ thinking they’re capable of doing it themself with no experience. Some repairs are easier than others, but it’s a ‘safe bet’ to allow a trained company representative to make the repair for you.

 

[WillyVelsen]

Apple must have missed the videos from Louis Rossmann.

I had an iPhone repaired by Apple and later ran into issues...turned out that two screws where missing.

Same for my after having apple replace my iPhone xs max screen they stripped the bottom screw which wasnt screwed in all the way.. if i did not notice that after 1 day, my iphone could have broken when it got wet qnd i would be in a distance ute with apple about it... they did not fix it with the “special” care they brag about.. they did replace my phone because the tiny screw was unremoveable because it was stripped

 

[magicschoolbus]

I remember when Microsoft was the big bad corporation and Apple was the "rebellious" brand fighting the big bad wolf.

Times have changed.

 

[jonblatho]

He may hate apple, but he has a point when it comes to apple's anti-consumer stance of fighting the right to repair.

I also find him insufferable, but again, he has a point.

 

[raybo]

Perhaps that’s because he runs into so many stupid issues, like Jessa Jones, who testified that data recovery is very well possible. Even when Apple say it’s not.

Jessa's work is important, but folks who don't back up their data have themselves to blame if there's trouble...

 

[ani4ani]

This is terrible legislation and over reach.

Yes. Apple absolutely should be allowed to void warranties based on self repair.

No. Apple should never be forced to sell parts.

They aren’t running a charity.

A cartel maybe?

 

[Riviera122]

'Repaired safely and correctly'? Is that why when I sent my MacBook off to an Apple Store for repair it came back dented and scratched from where Apple(tm) Certified Genius Repairers tried to hack open my system?

 

[bbplayer5]

Sure Tim, Just send the link to where I can order genuine Apple Parts at a fair price and I'm good.

You sure you want to do that? I am an Apple-authorized service tech, and the prices they charge for a part is astounding. If you can't return the part at their exchange cost, you are better off just buying a new computer in some cases.

 

[Mousse]

What better way to ensure the repair is done correctly than to do it myself?

As an avid DIY guy, the best way to ensure a job is done right is to hire a pro who's licensed and insured. My mechanic nearly fainted when he saw how jury-rigged my '98 Taco was, but it still ran. After he undid all my...erm...repairs and fixed it the right way, everything ran better.

 

[cube]

Apple's restrictions are not needed. If you want confidence, just go to an Apple ASP.

 

[NickName99]

This is probably tricky for Apple to strike the right balance. We’d all like for their products to be more repairable. It leads to their products being upgradable and having higher resale value, and leads to cheaper repairs even if Apple does them.

The catch is that more repairability means a more complex modular design, which means more up-front cost and more weight. Things are latched and/or screwed in place rather than glued or soldered in place.

I liked the old modular design of the 2015 MacBook Pro, even if it took 10 minuscule screws to open it up, and even if the whole thing was thicker and heavier.