Oregon's New Right to Repair Law Bans 'Parts Pairing' Restrictions

[antonrg]

Very good news. Apple was seriously pushing it with this.

 

[m4mario]

The people who are buying Apple products want to buy it because it is locked down and controlled by Apple. If they wanted something else, they would buy Android. Why is this so hard for law makers to understand?

The resale value of Apple products are high because we know 3rd party components wont work with Apple products and they will put up a warning sign if the serial numbers don't match. If this law is implemented, how can we be sure it's not some Frankenstein iPhone, and how can we buy used iPhones with trust? With this law, an iPhone which is not sold new in a big branded store (or Apple Store) is untrustworthy and therefore worthless. How many iPhone users really want this law? Their own iPhone's resale value just plummeted.

It looks like the people who want this law are:
1) Journalists/bloggers who want a story against Apple for their own content's visibility
2) Lawmakers who want a narrative against large companies for their own political gains
3) People who want to tear down the Apple ecosystem because of spite and they have nothing else worthy to do in their own life.
4) 3rd party repair technicians, who might be the only real benefitting party in this law.

The people who don't want this law are:
1) Apple users
2) Apple employees
3) Apple Share holders

I can't think of any of the relevant stake holders wanting this law.

 

[Piggie]

The bill has benefits, but buyers deserve to know if a used phone has original (OEM) parts or replacements. It could be a simple screen on the setup menu.

I'm not saying I disagree, but do you thing the same should apply to motor vehicles?

Remember a cheap replacement part on your phone might make your experience a little worse in some area.
But a cheap replacement part on your car could kill you or your family.

And yet we don't seem to mind what parts get fitted to vehicles or who fits them.
Funny world isn't it.

 

[BipedalOS]

Good to see anti-repair, anti-consumer, anti-environment crap getting stamped out! The only potential downside is theft for parts- Apple need to find a way to digitally stamp the parts so they can see where they ended up.

Agree. If you are a consumer worried about the parts, then you can choose to go to an Apple Store.

 

[BipedalOS]

The people who are buying Apple products want to buy it because it is locked down and controlled by Apple. If they wanted something else, they would buy Android. Why is this so hard for law makers to understand?

The resale value of Apple products are high because we know 3rd party components wont work with Apple products and they will put up a warning sign if the serial numbers don't match. If this law is implemented, how can we be sure it's not some Frankenstein iPhone, and how can we buy used iPhones with trust? With this law, an iPhone which is not sold new in a big branded store (or Apple Store) is untrustworthy and therefore worthless. How many iPhone users really want this law? Their own iPhone's resale value just plummeted.

It looks like the people who want this law are:
1) Journalists/bloggers who want a story against Apple for their own content's visibility
2) Lawmakers who want a narrative against large companies for their own political gains
3) People who want to tear down the Apple ecosystem because of spite and they have nothing else worthy to do in their own life.
4) 3rd party repair technicians, who might be the only real benefitting party in this law.

The people who don't want this law are:
1) Apple users
2) Apple employees
3) Apple Share holders

I can't think of any of the relevant stake holders wanting this law.

I agree but we should have the right because it leads to bad practices.

 

[BipedalOS]

I'm not saying I disagree, but do you thing the same should apply to motor vehicles?

Remember a cheap replacement part on your phone might make your experience a little worse in some area.
But a cheap replacement part on your car could kill you or your family.

And yet we don't seem to mind what parts get fitted to vehicles or who fits them.
Funny world isn't it.

As someone who works on cars, I can assure you that original parts aren’t always better than aftermarket.

Unless you go to a shady shop, you are getting OEM-like parts put in your vehicle. And sometimes those parts have been tested more vigorously.

 

[Wanted797]

This is another nail in the coffin for the way Apple does business.

I wish they’d lead the industry instead of holding on for dear life.

With so many smart people there, why can’t they find a way to rethink how they profitize this stuff?

