You don't need that mumbo jumbo actually. Basic tools will do the job just as good in skilled hands. This is supposed to be basically fool proof, much less equipment in exchange for skill will do the job just as good.
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Testing Out Apple's Self Repair Program With an iPhone 12 Mini Battery Fix
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Read what you quoted:
So if you just get the battery & return the old parts it costs you $46.
I don't know why people are so surprised that it costs more to rent specialist tools to do a one-off job than pay someone who already has the tools and knows how to use them to do the job in a fraction of the time it would take you.
Even if you get alternative tools from somewhere like iFixit it isn't hard to blow $50 on something you'll only ever use once.
A lot of DIY is just expensive entertainment.
Now, maybe battery replacement shouldn't require specialist tools - fair point, but in which case 10 seconds research will give you a list of currently available phones with removable batteries. Vote with your feet. Of course, they'll be thicker, heavier and less waterproof.
it still does not make sense for a business to get it just for replacing batteries. This means the business is getting actually paid 69-46=23$ for the service which will probably take couple of hours. Even if it only takes an hour still the business is getting paid 24$ an hour. This is most likely the technician's hourly rate. And where is the company profit here? If the business needs to be competitive it needs to provide better price than Apple which will reduce even further the income from the repair. Even for more expensive repairs it does not make sense, because the Apple parts prices are too high to make a sense economically. It might make some sense only for the end user for the costly repairs and is always a double edge sword.
No one is asking Apple to take the loss for someone screwing up while repairing their own device. I don't know where you're getting that from.
A car mechanic has to accept some degree of responsibility because they are fixing someone else's property. Here, you are fixing your own property and taking on 100% responsibility for the procedure with no other party to blame. It's not the same situation at all and even the most ardent right to repair supporters wouldn't argue in favor of something so inane as blaming Apple for screwing up your own repair.
It is also equally obvious that no untrained consumer could possibly repair the device as well as Apple would, but having the right to be able to accessibly do so is what Apple is denying their customers. It is extremely overcomplicated and the cost-benefit analysis just doesn't add up favorably when you compare getting it fixed through Apple vs. self-repairing through this program.
Obviously this is fully compliant with any legal regulations. That is precisely why its such a cynical move. If you check the cost for most repairs offered through this program by Apple right now, the cost to buy the parts + rent the tools + shipping all come to more than it would cost if you just took it to the Apple store. The implicit messaging within such a price structure is pretty evident.
Anyone who expected Apple to launch a truly accessible self-repair program was always chasing a pipe dream. Apple would gladly watch trillions of iPhones clog every landfill on earth if it meant adding another set of dollar signs to their valuation. This is always how it was going to happen. This entire program is solely in service of legal compliance and nothing more.
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Designed to Fail. The replacement is capable without all this trash they send you. Designed so people take it to the apple store. This program wont last long.
You don’t need the Apple equipment. It’s an optional extra if you want it.
Yes i know that my dear, my point is, that they are providing there tools for at cost , or renting so they look overwhelming to the average user. So people go with the Apple Store.
But these are what the Apple tools look like to get the job done. What are you wanting, new specialised tools with smiley faces and pretty colours?!
I am a former Apple Genius who left the company back in 2014. I also live about 1.5 hours from my nearest Apple Store now. So when I heard about this I was thrilled. I ordered the repair kit and replacement battery kit for my iPhone 12 Pro Max on day one. I did the repair on Tuesday. Now, granted I haven't been a trained apple tech for 8 years but i figured this would be a walk in the park since while I was a Genius i did a LOT of iPhone repairs. LOL NOPE. My kit was also missing the heat gloves and the tweezers, as stated in the article. Also, these phones have become MUCH harder to repair than they used to be. The addition of adhesive to hold down the display, like back with the iMac change from 2012 (or whenever that was) is VERY frustrating. It took me the better party of 30+ minutes to remove it all once the display was off. Then there's two cowlings to remove, the speaker and the taptic engine. Plus the battery adhesive does NOT come off easily at all.
Apple last week announced the launch of a new Self Repair program, which is designed to allow iPhone 12, iPhone 13, and iPhone SE owners to repair their devices on their own using manuals, tools, and replacement parts sourced directly from Apple.
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We were curious how the Self Service Repair program works and how it compares to the simplicity of bringing a product in to Apple for repair, so we had MacRumors videographer Dan Barbera order up a repair kit to replace the battery of his iPhone 12 mini.
Dan describes himself as the opposite of a handyman and he's never done an iPhone repair before, so we thought he'd be the perfect representation of the average consumer who just wants to save some money by doing DIY repairs.
