[doublepost=1565206966][/doublepost]Oh, I’m supposed to bring my Mac to the idiots at Best Buy... not!!!
Right to Repair advocates continue to lobby the U.S. government, arguing that large tech companies like Apple are monopolizing repairs of consumer electronics in order to preserve profits, reports Axios.
Image: iFixit.com
In testimony before the U.S. House Judiciary Subcommittee on Antitrust, Commercial and Administrative Law last month, Nathan Proctor of the non-profit U.S. Public Interest Research Group claimed that "repair hurts sales," giving Apple "an incentive to restrict repair of their devices."
Similarly, in a letter submitted to the subcommittee last month, The Repair Association's executive director Gay Gordon-Byrne wrote that "manufacturers have no reasons for blocking repair other than money," referring to the "monopolization of repair" as a "huge profit opportunity."
In March, California became the 20th state to introduce Right to Repair legislation in the U.S., according to iFixit. Apple representatives have continually opposed these bills, which if passed would require companies to make repair parts, tools, and documentation available to the public.
In a statement, an Apple spokesperson told Axios that Apple's goal is to ensure its products are "repaired safely and correctly," while touting the company's growing network of Apple Authorized Service Providers:Apple Authorized Service Providers have access to certified parts and service guidelines from Apple. There are over 1,800 of these authorized locations in the United States, which Apple said is "three times as many locations as three years ago." As of June, that includes every Best Buy store in the country.
Right to Repair legislation aims to make these parts and documentation available to independent shops and customers directly.
Article Link: Apple on Right to Repair: We Want Customers to Be Confident Their Products Will Be 'Repaired Safely and Correctly'
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Apple on Right to Repair: We Want Customers to Be Confident Their Products Will Be 'Repaired Safely and Correctly'
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
I was nearly persuaded, but then remembered there was a Samsung product with defective batteries causing fires? On planes? 3 planes I seem to recall. Didn’t that model of phone get banned from flights? Had to be contained or stowed? They were able to ban that model, how does it work if it’s now any and all phones if they’ve had botched repairs?
In which case we’ll just end up with all phones banned permanently once fires start occurring.
Apple isn't some magic hardware, it's basic stuff, doesn't get more basic to replace something. You can buy everything online to make your own computer from scratch if you wanted to and some people are even doing that. Just sell the ****ing parts and don't design the products to make it close to impossible to fix failing parts. It's is in every consumers interrest to not be screwed over, there should be laws for this, reaching further than they are now.
Are you arguing that only Apple should be allowed to repair Samsung phones?
Otherwise you only seem to be discrediting the point that safety is increased by only having the device's manufacturer allowed access to its parts and repairs.
BTW hasn't Apple also just done a massive battery recall for laptops, on top of their previous one for watches and their lawsuits for covering up iPhone 6 faulty batteries?
Anybody that agrees with Apples side here is absolutely deluded and stupid. Apple are known for their greed and this is just a stance to force people to use them. Not offering a battery to someone for their phone as it doesnt meet their test criteria is ridiculous. If i want a new battery then i want a new ******* battery. I dont need to jump through hoops and to be denied by Apple. I totally moved from Apple to Windows/Android (only come here the odd time to keep up with tech) and its like a breath of fresh air. There is 5 of us here and all moved from Macbooks/iPhones, Watches and Apple TVs to PCs, Galaxy S10+'s and an Xbox One X and i can tell you.. I DONT MISS APPLE AT ALL!!
Not only is my PC an absolute MONSTER (Intel i9 9980xe 18c/36t CPU , 64GB 4000hz Ram, Nvidia RTX 2080ti, 4TB M/2 NVME, Top end Motherboard, Full custom Watercooling Loop) that destroys ANY mac, it is also a hell of a lot cheaper and more stylish to look at than the new cheesegrater. Its fully upgradeable, easy to fix and above all...MY CHOICES ALL PUT TOGETHER. People really need to break the mould and stop funding this corrupt, greedy, self obsessed company. They dont care about you , they care about their profit. They claim to make the best products in the word, yet every single one of their products is gimped, purposely to make them the most profit.