The world is decentralizing technology and Apple has an amazing opportunity to lead this change. I’m not suggesting any specific action but it’s obvious that within three years Apple will be forced to do the following:

Open iMessage to Android
Support RCS
Allow direct iPhone app downloads
Provide choice for Apple competing Apps
Allow anyone to repair any device however they want to

If Apple would lead the change they would be seen as supportive of individual rights. Instead, Apple is seen as putting profits above all else…including privacy.

Apple is a business/corporation that has public shareholders. Every business has to maximise profits. That's not to say Apple couldn't make so much money from selling parts, but I think they're just not being risky.

 

[ric22]

Agree. If you are a consumer worried about the parts, then you can choose to go to an Apple Store.

Exactly. If another manufacturer wants to manufacture a replacement screen and sell it for 1/10 the Apple price, consumers should be allowed the choice.

 

[Macalicious2011]

Note to self: NEVER buy a second hand Apple device ever again.

Pretty much. Some refurbished phones already use 3rd party components. This bill is positive but will also result in a flood of low grade iphone components that might fail a few months after installation.

 

[scorpio vega]

Open iMessage to Android

Absolutely not

 

[mateytate]

Let the complaining of “My eBay parts ruined my phone” and blaming Apple for it start.

I don't think this will happen. I've never heard anyone buy a 3rd party spare for their car, PC, washing machine... that if it ultimately caused problems blames the OEM. People are not stupid, they know the risks when buying non OEM parts.
How anyone can be against such a bill that only benefits the end user is beyond me. Though this is MacRumors, so people would defend anything Apple say or do and believe the constant narrative they push about privacy, when we really know its just about defending margins.

 

[Luis Ortega]

And Apple ensuring that a component like a camera or wifi chip doesn’t have a hardware exploit inserted by an intelligence agency in the supply chain.

And that’s not an outlandish example. Every country with an intelligence agency has departments dedicated to doing exactly that kind of thing.

lol…the iPhone is made in China.

 

[cyanite]

How many of these comments are real and not subterfuge of some sort?

To think that requiring repairable tech made with finite known resources is some how worse for consumers and the planet, is naive at best and devious at worst.

This does nothing but lower the prices and increase options to prevent needless waste and control.

If you think this law is bad, I feel bad for you.

Is your comment subterfuge? Just because you can only think of 3 good consequences of some legislation, doesn’t meant others don’t exist. You’re arguing from incredulity.

I support right to repair. I support access to genuine parts and having the choice to use non-genuine ones if desired. I think parts pairing may possibly boost security and curb the harvesting of parts from stolen products. But I also think it would be clever and innovative if Apple could provide these benefits without restricting the freedom to repair. If that were to happen then this bill would be beneficial I think.

I own almost all the Apple products. It would be kinda nice to be able to swap a better logic board into my Apple Silicon MacBook Pro after a couple years since the specs are non-upgradable. As I understand parts pairing restricts my ability to do that.

Swapping in a new board is getting an entirely new computer

 

[3530025]

The people who are buying Apple products want to buy it because it is locked down and controlled by Apple.

No, really no. I can assure you I did not buy my Apple devices because I want to be locked down and controlled by Apple nor did anyone from my office (from what we discussed).

This is the aspect I really dislike about Apple devices. Why I did not buy Android? Because iPhone is not JUST about being locked down. It got great speakers, awesome camera, great screen, overall great built quality. These are the reasons I bought it and I prefer it to Android. Definitely not for being locked down and controller by Apple.

I prefer to live in freedom, not being locked down and not being controlled by anyone and I believe this applies to majority of users.

 

[frostymason]

The bill states that companies cannot reduce the performance of a device or display misleading warnings for parts that are not properly paired.

So Apple just changes the message it displays to say it has a third party screen, battery, camera, whatever, installed, with no comment to that fact.

The owner who had their phone repaired with non-Apple parts doesn't care (unless they were expecting Apple parts), and a used buyer can check and make a decision to buy or not to buy.

