Apple’s stance on the right to repair has now become more accommodative, with the company now supporting used parts for iPhone 15 repairs that can include the camera, display, and battery.
While Apple’s move is welcome to many, it does answer a series of questions: If your iPhone breaks, should you have the right to fix it?
If you want to fix your iPhone, should you be able to do that yourself, or be forced to go to the manufacturer?
And if you are going to fix your iPhone yourself — or pay a third-party to help — should you be able to use whatever parts will work?
Apple pushed back vocally against criticism of parts pairing, and has recently backed laws in several states that enshrine consumer repair options.
On Thursday, Apple announced that it has opened its iPhone repair process to include used components.
Today’s news adds all components — including the battery, display and camera — which Apple requires to be configured for full functionality.
“‘Parts pairing’ is used a lot outside and has this negative connotation,” Apple senior vice president of hardware engineering, John Ternus, tells TechCrunch.
“I think it’s led people to believe that we somehow block third-party parts from working, which we don’t.
Ternus cites a recent UL Solutions study as evidence that third-party battery modules, in particular, can present a hazard to users.
The right to repair has been a hot topic for several years now, hitting a kind of critical mass with domestic and international legislation.
Advocates note that these proposals give users more control over their own property, while expanding products’ shelf life and reducing e-waste.
Fairphone is, perhaps, the most prominent hardware company to make repairability the foundation of its consumer electronic design ethos, rather than a simple afterthought.
In the consumer electronics world, right to repair has largely focused on handsets and PCs.
But anything that can help reduce e-waste and give users more control over these products is probably a net positive.
Oregon Governor Tina Kotek on Tuesday signed Senate Bill 1596 into law, joining California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts and Minnesota in a growing list of states embracing a right to repair for citizens.
The bill’s coauthors Janeen Sollman and Representative Courtney Neron took inspiration from California’s Senate Bill 244, which passed toward the tail end of 2023.
The iPhone maker, which had previously issued an unprecedented open letter in favor of the California bill, has said that it is mostly in favor of Oregon’s bill, with the above caveat.
We entertained many of the changes that Apple brought forward that are in the California bill.
“By eliminating manufacturer restrictions, the Right to Repair will make it easier for Oregonians to keep their personal electronics running.
The Oregon House this week passed a right to repair bill by nearly a 3-to-1 margin at 42 votes to 13.
If signed into law, the northwestern state wouldn’t be the first the union to pass a right to repair bill (more like the fourth), but the legislation contains aggressive language that goes beyond those on the books.
“Apple agrees with the vast majority of Senate Bill 1596,” John Perry, Apple senior manager, Secure System Design, said in a testimony to state lawmakers last month.
“By eliminating manufacturer restrictions, the Right to Repair will make it easier for Oregonians to keep their personal electronics running.
they will stand on the hill on is the parts pairing.”The bill has received bipartisan support in both the state Senate and House.
Since launching its self-repair program in August 2022, Samsung has been aggressively adding new devices to the mix.
Another upgrade this week brings the current offering up to 50 products (when you factor in variants like the Plus and Ultra), including smartphones, tablets, TVs, laptops, monitors, soundbars and even a projector.
There are 14 new devices in all, including the Galaxy S23 series, Galaxy Z Fold 5, Galaxy Z Flip 5, Galaxy Tab S9 series, the Galaxy Book 2 series and the aforementioned projector, Freestyle 2.
The news also finds Samsung adding a number of different parts options, including speakers, the SIM tray, side key and volume buttons on Galaxy phones and tablets.
Samsung’s approach is generally more in line with Google’s in terms of access to tools and parts.
Google today issued an open letter voicing support of pending Oregon right to repair legislation.
The right to repair movement has been gaining tremendous traction over the past several years.
In October, California became the third state to pass a right to repair bill — following New York and Minnesota.
The paper cited iFixit reports, noting that some seven different parts can trigger Apple’s warning system during repair.
Companies like Google and Samsung, meanwhile, have partnered directly with third-party solutions such as iFixit, including its own home repair option for Pixel devices.
Deere & Co. and the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) signed an MOU over the weekend, granting access to tools and repair information. “This has been a major focus of…
