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

[HarryKNN21]

Honestly iPad are updated every year or so, and they don't cost as much as my MacBook Pro, if I didn't really flood it with water why would I ever consider opening it to replace RAM or storage?

I want a repairable Mac because I don't want to replace the whole $2100 Mac after a memory failure which I can fix by replacing memory costing $50. If my iPad fails, I could well afford to replace it right away.

 

[Brian Y]

Consumer electronics are getting to the point where repairing them is not financially viable, nor really wanted for the vast majority of consumers. Yes, for laptops, etc - repairing them is still necessary, but on a £400 device? Especially when Apple offer a flat rate repair service, who can be bothered repairing them. For example, if I smashed my phone. I could take it to Apple, and have them replace the display for £80 on the spot. Or, I could buy a display for £30, some screwdrivers for £5, wait a week for them to get here, and take it apart myself, bearing the risk that if I broke anything else whilst in there, I'm £500 out of pocket.

Consumers couldn't care less about repairability - they want something that looks good, and works. Repairability = screws + clips = ugly and bulkier. If you want that thin iPad/laptop - you need to sacrifice the stuff nobody really cares about.

And like somebody has said - iFixit are just bitching because they're using an outdated business model. They moan like **** about the retina MacBook Pro's battery because they can't sell you a non-OEM Chinese copy - but never seem to mention that Apple will replace the battery, then separate and dispose of it in an environmentally friendly way for £150 ish. Which considering the price of the machine, and the process involved, is a bloody good deal IMO.

Maybe iFixit need to stop moaning and come up with an innovative way to save their business - if you're going to target the minority of consumers, you can't moan when the companies who form the backbone of your business stop targeting this minority. Also, let's not act like this new. 20 years ago, would iFixit have sold CRT tubes to the public for old iMacs?

 

[spazzcat]

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.

This is why you get Applecare or SquareTrade...

 

[Chupa Chupa]

The "Report" should be called the "Products we can't make money from selling spare parts, so they suck" Report. I love iFixIt and also regret the days when I could repair and upgrade my machines is all but over. It's the end of an era. I'm moving on with the next. iFixIt should too and find a new niche to fill lest their next report will be a Chapter 7 filing.

----------

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.

Most iPad users are not 3 y.o., and adults that let their 3 y.o. play with them should have the brains to put it in a child proof case... they do make those. 3 y.o. are known for tossing things around on a whim which is why everything Fisher Price is heavy duty plastic.

Most older kids and adults users don't end up with shattered iPads.

 

[GenesisST]

So... what's the point of all those "greener" manufacturing processes, when repairing means throwing it away and buying a new one?

Don't get me wrong, I'm not bashing Apple, this is true for most consumer electronics things these days. A TV lasts what, 3-5 years these days, then you "need" (broken or obsolete) to replace it with a new one? My parents TV lasted 15 years, so in the end, it was probably greener... Sure, it didn't have the resolution, but in hindsight what do I remember? The resolution or the shows I enjoyed as a kid?

Ah! the effect of buzzwords!

 

[Kabeyun]

Who cares...

+1

What a useless rating. You're either sending it to Apple to get fixed or, far more likely, getting a new one before ANYTHING goes wrong.

These scores seem transparently self-serving for iFixit, and reporting the scores feeds right in.

 

[gatearray]

So... what's the point of all those "greener" manufacturing processes, when repairing means throwing it away and buying a new one?

Well, to be fair, Apple does make their products out of highly recyclable material (glass and aluminum) and offers a free recycling service for old/outdated/broken products that sometimes even result in a gift card if the item has any value.

They responsibility "throw it away" and prevent lots of toxic chemicals from ending up in a landfill and polluting the environment. Sounds pretty green to me, is there another tech company that has a better idea?

http://www.apple.com/recycling/

 

[HarryKNN21]

Frankly I doubt anyone would buy any parts from iFixit and tear down their iOS devices to replace failing parts. The price to pay for opening an iOS device and replacing failing parts by yourself is always higher than buying a new one.

This may explain why those refurbished devices from Apple, even if they are in same condition as a new one, could never be sold at the price of a new one.

Even if you open up your iMac or MBP, the quick depreciation of those devices after opening can never be overcome.

 

[johncarync]

What would a perfect 10 look like?

I'm trying to imagine a tablet that would score a perfect 10 from iFixit. It would probably be an ugly, thick, plastic device with thumb buttons that would release the front from the back to give you access to the innards which would be connected in a Lego style.

 

[mzeb]

Kindle Fire HD vs iPad

I own both a Kindle Fire HD and an iPad 3. The two are pretty comparable but I consider what it would take if I cracked the glass on either. Neither company would help me out under warranty. But I can take the Fire apart in 20 minutes and it runs about $30 to find the part on eBay. The amount of adhesive in the iPad makes it a serious pain. And to me this makes sense. I don't toss my devices when I upgrade. Klutz that I am, I cracked the display on my iPhone 4. I was able to fix it for $20 and hand it off to my mom who now has a very servicable smart phone. She doesn't need the latest stuff. She's just happy to be able to check her e-mail on the go . Fixing this stuff can save people $$ and keep crap out of landfills. It's worth it from my perspective so thank you iFixit for letting me know what to buy.