Anyway , back next month for my next fix lol
Not only is my PC an absolute MONSTER (Intel i9 9980xe 18c/36t CPU , 64GB 4000hz Ram, Nvidia RTX 2080ti, 4TB M/2 NVME, Top end Motherboard, Full custom Watercooling Loop) that destroys ANY mac, it is also a hell of a lot cheaper and more stylish to look at than the new cheesegrater. Its fully upgradeable, easy to fix and above all...MY CHOICES ALL PUT TOGETHER. People really need to break the mould and stop funding this corrupt, greedy, self obsessed company. They dont care about you , they care about their profit. They claim to make the best products in the word, yet every single one of their products is gimped, purposely to make them the most profit.
Anyway , back next month for my next fix lol
No battery is perfect, there is always the risk they can have a manufacturing defect. MacBook Pro batteries have tendencies to swell when getting old and have a risk of going boom. Some Macbook Pros have a battery recall program, cause they can go up in flames. I don't see you throwing MacBooks off the plane or banning them. Do you see cars constantly exploding on the Highway, because some guy switched the battery himself?
Apple does have a point... Why would you want a school kid hat just graduated working on a Mac..
The unthinkable...
However the reverse is also true... Third party "scholars" (i mean repair shops), would be cheaper, and location would be often better. Particularly when all Apple does if close down more stores, not opening more in places you could easily get too.
The unthinkable...
However the reverse is also true... Third party "scholars" (i mean repair shops), would be cheaper, and location would be often better. Particularly when all Apple does if close down more stores, not opening more in places you could easily get too.
Exactamundo. I am looking at new laptops. The MacBookPros look great to me, and Apple's brand is strong enough that I would trust their machines to be preferred for graphic design and music production.
Yes, but… it's a $200 hit to go from 8GB of RAM to 16GB, a more preferred minimum for a premium priced professional laptop. It's really obscene, though, what they charge for HD space. I don't trust any engineering rationalization they try and use to justify it. There seems to be no functional reason they couldn't use standard M2 drives. No premium computer should be sold with 128GB of storage, either. The only reason I can figure why they make it punitive to upgrade your storage and memory is to constantly push you to the higher-tier, or to make sure the cheaper machine is obsolete even sooner. No-brainer, really.
In warranty, yes I’d let them repair it all day. But out of warranty I’d rather have the option to do the labor myself as it usually doesn’t make sense on 5 year old devices.
Yes, if someone wants to replace parts in your device with non-Apple parts, you should be allowed to. I've done it a few times, especially with aftermarket screens, and was very displeased in the quality, so now I only buy from Apple. I do not think Apple should be able to sue for for repairing your own device. But I do think third party repairers should have to indicate that they are not associated with Apple and that it'll void the warranty (I know, I know, government involvement)
I hope right to repair means Apple will stop soldering stuff (like the RAM and the SSD) to the logic board. How can I repair my RAM and/or SSD if I can't remove it? And if I can remove it then I can upgrade it... I think the real reason why Apple opposes this stuff is so that they force you at purchase time to buy the option with 32 GB RAM or 512 GB Storage...rather than going for a cheaper option and upgrading later. I smell a rat.
Darth Tulhu
macrumors 68020
I agree with you, but I would miss macOS. For me, THAT is the killer app.
I HATE having to use Windows. It's serviceable, and for many things it's actually good, but my love for the MacOS is deep-seated. I have to use a PC for work, but I actually wish it was a Mac.
So here I sit, with 3 obsolete-but-upgradeable Macs at home, still waiting after 8-years for Apple to give us what we (computer enthusiasts) want: everything you said but running MacOS and/or dual-boot (NEVER gonna happen).
However all that said, TB3 is a game changer that allows for almost-self-built functionality from a Mac. You just have to externalize everything. That's the setup I'll move to. A laptop (any Mac laptop, really) with TB3, external SSD RAID, eGPU, dual-monitor config.
As for phones, I LOVE my Note8 but the sweet, SWEET Mac-iPhone integration means I might give them a try for a cycle. I just won't get the latest (most expensive). I can always go back to Sammy (been with them since my first Galaxy S4).
PD: I LOVE custom PC builds. I'm a sucker for the see-thru, LED-lit, water-cooled monsters out there. I just don't need it anymore. Frak, I got OLD.