 

[nicolas_s]

It's like buying a second hand car. It makes perfectly sense as long as you know what you are doing.

I still prefer buying a second hand car that has only been repaired by the brands dealerships than buying one that has been self repaired by previous owners that "know what they're doing".

 

[frostymason]

I still prefer buying a second hand car that has only been repaired by the brands dealerships than buying one that has been self repaired by previous owners that "know what they're doing".

Does a dealership do a full inspection of a car each time it is taken in for service to check no self-repairs have been done by the owner in the interim? And even if they notice a self-repair has been carried out, is it recorded anywhere?

 

[AppliedMicro]

If this law is implemented, how can we be sure it's not some Frankenstein iPhone

Buy a new or refurbished on from Apple.
Simple as that.

The people who don't want this law are:
1) Apple users

Apple users want convenient and affordable repairs.
Maybe not you, but many others do.

As has been said already:
Second hand car owner is popular. Even for premium cars and where they’re not locked down.

 

[hans1972]

This is another nail in the coffin for the way Apple does business.

I wish they’d lead the industry instead of holding on for dear life.

With so many smart people there, why can’t they find a way to rethink how they profitize this stuff?

Most of Apple's revenue comes from customers.

So where do you think Apple should increase prices?

 

[frostymason]

If this law is implemented, how can we be sure it's not some Frankenstein iPhone, and how can we buy used iPhones with trust?

Buy a new or refurbished on from Apple.
Simple as that.

Or just buy from a seller who runs a check on the components to determine if they are all Apple or not.

There doesn't appear to be anything in the law that says the origin of the parts cannot be distinguishable, only that they cannot degrade performance or give a misleading warning.

And so utterly straightforward for a seller to put it on a diagnostic and go 'yep' everything is Apple and sell it as such, and that's only needed if Apple doesn't respond to this law by simply implementing the same within the phone settings.

 

[AppliedMicro]

The NSA thanks Oregon for making things so extremely easy for them!

If Apple’s own/authorised repair shops can pair components, so can the NSA.
It’s not going to change anything fundamentally.

Do they still sell iPhones in Russia?

Russia is getting new iPhones. They’re sold there.
If not through distribution from Apple, they’re getting them through other channels.

 

[H2SO4]

Let the complaining of “My eBay parts ruined my phone” and blaming Apple for it start.

I don't buy this. Not even for a pico second.
People have been buying both genuine and fake parts on eBay for decades.

What they haven't done is blame the OEM for their purchase. They buy parts for their homes and cars, boiler parts brake parts, things that could easily kill them and others around them and we don't get this oh it's the fault of Apple pearl clutching.

 

[brofkand]

One of the good things about paired parts is it makes stolen phones bricks. There's no use stealing an iPhone. You can't activate it and you can't chop it for parts because the parts are serialized.

 

[frostymason]

One of the good things about paired parts is it makes stolen phones bricks. There's no use stealing an iPhone. You can't activate it and you can't chop it for parts because the parts are serialized.

If the law is that companies cannot reduce the performance of a device or display misleading warnings for parts that are not properly paired, then there is nothing to prevent Apple changing the software so when a part from a stolen phone is used to repair a phone that the repaired phone displays a warning on the front screen saying that.

Would you want to use a phone that had a permanent onscreen display saying it had been repaired with a stolen phone's parts?

 

[youdontsay]

On principle, I'm in favour of disabling part pairing for environmental reasons and the fact that you're entitled to repair your own device the way you see fit.

However, I do think there is a difference between part pairing between Apple made parts and part pairing between Apple part and random part. IIRC, right now, if you change a camera between two brand new iPhones, it doesn't completely work despite the both parts being genuine Apple parts. That's pure BS and that should not be legal imho.

But when it comes to changing apple parts for random parts, I think it needs to be nuanced. It's okay only if the customer knows about it and consent to it. I even think it'd be okay if Apple displayed a non-scary neutral popup requiring the owner's "consent" to continue using the phone with non Apple parts.