All phones sold in the EU to have replaceable batteries from 2027 • Hacker News Board

Re: All phones sold in the EU to have replaceable batteries from 2027

#451

Post by semi-extrinsic » Mon, Apr 20, 2026, 6:04 PM UTC

srmatto wrote: post #416

coda_ wrote: post #359

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Your experience is not at all what I see out there. Most people I know only get new phones because their battery will no longer get them through the day. They hate having to set up a new phone when their old one is totally fine other than the battery. For the people I know that do upgrade their phones regularly, they typically want to give their old phone to someone who would love a usable phone, but can't afford a n…

I can't speak to the experience with Android but Apple offers both in-store battery replacement or Mail-in battery replacement for $70-120 which to me seems very reasonable. Could it be cheaper? Sure, maybe I guess? But $70-120 is a lot less than a new phone. And this way we don't need to compromise the shell of the phone with seams and things that can fail. https://support.apple.com/iphone/repair/battery-replacement

The battery costs $7-$12 to produce and ship to your location, so kind of strange to say $70-$120 is cheap.

It's a philosophical thing, sure. But the EU is taking the approach that businesses should make honest money by selling quality products, not through consumer-hostile practices like inflating the cost of spare parts + labour for fixing stuff.

In the past our family has had several Android phones where the battery was easily replaceable. We even had a couple of Motorolas where the screen was a simple and cheap thing to replace. That seems to be increasingly a thing of the past.

With those phones, I have never once experienced a failure mode related to seams / screws holding the phone together. If it's one thing that's extremely well known technology, it's fasteners and gaskets for consumer products.

Re: All phones sold in the EU to have replaceable batteries from 2027

#452

Post by iso1631 » Mon, Apr 20, 2026, 6:06 PM UTC

ahartmetz wrote: post #277

emtel wrote: post #258

One of the most frustrating things about HN is that people seem so unaware of how idiosyncratic their preferences are. If you stood on the street corner and asked every passerby what they would change about their phone, I think you would be there all day before someone said "I wish I could replace the battery". It's okay to have idiosyncratic preferences (I certainly do), but people should recognize that this law wil…

How about you ask people if they want a non-swappable battery for 1 mm less thickness?

Can I have a thicker phone but narrower

I currently have a 12 mini, but I'd love to go back to the iphone 4 size, or even a blackberry curve. Would be fine for comms, and I suspect I'd spend less time doom-scrolling on it.

Re: All phones sold in the EU to have replaceable batteries from 2027

#453

Post by beAbU » Mon, Apr 20, 2026, 6:06 PM UTC

emtel wrote: post #258

One of the most frustrating things about HN is that people seem so unaware of how idiosyncratic their preferences are. If you stood on the street corner and asked every passerby what they would change about their phone, I think you would be there all day before someone said "I wish I could replace the battery". It's okay to have idiosyncratic preferences (I certainly do), but people should recognize that this law wil…

Modern iPhone batteries are basically user replaceable are they not? They are metal encased and the adhesive can be electronically disabled. They don't seem "worse" to me?

> this law will make phones _worse_ for most people

Sometimes we have to acknowledge the externalities of our lifestyle and take things down a notch.

Even if most throw out their old phones, now at least it'll be trivial to shuck these devices to get the battery for recycling, while sending the device for refurb or further recycling.

A key component to effective recycling is separation, and this is one step in that direction

Re: All phones sold in the EU to have replaceable batteries from 2027

#454

Post by heavenlyhash » Mon, Apr 20, 2026, 6:07 PM UTC

Alive-in-2025 wrote: post #332

nicpottier wrote: post #290

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think phone manufacturers will figure it out once it is a requirement. Was switching everyone to USB-C annoying for Apple? Sure. Are we in a better place because the EU forced it. You betcha. That's the point. I don't love everything the EU does (cookie banners!?) but this is one where I have confidence that the consumer will ultimately benefit. As others have noted, most people do not replace their phones every tw…

I also want headphone jacks back - which I'm sure will be less popular here than batteries. We used to have waterproof phones with both. I'm not sure about the rules around required ability but I'd like that too

I've come to realize (I think) that this actually does have a lot to do with waterproofness ratings -- a legibility trap.

I notice that Fairphone excludes headphones from their latest devices, and attributes it to the necessary of doing so in order to get an "IP55" rating.

I'm not sure if that ultimately makes sense (and suspect that it... doesn't), but the legibility trap of that ratings system might actually be part of the cause of the current market absence of a feature so many people still talk about after years of its unavailability.

Re: All phones sold in the EU to have replaceable batteries from 2027

#455

Post by bombcar » Mon, Apr 20, 2026, 6:08 PM UTC

metabagel wrote: post #449

wincy wrote: post #255

Earlier quoted context omitted.

