Earlier quoted context omitted.
Same, really annoys me. Guess writer has a word-count target to meet and adding such fluff is an easy way to get there. Guess one could train an LLM to de-fluff articles?
I usually ask for ChatGPT for a 1000 word summary. Works quite well for getting rid of unnecessary details.
The Story of Samsung's failed deal with iFixit, as told by iFixit's CEO
51–60 of 128 posts
Re: The Story of Samsung's failed deal with iFixit, as told by iFixit's CEO
#52In my opinion, if you are going position yourself as a neutral arbiter of device repairability, it does not pass the smell test to enter into for-profit business relationships with the companies manufacturing the devices you rate. Providing consumers with information on where to find reputable companies selling repair parts would be a much more palatable alternative to selling them yourself. > “I don’t know why Samsu…
I want my advocates to have skin in the game, I assume "neutral" just means "undisclosed private agenda". Put your money on the table!
This is a very cynical take. People and organizations can be neutral with ulterior motives
Re: The Story of Samsung's failed deal with iFixit, as told by iFixit's CEO
#53I really liked the plans Samsung employees had to give old phones a new life. I have a box of mostly working phones from different companies and I often wish there was an easy way to use them for different automation tasks around the house. Anyway, I'm not surprised it didn't work. Engineers see possibilities while lawyers only think about how something goes very wrong and the company ends up in court.
It was a fantastic idea! We had the prototype software and it worked great. Take your old phone, put Docker on it, and do anything! Phones, even very old phones, are incredibly capable devices: cameras, antennas, accelerometers, large touchscreen. They just need a new purpose.
Well, the other thing I'd want from a repurposed old phone is to remove the battery. Having it glued to the screen would be a problem.
Re: The Story of Samsung's failed deal with iFixit, as told by iFixit's CEO
#54> Wiens sips a Diet Coke and settles in as I start explaining the framework of our conversation. He interrupts me politely to get a big caveat out of the way related to confidentiality terms iFixit still has with Samsung. I really struggle to read these types of interviews. If I wanted to read the novel I would buy the book… but if I’m reading an article I don’t want the fluff…
Folks agreeing with this take should take a hard look at their attention spans and ability to focus and comprehend - it’s honestly really shocking to see how many people can’t handle sitting still and reading for 10 minutes (or fewer!) straight! I should say I’ve struggled with this too, I have to be super mindful otherwise I’ll flip and skim and find myself distracted. But it is interesting there’s an embracing of t…
> Folks agreeing with this take should take a hard look at their attention spans and ability to focus and comprehend
It's not a complaint about the text being long. It's a complaint about the text being content-free.
Re: The Story of Samsung's failed deal with iFixit, as told by iFixit's CEO
#55Having owned a Z Flip that cracked I can tell you that managers at Samsung use iPhones or any other brand, because they never noticed that all the modal windows are centered in the screen directly on the fold making it difficult to see and click it when you sit the phone at 90deg.
Re: The Story of Samsung's failed deal with iFixit, as told by iFixit's CEO
#56Earlier quoted context omitted.
Well, this phone was released late 2022 so I'd be surprised to find it in a legacy list already. And indeed there was nothing in the legacy list more recent than 2020. I bought it the instant it was released so I've gotten 2 years out of it so far with just a few scratches from constantly forgetting and putting it with my keys in my pocket. I have a 2nd battery for quick swapping, but that also helps with battery lon…
In the case of that specific phone, it seems to be a bit more niche (not that I obsess over the phone industry, but this is the first time I've heard of it, and as a frequent phone shopper, I'm not sure that I've seen it offered by any of the US carriers, but again, my perspective is limited). It does seem that given the amount of effort they put into a teardown, they limit their teardowns (which is way more comprehe…
The Xcover is more of an enterprise product. It's not really interesting for consumers because the bang for the buck is low, due to the price being aimed high so that they can offer bigger discount to the enterprises buying 10k of these in one go. They aim these at front line workers, eg warehouses, public service etc.
For consumers they had the galaxy S Active line which sadly has been discontinued..
Re: The Story of Samsung's failed deal with iFixit, as told by iFixit's CEO
#57I really liked the plans Samsung employees had to give old phones a new life. I have a box of mostly working phones from different companies and I often wish there was an easy way to use them for different automation tasks around the house. Anyway, I'm not surprised it didn't work. Engineers see possibilities while lawyers only think about how something goes very wrong and the company ends up in court.
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Re: The Story of Samsung's failed deal with iFixit, as told by iFixit's CEO
#58Earlier quoted context omitted.
Well, this phone was released late 2022 so I'd be surprised to find it in a legacy list already. And indeed there was nothing in the legacy list more recent than 2020. I bought it the instant it was released so I've gotten 2 years out of it so far with just a few scratches from constantly forgetting and putting it with my keys in my pocket. I have a 2nd battery for quick swapping, but that also helps with battery lon…
In the case of that specific phone, it seems to be a bit more niche (not that I obsess over the phone industry, but this is the first time I've heard of it, and as a frequent phone shopper, I'm not sure that I've seen it offered by any of the US carriers, but again, my perspective is limited). It does seem that given the amount of effort they put into a teardown, they limit their teardowns (which is way more comprehe…
Well, they clearly report on niche phones that they feel have a decent repairability. For example they call out the Fair Phone (which is awesome, but according to wikipedia they've only sold 400k phones across all models).
It seems if they have limited resources they should focus on the most repairable models of all major phone manufacturers and tip the needle that way.
Re: The Story of Samsung's failed deal with iFixit, as told by iFixit's CEO
#59Earlier quoted context omitted.
Agreed that for-profit relationships are inappropriate, and I also think iFixit’s business selling repair tools and parts is inappropriate. The whole thing comes across as self-promotion for their tools/parts business. Add in their dabbling in lobbying for regulations to force manufacturers to make devices that you can buy ifixit (and other) kits for… and it starts to feel as disingenuous as Epic’s “pro-consumer” int…
> I also think iFixit’s business selling repair tools and parts is inappropriate. Good grief, I hope you phrased that poorly and don't actually mean what you seem to mean.
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Re: The Story of Samsung's failed deal with iFixit, as told by iFixit's CEO
#60In my opinion, if you are going position yourself as a neutral arbiter of device repairability, it does not pass the smell test to enter into for-profit business relationships with the companies manufacturing the devices you rate. Providing consumers with information on where to find reputable companies selling repair parts would be a much more palatable alternative to selling them yourself. > “I don’t know why Samsu…
I disagree. iFixit offering original OEM spare parts for the Steam Deck is amazing.
It's mutually beneficial: iFixit handles a service business that Valve would rather not be in, and customers get a more repairable product. It's also a source of revenue for iFixit that is probably more reliable than depending on advertising or selling tools.
A similar deal with Samsung or another phone maker would be amazing.