iPhone 14 iFixit teardown shows Apple's learning on repairs The iPhone 14 harbors a secret that's a pretty big deal: The internals have been redesigned to make it more repairable, says iFixit. Gone is an excessive use of glue and solder, iFixit CEO Kyle Wiens said in his iPhone 14 teardown report. Instead, Wiens said, the iPhone 14 features a butterfly-style design with a pop-off …
I've been stuck with my Iphone 7 for quite a few years now because of its repairability (evading and avoiding Google as much as possible being one of my hobbies, I don't want to switch to a smartphone with Google's Android). Newer Iphones just aren't that repairable any more, if at all. This evolution looks like a step in the right direction...
... only I've been testing the French /e/OS* to my surprisingly high level of satisfaction. As soon as I learn again how to live with only a decent digital camera instead of a great one, even the better repairability of the new Iphone isn't going to be enough of an incentive, given Apple's years of neglect and abuse in this area. Majority of the /e/OS supported phones are even better repairable by design.
* The French managed to achieve even stupider nomenclature than Apple and I sincerely hope they will reconsider soon. The name is unpronounceable and unsearchable - special characters are usually ignored by search engines and the name eos is one of the more common throughout industry, from cameras to cars.
I have an iPhone 13 Pro Max. Accidentally pushed it off a footstool onto my laminated wood floor (way less than 50cm) causing a corner of the rear glass panel to crack but no other damage whatsoever.
Apple want €699 to 'repair' it. A fucking glass panel.
And of course the reason for the cost is that they don't repair it at all, they replace it with another unit. They have 2 charging levels; €189 for a new screen, or €699 for 'all other damage'.
So Apple can fuck off. I'm happy to see they're making their devices more repairable, but that doesn't help me now.
@Steve Davies 3
"Can't you claim on your household insurance policy for the repair/replacement?
Or don't you have any accidental cover on your policy?
If you do have cover then you are not alone in forgetting that for accidental damage to expensive devices like phones."
No, no, and I didn't forget; I chose not to do it. Costs €16/month for accidental damage, and given I've managed to go 10 years without cracking a phone, that would have been €1,920 in insurance payments for a €699 one-off. No thanks.
At some point in the future, we're going to look back on this era of smartphone, and wonder why on earth we ever used glass for a case on something you hold and drop, and why we all put up with it. Its madness.
A slippery, fragile highly expensive device when there's other materials that would work so much better.
My Google Pixel 6's glass back is so incredibly slippery it will slide off a flat sofa onto the floor.
And a device thats designed to be mobile, shouldn't be rendered irreparable by a fall from a stool.
At some point in the future, we're going to look back on this era of smartphone, and wonder why on earth we ever used glass for a case on something you hold and drop, and why we all put up with it. Its madness.
So what are you suggesting? Transparent aluminium? While we can already make that, we aren't capable of making it screen sized.
Been using a first gen SE for years, definitely showing it's age, I just looked at a new latest and greatest, and I'm shocked, shocked I say by the price. Easily 5 times the price I paid for the missus second gen SE when it was new...
Unless all my relatives die and leave all their money.... no effin way Apple. I've seen computers that cost less!
Your point is well taken, but some of the children think that their phone is their main/only computer (and it often is).
I'm retired now, but still do unpaid work, and even I found that I could travel and do work with a small iPhone, mouse and small bluetooth keyboard and an HDMI cable/adapter to connect to hotel TVs. YMMV as I could do much of it with an iPad too.
I do literally 90% of my work on my phone, so to me it IS a computer. I have a Macbook, but very rarely use it unless I absolutely need it, which realistically only happens when I need to work with spreadsheets. They're near enough impossible to manipulate on a phone. For the rest, Teams, Outlook, Zoom... the phone covers it all.
I was wondering what Reg readers thought of the idea that by Apple maintaining tight control and part pairing, they're trying to stop device theft?
If you manage to lock the device to iCloud and then can't part out the device and sell it as spares, then what's the point in stealing an iPhone?
While I don't discount the idea that they're just trying to make money off repairs, if an authorised repairer could re-program stolen parts, then why couldn't they sell stolen parts?
Personally I think coding parts is a GOOD idea. I know there are arguments for and against, but I despise thieves and muggers so as long as the coding is (very close to) unbreakable, I'm happy to pay an Apple premium to put them out of business.
The argument against coding tends to work in 2 parts:
1. It doesn't stop theft because thieves will still nick it and sell it down the pub for £20 even non-working, and;
2. Coding monopolises parts supply, driving parts prices up.
My argument is yes there will still be that undercurrent of pond scum who will nick and sell non-working phones anyway, but that represents a small portion of the organised theft market; and a non-working phone is still FAR less attractive to thieves. Therefore the whole 'nicked phone' market shrinks massively.
And 2 whilst it's definitely true that coded parts limits supply and keeps parts prices up, this is partially offset by the shrinking of the theft market and the maintaining of the quality level by using OEM parts which reduces overall support costs.
Well who wouldn't want to sell their own services? What manufacturer doesn't tell you "you need to use official parts and authorised dealers?"
And for the vast majority, opening your own phone is probably not a great idea. I've experience inside PCs going back a few decades and I would still be wary. Apart from anything else, I value my own time.
If they've moved in the right direction then I don't really care if it's because they're being forced to, or to make their own lives easier doing repairs, or because "They Really Care". It's a good result. In fact, companies realising that repairability can be in their own interests is surely the best result as they'll then want to do it instead of being forced to.
The Register 
Biting the hand that feeds IT
Copyright. All rights reserved © 1998–2024