With all due respect, I can buy a kit on iFixit for $55 for an iPhone 16 pro max, including the battery . I’ve replaced my iPhone battery before, aside from the glue being a bit sticky so needing a heat gun it isn’t that difficult.

Heat gun? This isn't the type of consumer-friendly battery replacement which the EU is looking for.

reminds me of finding an old scout manual that said "go to your neighborhood blacksmith" - different things are "easy" for different people.

Re: All phones sold in the EU to have replaceable batteries from 2027

#456

Post by dlcarrier » Mon, Apr 20, 2026, 6:09 PM UTC

tim333 wrote: post #36

twilo wrote: post #4

If a battery can do 1000 cycles and remain above 80% capacity it is exempt from this, which is exactly what Apple implemented a few years ago. Low cost phones will be most affected.

I was wondering about that. I lost my iPhone 13 mini the other day, did the find my phone beep thing and got a distant beep from my washing machine which was on wash cycle. Surprisingly the phone was fine and works fine after a brief rinse under the tap. It must be hard to combine that sort of water resistance with easy user changing.

Conformal coating is a little more expensive than gasketing, but it works much, much better under pressure. Motorola does this.

Re: All phones sold in the EU to have replaceable batteries from 2027

#457

Post by raw_anon_1111 » Mon, Apr 20, 2026, 6:10 PM UTC

Samson_Corwell wrote: post #419

raw_anon_1111 wrote: post #85

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Then don’t buy a phone from a company with a piss poor record of customer service. Just looking in maps, there are three Apple Stores within a 45 minute drive from where I live in central Florida. The situation is worse in my hometown in South GA admittedly, you have to drive 70 miles for same day service for an authorized repair place - mostly Best Buy.

> Then don’t buy a phone from a company with a piss poor record of customer service. That is not an argument.

It’s a perfect argument- use your own agency and intelligence to choose products from reliable companies instead of depending on the government.

It’s like complaining about items from TEMU aren’t high quality and expecting the government to do more.

Re: All phones sold in the EU to have replaceable batteries from 2027

#458

Post by iso1631 » Mon, Apr 20, 2026, 6:10 PM UTC

tim333 wrote: post #36

twilo wrote: post #4

If a battery can do 1000 cycles and remain above 80% capacity it is exempt from this, which is exactly what Apple implemented a few years ago. Low cost phones will be most affected.

I was wondering about that. I lost my iPhone 13 mini the other day, did the find my phone beep thing and got a distant beep from my washing machine which was on wash cycle. Surprisingly the phone was fine and works fine after a brief rinse under the tap. It must be hard to combine that sort of water resistance with easy user changing.

Third parties offer new iphone batteries so it's clearly replaceable commercially

Re: All phones sold in the EU to have replaceable batteries from 2027

#459

Post by DirkH » Mon, Apr 20, 2026, 6:11 PM UTC

emtel wrote: post #258

One of the most frustrating things about HN is that people seem so unaware of how idiosyncratic their preferences are. If you stood on the street corner and asked every passerby what they would change about their phone, I think you would be there all day before someone said "I wish I could replace the battery". It's okay to have idiosyncratic preferences (I certainly do), but people should recognize that this law wil…

If we run this experiment and most people say they wish they could replace their battery would you concede you are actually the one with idiosyncratic preferences?

Re: All phones sold in the EU to have replaceable batteries from 2027

#460

Post by fer » Mon, Apr 20, 2026, 6:11 PM UTC

concinds wrote: post #428

coda_ wrote: post #359

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Your experience is not at all what I see out there. Most people I know only get new phones because their battery will no longer get them through the day. They hate having to set up a new phone when their old one is totally fine other than the battery. For the people I know that do upgrade their phones regularly, they typically want to give their old phone to someone who would love a usable phone, but can't afford a n…

> Most people I know only get new phones because their battery will no longer get them through the day Getting the battery replaced is already trivial and cheap. Revealed preference is that most people say they want it, but don't. This won't even decrease the cost or difficulty (you'll still need a screwdriver).

But replacing a replaceable battery is trivialer and cheaperer.

I've replaced more batteries (and screens) than I can count, and it's increasingly difficult and complicated. 5 years ago or so I'd agree with you, but now there's no phone I can easily open without heat gun, controlling the air so no spec of dust land on the lenses (and a blower to remove in case it happens), and almost always I need adhesive (B7000) to patch or replace the original one to keep similar level of weather proofing. It's easy if you pay 100 bucks someone else to do it, sure.

Back in the days of my HTC Desire I could carry an extra battery, or two, in the pocket, without issue. Nowadays I'm married to a power bank that needs to be plugged for the duration.