Apple what are you going to do when they come for you? 7 years is a very long time in computers. What happens to the EU if no one will sell their phones there?
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.
Germany Urges EU to Require 7 Years of Updates and Repairs for iOS Devices
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Other than having the correct screwdriver, replacing the battery of recent MacBooks is super easy. Sure, it's not as easy as using a coin to turn a screw and popping in a new battery, but I'll take the trade for a more compact design any day.
Edit - turns out I was grossly incorrect on this. While some MacBooks (MBA’s in particular) have easy to replace batteries, others like the 13 MBP and the M1 MacBooks use lots of adhesives and have other design features that make swapping a battery way more difficult.
Last edited:
Brussels would revive Nokia by pumping 50 billion a year into it and everyone would be forced by law to use Symbian.
I think Apple has already figured out how much value older devices add to its business model. Five-ish years is about the edge of the value proposition that benefits them as a company and still gives users somewhat of a manageable experience. Mandating 7 years for a phone platform that has only been around for 13 years is kind of extreme. Imagine trying to future-proof the original iPhone for 7 years. It barely had enough RAM to run the OS it shipped with. It wasn't until the 5S that more than 3 years of support was realistic.
No, I gave pros and cons. I see both sides, but was making the point that if people think companies are just going to absorb the costs of such requirements and that there are not going to be other consequences they are being extremely naive.
If there was a way for the spillover costs for things like mining rare metals to be shown on Apple's income statement, then we would not need laws like this. This is similar to why the U.S. government had to pass clean water/air laws. The costs of creating pollution were born by society, not the companies creating the pollution. Apple fanatics, and most modern consumers, have been deluded by Apple (primarily) and many other companies into ignore the huge lakes of toxic waste and other forms of pollution in China (primary metals source). Apple could have, and should have create a line of phones like the FairPhone. Not doing so, and doubling down on disposable products had made Tim a billionaire, but only because he and other shareholders get to ignore the massive spillover costs of hundred of millions of products requiring massing mining, manufacturing, and transportation resources going into landfills each and every year. (The whole re-cycling message from Apple's PR fails even the most modest research effort).
That's actually a good proposal. A mobile phone is commoditized appliance. Used be I'd buy a TV, refrigerator, washing machine, dryer, dishwasher, blender and toaster that would easily last 12-15 years. Seven to ten years for a phone and vacuum cleaner is not unreasonable.
Misleading title. All "gadgets" targeted by this legislative proposal, not "iOS devices".
Also, what´s the big deal? Should be much less of a "problem" for Apple than all that Chinese crap out there on the markets.
Also, what´s the big deal? Should be much less of a "problem" for Apple than all that Chinese crap out there on the markets.
Last edited by a moderator:
wow 7 years? most android doesn't even make it past 3. i can't imagine someone still using galaxy s5.
Tbh this means very little to us as it isn't a right to repair bill and it isn't free. The updates thing would be really nice for Android where you feel abandoned after 12 months, but for Apple... they're all ready really good on updates, but another 2 years or so is still nice.
I don't. American companies need the riot act read to them now and then and be forced to comply when it's clear they are abusing their position. The EU is not a push-over when it comes to consumer protection & cannot be ignored.
Well, as Americans are fond of saying... they have a choice to sell there and they can choose not to if they don't want to play by their rules.
Apple's clearly the closest giant to nearly already commit to these goals.
My iPhone 6S, released and bought in September 2015, will be supported with updates (iOS 15) all the way until September 2022 - 7 years, exactly like what they want to ask.
And before anyone else tells me my phone will be rubbish slow... Nope.
I tried iOS 15 beta 1 on it, and it wasn't slow at all.
The only concern I have is about parts though. If I break anything, will an Apple Store repair it ?
My iPhone 6S, released and bought in September 2015, will be supported with updates (iOS 15) all the way until September 2022 - 7 years, exactly like what they want to ask.
And before anyone else tells me my phone will be rubbish slow... Nope.
I tried iOS 15 beta 1 on it, and it wasn't slow at all.
The only concern I have is about parts though. If I break anything, will an Apple Store repair it ?
No, that's not the purpose of margin.
Should Apple incur extra costs to meet more extensive EU requirements, then Apple would need to increase consumer prices to account for those extra costs, plus additional GPM (gross profit margin) for those additional EU requirement costs.
This statement alone is outrageous. It's proof enough that the Europe are right to consider this legislative intervention.
I completely agree, smartphones do seem to have reached maturity. My iPhone XR from December 2018 is approaching 3 years, and it's still brilliant. Still fast, neither slow nor frustrating. Modern iOS updates haven't crippled it.
Now that a sort of equilibrium between hardware advancements and software advancements has been achieved, it's time the industry focus on producing repairable products with longevity.
The last time I fired up my Galaxy 5S was in 2018. Even then there were updates that would not install and apps that would not run. My Original 1+1 faired a little better. I think I was able to squeeze a generic Android build on it and do a few things. Both of these came out in April 2014. At the 4 year mark they both felt like relics of a different age. I could only imagine how poorly they perform at 7.
Last edited:
Why? The US should dictate the rules over all territories in your view? If Apple wants to sell products in certain regions, they must comply with the laws of such region.
And that's fine. German citizens will simply need to pay Apple's extra costs to support German requirements. Plus a little extra margin on top of that.
Software updates for 7 years doesn’t necessarily mean that the device has to be on the latest version. I would imagine that having regular updates to older iOS versions for security patches would still be sufficient for devices that can’t handle the latest and greatest.
Why? Companies are going to stop innovating, getting peoples money, investors interest, market, etc. because of this? Too risky. They just need to keep a small production of device parts
I can appreciate the need for enviromentability but at what point does the concerns point to sustainability of the companies making the product? If the idea is that spare parts are to be made available for 7 years, many people will hold onto their current device because they know they will able to get parts for it and get it repaired. So what happens to the companies making these devices? If people keep having their old devices repaired, they will not buy new and if they do not buy new it does not make it cost effective for the manufacturing to carry on production thus meaning the plant closes down.
People need jobs to survive and all this enviromental initiative will do is cause the close down of manufacturing plants because not enough new products are being bought because too many old products are being kept alive and when millions of people lose their jobs, governments will be thinking 'what have we done!!'
People need jobs to survive and all this enviromental initiative will do is cause the close down of manufacturing plants because not enough new products are being bought because too many old products are being kept alive and when millions of people lose their jobs, governments will be thinking 'what have we done!!'
Super easy? It’s a 24 steps process for an M1 MBA 2020, including removing the speakers and then having to re-glue them back in place so they don’t rattle. 😋
Ironically, my last two Sony smart TVs were only supported 3 years and are now functionally dumb and I have 5 year old iPhones and a 7 year old iPad that are still receiving updates.