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Apple backs national right-to-repair bill, offering parts, manuals, and tools

arstechnica.com

51–60 of 165 posts

Re: Apple backs national right-to-repair bill, offering parts, manuals, and tools

#51

Cynically this could be one of those laws that the big producers like Apple have a competitive advantage over smaller companies that do one-off production runs with contract manufacturers. When you are at the scale of Apple, you could have a whole team designing your right-to-repair compliant processes, and lobbyists to ensure the law as passed is most favorable to your implementation. It also fits in nicely with App…

I hope there is some clause that exempts small manufacturers from having to comply...

if i buy a device from a startup, why should they be exempt from providing service manuals, batteries, etc, if they haven’t, say, made enough profit from the device first?

frankly, it’s the smaller players who are more likely to go under, like Vanmoof, where as the consumer i’m MORE in need of the right to repair it myself.

I’ve run into this personally with a Rapsodo golf launch monitor with a faulty battery, where i attempted to replace it myself. I couldn’t find the battery online and the company refused to sell me just the battery. They said i had to buy a new device.

Re: Apple backs national right-to-repair bill, offering parts, manuals, and tools

#52
Their approach is one aspect I like about the United States

basically what we have here is a California set of laws that they’re more okay with, and a Minnesota set of laws they dont like, so they’re using the opportunity of interest from the White House to get California’s law passed by Congress to render the Minnesota one redundant and ignorable before that one's idea spreads

What I like about the US is that you can do the same on anything, while still operating within a familiar framework in comparison to a different country

At the state level, for business if the case law in Delaware isn't your favorite, you can literally just go argue for the opposite in Wyoming. They have a chancery court too.

It still is a land of opportunity, as long as you’re willing to warp the universe of opportunities yourself.

Re: Apple backs national right-to-repair bill, offering parts, manuals, and tools

#53
post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I hope there is some clause that exempts small manufacturers from having to comply...

Wait, what? Why should Inas a consumer have fewer rights because I bought a product from a smaller company? Should small airlines have less stringent safety regulations?

Rules that vary based on company size are common.

https://blog.execustaffhr.com/legal-compliance-based-on-your...

This is mostly done to not suffocate small companies.

A bad analogy if I may, we have less expectations with kids than with adults.

Re: Apple backs national right-to-repair bill, offering parts, manuals, and tools

#54
post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I hope there is some clause that exempts small manufacturers from having to comply...

Wait, what? Why should Inas a consumer have fewer rights because I bought a product from a smaller company? Should small airlines have less stringent safety regulations?

Small airplanes only require one pilot, even operating commercially, so in some senses, yes, smaller airlines are afforded some leeway.

Re: Apple backs national right-to-repair bill, offering parts, manuals, and tools

#55

Please don't attach any morals to this because there aren't any. This is just another step in a long string of similar announcements and "actions" from Apple to gather ammo against lawsuits and new bills, delay or buy any good will they can get regarding this matter. It's appears they are convinced some meaningful part of the "Right to Repair" can't be stopped and of course as competent strategists they are, Apple ca…

Please don't attach any morals to this because there aren't any.

This is the way to think about all businesses. Even if they’ve been making your favourite products for years, never forget that they’re just here to make money.

People who attach morals, norms, and emotions to businesses are falling into the marketing trap. This is by design. Unfortunately I don’t know much of a way to get people to snap out of it other than seeing them get burned when their favourite company changes tack.

Re: Apple backs national right-to-repair bill, offering parts, manuals, and tools

#56

Cynically this could be one of those laws that the big producers like Apple have a competitive advantage over smaller companies that do one-off production runs with contract manufacturers. When you are at the scale of Apple, you could have a whole team designing your right-to-repair compliant processes, and lobbyists to ensure the law as passed is most favorable to your implementation. It also fits in nicely with App…

Although what you say isn’t wrong … Apple really can’t win. Oppose RtR. Gets criticized. Complies with RtR. Also gets criticized. LOL

>Apple really can’t win. Oppose RtR. Gets criticized. Complies with RtR. Also gets criticized. LOL

Wrong, they can just do i

- publish schematics for everyone (not only approved partners)

- publish diagnostic software for everyone

- sell repair tools and spare parts to everyone

- allow legit users to use their broken devices parts for spare parts by providing ways for the owner to transfer ownership or renounce ownership claim over the device.

- actually offer repair services instead of pretending soem small issue is unfix able and the user should buy a new device sicne repalcing the motherboard costs as much as a new device.

- admit immediately where there is an hardware problem not only after they are forced by the justice system (at least we would avoid those annoying HN Apple fanboys that were rudely accusing people with the keyboard problem that they are putting food or drink on those keyboards and claimed Apple super paid engineers would have caught any problem with their SciFi robot hands that they use to test their keyboards, no joke, so many fanboys were defending Apple in that period)

Re: Apple backs national right-to-repair bill, offering parts, manuals, and tools

#58
post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Changing the glass on the top of the screen of an iPhone SE (currently trading at 170€ on back market) costs between 90 and 110€ here in France, even if the screen itself is not broken. I hope we'll gradually see decent alternate compatible parts, with a better self-fixability.

When was the iPhone SE you are using released? How much does it cost to replace a similar part on an Android phone released the same year?

I think it is the 2020 model (but unsure, I don't have the phone with me).

For Android: I have actually asked the repair shop a few minutes ago, and the answer ranges between 50€ and 400€ depending on the actual model, because the Android market is much more diverse (EDIT: for Android phones released around the same period).

Re: Apple backs national right-to-repair bill, offering parts, manuals, and tools

#59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I hope there is some clause that exempts small manufacturers from having to comply...

Why? They should be forced to release schematics, software, and firmware if they can't handle the repairs themselves. This will allow someone to repair it without assistance from the manufacturer.

So they can invest in developing a new product, release all the software, schematics, and firmware, and have a factory in China produce a perfect knock-off in a split second?

Why develop anything new when copying someone else’s work is so much more lucrative?

IMO the core of right to repair should be more focused on preventing anti-competitive artificial barriers to repair, not forcing companies to give away their secret sauce.

Re: Apple backs national right-to-repair bill, offering parts, manuals, and tools

#60
post #46
post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[flagged]

>Question: before Apple invented airpods, how many lithium ion battery powered headphones were in landfills? Nearly zero, because folks used wired headphones. Bluetooth headphones existed prior to 2016 when the AirPods were released. Wireless headsets for phones were also very disposable. Wireless buds were also poor quality and didn't last.

[deleted]
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