 

[Globe199]

The comments here are so predictable. Apple has a vested interest in people NOT repairing their products. I hope I don't need to explain that concept.

But don't give me some crap about an easily-repairable product would also be an ugly product. Apple could have put some small philips screws on the back of the ipad and made it easier to open. They could have figured out a way to make the battery replaceable. But they chose not to, because they don't want you fixing their stuff. They want you buying a new one. And it sickens me how many people just swallow that tripe.

 

[JAT]

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.

Actually, I've found it much harder to find anyone to repair my Galaxy Tab 7" glass than to repair an iPad's. Samsung only has one place in the USA. And there's almost nowhere else, either. Samsung wants $160 (they do offer free shipping), which is pretty comparable to what Apple charges.

Meanwhile, a family member needs to replace a cracked screen on an iPad2 and found a few non-Apple places around town at varying price points, well below Apple's.

----------

I'm trying to imagine a tablet that would score a perfect 10 from iFixit. It would probably be an ugly, thick, plastic device with thumb buttons that would release the front from the back to give you access to the innards which would be connected in a Lego style.

Pretty close to the Dell, which they gave a 9.

 

[3282868]

The comments here are so predictable. Apple has a vested interest in people NOT repairing their products. I hope I don't need to explain that concept.

But don't give me some crap about an easily-repairable product would also be an ugly product. Apple could have put some small philips screws on the back of the ipad and made it easier to open. They could have figured out a way to make the battery replaceable. But they chose not to, because they don't want you fixing their stuff. They want you buying a new one. And it sickens me how many people just swallow that tripe.

Thank you. Someone who makes an intelligent comment.

 

[Rajani Isa]

In other words, a big beige tower.

"Big beige tower"? What, are you stuck in the era the movie "Hackers" was made in?

 

[ghettochris]

Dear iFixit,

10 years ago I used to buy an extra battery for my computer, and upgrade the ram or fix things that broke in my computer, now if something breaks it is covered under warranty or applecare. Actually, I haven't even bought applecare lately, stuff either breaks in the first year or after 3, and the battery lasts that long too. After 3 years the computer is painful to keep up to date or browse the internet, so I sell it before then anyways, so pretty much all you have to offer is useless to me.

My phones and tablets generally get upgraded every year or 2, which isn't too expensive to do since the old one still has good resale value. Broken glass is the only repair I would do, and I actually prefer fused LCD/glass since it looks better, less glare, thinner, lighter etc, even though that means it's more expensive and harder to do myself. There tons of places that do iphone/ipad glass repairs quickly and relatively cheaply.

You should just throw some more ads in your teardowns and make your money that way, I always check those out for every new product.

 

[Woyzeck]

I really don't see any plausible argument why non-repairability of desktops or notebooks could be seen as a good thing. Regarding tablets, being 'devices', i can live with sending them to the manufacturer for repair, but for desktops and notebooks this is a reduction of quality.

There's no reason, not even the thin-over-anything-else design approach, that would enforce soldered ram and a harddisk hidden behind walls of the aluminium case besides another customer rip off. it's not cool, nor necessary. It's part of a business model.

One must be a hardcore Apple fan to ignore that.

 

[mono1980]

This is silly because tablets, in their very nature, have no moving parts, and very few parts that could break, in general.

 

[Candlelight]

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

We had an iPhone 4 which was almost 3 years old (like purchased when they first came out) and had a busted screen. Applecare and the warranty is no longer valid at that age.

Costs $1049 for a new iPhone 5 (or $599 for an iPhone 4) in New Zealand.

We fixed the screen for $38. Still runs as good as the first day it was born.

 

[Pentalobe]

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.

In some sense it is more than just difficult for user to repair, there are things like a trackpad in a MacBook Pro, if it needs to be replaced, I think you have to replaced something totally unrelated as well! If my memory serves me (as I was told by a "Genius" at an Apple store), you have to replace the keyboard WITH a the trackpad! What kind of design or engineering genius decided to combine the two as one? Break one, you had to replace the two!

 

[thehustleman]

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

Image

Considering screens break? I'd say the numbers would be the same among all tablets

 

[Pentalobe]

answer "how high?" when Apple said "jump"

Dear iFixit,

10 years ago I used to buy an extra battery for my computer, and upgrade the ram or fix things that broke in my computer, now if something breaks it is covered under warranty or applecare. Actually, I haven't even bought applecare lately, stuff either breaks in the first year or after 3, and the battery lasts that long too. After 3 years the computer is painful to keep up to date or browse the internet, so I sell it before then anyways, so pretty much all you have to offer is useless to me.

You are certainly not alone in your thinking and feeling. And many people (not you) do let Apple Care "take care" of repairs, out of sight, out of mind. Or people simply throw away old electronics because of a dead battery!

But this way of thinking, in fact trashing our environment can't be good for our planet as a whole. All these new e-waste! Wouldn't it makes more sense if things are more repairable so even we in the 1st world can't use these products, some less fortunate people in our country or other parts of the world can use them?

Apple has "taught" and "retrained" us well to throw away old gadgets because of a bad battery, but this is new learned behaviour! And we don't always have to answer "how high?" when Apple said "jump" in its latest product.