To start out with, we ordered a kit and components on the day that the program went live, and received it not too long after, so the turnaround time for what we needed was fairly quick. It's worth noting that for most of the repairs, you need the parts and Apple's repair kit. The repair kit comes in two separate packages, and the two boxes weigh in at a whopping 79 pounds. You get it for a week before you need to send it back via UPS, or else Apple charges you $1300.
It's inconvenient to have to deal with one 40 pound repair kit and a second 30 pound repair kit, so that's a negative right off the bat. It costs $49 to get the kit and $70.99 for the iPhone 12 mini battery bundle, though you get $24.15 back for sending in old parts.
That means it costs a total of $95.84 to do a battery swap on the iPhone 12 mini, and comparatively, it's $69 to have Apple swap it out, so it's not really cost effective to do that repair on your own.
Note that you can order the parts alone without the tool kit, but Apple's repair manual instructs users to use tools in the kit that they wouldn't otherwise have on hand, such as an Apple-designed battery press.
You can purchase all of the tools individually so you have them on hand for repairs, but Apple's components are expensive. A battery press is $115, a torque driver is $99, a heated display removal pocket is $116, and a display press is $216, and all of these are needed for battery removal according to Apple's repair manual.
It is not cost effective for someone who wants to make a single repair to use anything but the rental kit, though some of the individual part purchases will make sense for repair outlets who want to get their hands on Apple-designed tools.
As for the actual repair process, Dan found it to be difficult, even with Apple's instructions and tools. It was frustrating to get into, and there were components missing from the kit that were required by the manual, such as tweezers and heat protective gloves.
Dan needed to go to the store on two separate occasions to get more supplies, and because of this, the repair took the better part of the day. Dealing with adhesive was time consuming and almost put a stop to the self repair.
Overall, for the layperson, it's probably better to take your phone to a professional for repair rather than attempting to fix it yourself. This is especially true of repairs for things like the battery and the display, which are generally cheaper to have Apple replace.
If you're feeling brave, you can save some cash if you need a camera, Taptic Engine, or speaker repair, but make sure to study the manual and know what you're getting into. It's well worth watching Dan's full video up above to get a complete picture of the repair process and what's involved.
Article Link: Testing Out Apple's Self Repair Program With an iPhone 12 Mini Battery Fix
Long story short: I was successful and my phone is working fine but good lord this would be a bad idea for some one with NO experience doing these repairs. Make the drive and save yourself the headache
This is what a certain group of people wanted. They wanted to be able to repair/replace the battery without having to go to the Apple store.
For people now to complain that this process is too cumbersome (or even state that Apple deliberately designed it that way) is simply mind boggling. I would love to see these geniuses technical plans on how they would have made this program fool proof for dummies without compromising on the design.
And if you are willing to make design compromises why not slap a power bank to the back of your phone with a nice rubberband once the internal battery is dead? Problem solved.
For people now to complain that this process is too cumbersome (or even state that Apple deliberately designed it that way) is simply mind boggling. I would love to see these geniuses technical plans on how they would have made this program fool proof for dummies without compromising on the design.
And if you are willing to make design compromises why not slap a power bank to the back of your phone with a nice rubberband once the internal battery is dead? Problem solved.
So it’s only around $1K for business/schools to own the official Apple repair tools. That’s awesome!
I 100% agree. Everyone kept hounding Apple to allow this to be done in a manner that represents Apple doing it themselves. Apple release the hardware for repair and access to parts. Now average cant handle doing this - too much - too complex - too difficult and eventually go to Apple. I honestly think those who are not technically minded should avoid this at all costs as the error rate would be high. Maybe this is why after all Apple never made this hardware available to the public because Apple knew most people would find it too difficult after all.
I am a firm believe that IQ / intelligence tests need to be use before this type of equipment is issued for rent or for sale to anyone wanting to do their own repairs. Apple has taken the right approach and now people cant cope with the effort required to do what Apple does.
Wow. I used to do my own iPhone and iPod battery replacements. But I've given that up and now hand them in to a pro.
Related note: starting with iPhone XS, if the replacement battery is not an Apple OEM battery, you will get a warning indicator for about two weeks and the OS will no longer give any update on the battery health. I've been through that on my XS. The advantage is that I had a higher capacity battery put in. Between having a new battery and a higher capacity one, my XS now has exceptional battery life. To say that it now lasts all day would be a vast understatement.
Related note: starting with iPhone XS, if the replacement battery is not an Apple OEM battery, you will get a warning indicator for about two weeks and the OS will no longer give any update on the battery health. I've been through that on my XS. The advantage is that I had a higher capacity battery put in. Between having a new battery and a higher capacity one, my XS now has exceptional battery life. To say that it now lasts all day would be a vast understatement.