[doublepost=1565214084][/doublepost]
Another thing is that a lot of PC components are truly plug-and-play. There is NOTHING complicated in replacing RAM, SSD, at least.
I can understand if you're soldering components on/off the logic board, but that is not the issue. Since 2012 Apple has been sealing their boxes so you just trade one for another. This is bad, and the reason why I've been both able and willing to keep my 2011 hardware running, and running (relatively) well via self-made, Apple-authorized upgrades.
We just want that back. But unless the law steps in, it ain't happening, so I'm pretty much done raging against the machine.
That doesn't exist and never has. Industries always figure out ways to manipulate markets to get an unfair advantage at the expense of consumers. Cable companies and cell providers are proof of that. It's amazing how I never hear from this point of view when Verizon and ATT attempt to screw consumers with price hikes and leave you with no real alternative to speak of. This is simply the consumer trying to level the playing field.
Worse than that. They can refuse to service your device. I have an iMac that works great except it has a faulty GPU. I can't get a replacement and Apple won't do it because it's outside of warranty.
No other situation is like this one in any form that would allow us to use prior choices to improve this one.
Apple is a company. A person, who likely worked for Apple, broke a laptop.
Why would it void the warranty?
Agreed. Sometimes people have sensitive data. I took hard drive to a repair place once and they had no issues with me watching them work. Good luck convincing Apple to let you keep your eyes on your property during the entire repair process.
Almost all of those parts are coming from third parties. Apple doesn't manufacture the batteries, nor do the make a ribbon cable. Those are two of the most frequently replaced parts. Should they be forced to cell individual chips, no, but preventing other parts from reaching the secondary market isn't right either.
From reading the comments it looks like I am in the minority. I support Apple's position. I used to work for a company that makes hospital beds and as the manufacturer of a medical device, they have a legal requirement to report all customer complaints (an alleged deficiency in a product) to the FDA. This is still a legal requirement even if the hospital allowed unauthorized repairs to the bed. While Apple doesn't have such a reporting requirement, Apple still has a reputation and if someone buys a used iPhone / iPad / MBP that had a poor quality repair made to it, it is Apple who takes a hit to their reputation, not the fly-by-night repair shop.
That's not as unreasonable as it may sound. Why does Apple's premium hardware have the same warranty as budget brands? If they're confident that their products are better quality, the guarantee should reflect it. You shouldn't have to buy an extended warranty. Or is Apple aware that their goods suffer from the same defect occurrences of mass produced electronics?
"Right to repair" is an incorrect statement. You have the right to repair your device. What people are clamoring for obligating manufacturers to participate in the process and possibly to ignore any ham-fisted failures at independent repair.
Yes, sometimes authorized tech make mistakes or do the wrong thing and yes there are 3rd party repair places that may be as good or better than Apple's techs, but I'd argue that those extremes are rarer than the more common cases of Apple's techs to the right thing and non-trained techs make mistakes.
Yes, sometimes authorized tech make mistakes or do the wrong thing and yes there are 3rd party repair places that may be as good or better than Apple's techs, but I'd argue that those extremes are rarer than the more common cases of Apple's techs to the right thing and non-trained techs make mistakes.
If someone's iProduct breaks and the owner feels Apple's repair solution is overkill or too costly, then Apple's reputation is already dinged.
The answer is simple. Extended warranties are usually a money grabber but offer a peace of mind. Even if Apple was confident, they’d still shove AppleCare into your face because of how profitable it is for them
Really? You buy a second hand device from an unofficial retailer and if it turns out dodgy you'd blame the original company? I call BS. Plus, that person isn't buying from Apple in the first place so they're hardly lost custom, or do you imagine they'll be so upset about their purchase they'll organise some kind of campaign against Apple?
Wasn’t that a design defect? I don’t remember the issue only being restricted to repaired units.
You obviously had a crack somewhere in the screen to begin with.
[doublepost=1565228744][/doublepost]Apple has the right to build whatever product they want and sell it at whatever price consumers are willing to pay for it.
Once the item is in your hands, you have the "right" to do whatever you want with it, including buying 3rd party products and parts to modify however you wish.
But to force apple with "right to repair" simply because they do not meet your need, is wrong, even though you keep coming back to buy their unrepairable products.