It's really disappointing...
The "right to repair" should not be this.
The "right to repair" should be about Apple (and others) producing devices that are not purposefully constructed in such a way as to make it unnecessarily difficult to repair them.
That's what "right to repair" should mean, and it's what Apple appears to be ignoring, given the way that this program has been rolled out. Perhaps at this point, it is actually in "good faith", because to replace a battery / etc on their current line up does require all this crap - but what we need are companies that can think beyond their shareholders, and produce goods that don't abide planned obsolescence...
The "right to repair" should not be this.
The "right to repair" should be about Apple (and others) producing devices that are not purposefully constructed in such a way as to make it unnecessarily difficult to repair them.
That's what "right to repair" should mean, and it's what Apple appears to be ignoring, given the way that this program has been rolled out. Perhaps at this point, it is actually in "good faith", because to replace a battery / etc on their current line up does require all this crap - but what we need are companies that can think beyond their shareholders, and produce goods that don't abide planned obsolescence...
So right to repair isnt actually right to repair, it’s right to demand apple make a product in a certain way to make repairs easier.
it would be less confusing if the cause actually had a more fitting name to describe what they are trying to achieve. And I think people should be clear as to what they actually want.
Just follow the iFixit guide instead. I've replaced three batteries already successfully and I had no problems. Though getting the little pull tab is kinda scary only because it is really easy to pierce it. But in the end, I didn't need any of the crap apple is selling.
As a 20 year veteran former Mac Genius and Premium AASP Technican, I can say that this is an accurate representation of what they “provide” us. Except, we have to BUY the kits, and they only pay us (the *PREMIUM* AASPs) $19 per phone repair, regardless of time, warranty status, or part that we replace. Additionally, they expect us to drop whatever other repair we’re doing to prioritize the phone, which means that we lost money on every phone serviced.
Further, even trained and experienced repair technicians can have difficulty with fixing phones, if they don’t have a lot of practice specifically for the phones. In other words, being an experienced Mac repair tech is not the same as being an experienced phone repair tech. Some of the skills translate, yes, but there’s a learning curve
If the phone accidentally gets damaged, at the stores they have the parts to continue the repair, but at an AASP we only get batteries to keep in stock, and everything else has to be ordered. It’ll be the same for the home repair too, except that if you crack your display, you’ll be on the hook for the cost whereas at an Apple Store, they’ll cover it.
In the end, repairing phones is part of what drove my store out of business. Good luck doing it at home!
Further, even trained and experienced repair technicians can have difficulty with fixing phones, if they don’t have a lot of practice specifically for the phones. In other words, being an experienced Mac repair tech is not the same as being an experienced phone repair tech. Some of the skills translate, yes, but there’s a learning curve
If the phone accidentally gets damaged, at the stores they have the parts to continue the repair, but at an AASP we only get batteries to keep in stock, and everything else has to be ordered. It’ll be the same for the home repair too, except that if you crack your display, you’ll be on the hook for the cost whereas at an Apple Store, they’ll cover it.
In the end, repairing phones is part of what drove my store out of business. Good luck doing it at home!
Not something an average customer would do. Looks very difficult. By launching the self repair program, Apple has managed to stay away from any future ‘right to repair’ laws. Looking at the current Apple self repair option, definitely better to take iPhone to Apple service center for any kind of repair.
About 20 years ago I had Siemens ME45. Splash proof and you could exchange the battery by just using a coin.
That was german engineering
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So if you just get the battery & return the old parts it costs you $46.
And we would still need to have the tools, right?
Well you either rent tools, buy tools or use your existing tools. It’s up to you.
I think the message has become confused. Or quite possibly - there are multiple messages being confused together.
My point has always been that Apple (and any others guilty of it) should stop making devices that are deliberately difficult to repair. I know that's not something that can easily be policed. I get it. But - we are not living in a world of unlimited resources. We are going to run out. Making devices last longer is a necessity.
One of the things I have always loved about Apple, was how long their products lasted. I have a 20+ year old Apple Cube sitting in my office that still functions as well as the day it was made. (Probably.) I appreciate that software advances can leave a product behind due to natural progression. Try surf the net on a 20 year old computer and you're in for pain. But - the device can still be used for many functions, despite its age.
Yet, a 3 year old iPhone is seen as a throw away item - not because it is useless, but because it wont hold a charge, and putting a new battery in isn't just a matter of popping open the back and swapping it over.
Apple could still make its billions of dollars without the heavy push in recent years toward products that are built not to last. (Ok, I have no suggestions on how - but they could!)