Repairability

Last updated
The creation of products that can be repaired, and reduce prices for sustainable products is widely supported by European, American and Chinese respondents in the 2020-21 European Investment Bank Climate Survey. Create products that can be repaired, and reduce prices for sustainable products. More specifically, concerning sustainable consumption, which two actions should be prioritised to fight climate change and damage to the environment..svg
The creation of products that can be repaired, and reduce prices for sustainable products is widely supported by European, American and Chinese respondents in the 2020–21 European Investment Bank Climate Survey.

Repairability is a measure of the degree to and ease with which a product can be repaired and maintained, usually by end consumers. Repairable products are put in contrast to obsolescence or products designed with planned obsolescence.

Contents

Some private organizations and companies, mostly affiliated with the right to repair movement, assign repairability scores to products as a way of communicating to consumers how easily repairable the product is.

French Repairability index

Since 2021, some (few kind like Smartphones, Laptops, Televisions, Washing machines, Lawnmowers) electronic devices sold in France have been required to report a repairability index (French : Indice de réparabilité) which rates how repairable a product is on a scale from 0 to 10, primarily to prevent corporate greenwashing and encourage environmental transparency. [1] Products are evaluated on 5 key areas: documentation, disassembly, spare parts availability, spare part pricing, and product specifics. [2]

Limitations

The repairability index scoring process is not bulletproof, though—manufacturers currently self-report their indices to regulatory bodies with little to no government oversight ensuring the index was properly calculated. [3] For example, smartphone and laptop manufacturers can obtain an extra point on the index just by providing consumers with information regarding security or software updates.

Effects

Since France's recently enacted legislation requiring repairability indices, some positive effects have materialized. For instance, Samsung now offers consumers a free online repair manual for its Galaxy S21+ in an attempt to boost its repairability index. [4] The enforcement of French repairability index laws pushed Samsung to release this manual, something consumers had been requesting for a long time; in contrast, there is no English repair manual for American consumers, as U.S. legislation doesn't incentivize Samsung to release such a manual. [4] This french legislation has applied pressure to tech corporations to increase the repairability of their products and transition to a far more circular economy. [1]

Notable Score

Apple's iPhone 12 models scored a 6.0 and its iPhone 11 models scored a 4.5 out of 10 on the repairability index scale; the 2021 MacBook Air scored a 6.5 and the 2021 MacBook Pro scored a 5.6 on the scale. [4] Google's Pixel 4a scored a 6.3. [4] So far, the average repairability score has hovered around 5.4 out of 10. [5]

See also

Related Research Articles

iBook Series of laptops by Apple Computer

iBook is a line of laptop computers designed, manufactured, and sold by Apple Computer from 1999 to 2006. The line targeted entry-level, consumer and education markets, with lower specifications and prices than the PowerBook, Apple's higher-end line of laptop computers. It was the first mass consumer product to offer Wi-Fi network connectivity, which was then branded by Apple as AirPort.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Smartphone</span> Handheld mobile device

A smartphone is a mobile device that combines the functionality of a traditional mobile phone with advanced computing capabilities. It typically has a touchscreen interface, allowing users to access a wide range of applications and services, such as web browsing, email, and social media, as well as multimedia playback and streaming. Smartphones have built-in cameras, GPS navigation, and support for various communication methods, including voice calls, text messaging, and internet-based messaging apps.

In economics and industrial design, planned obsolescence is the concept of policies planning or designing a product with an artificially limited useful life or a purposely frail design, so that it becomes obsolete after a certain pre-determined period of time upon which it decrementally functions or suddenly ceases to function, or might be perceived as unfashionable. The rationale behind this strategy is to generate long-term sales volume by reducing the time between repeat purchases. It is the deliberate shortening of the lifespan of a product to force people to purchase functional replacements.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Electronic waste recycling</span> Form of recycling

Electronic waste recycling, electronics recycling, or e-waste recycling is the disassembly and separation of components and raw materials of waste electronics; when referring to specific types of e-waste, the terms like computer recycling or mobile phone recycling may be used. Like other waste streams, reuse, donation, and repair are common sustainable ways to dispose of IT waste.

iPhone Line of smartphones by Apple Inc.

The iPhone is a line of smartphones produced by Apple Inc. that use Apple's own iOS mobile operating system. The first-generation iPhone was announced by then–Apple CEO Steve Jobs on January 9, 2007. Since then, Apple has annually released new iPhone models and iOS updates. As of November 1, 2018, more than 2.2 billion iPhones had been sold.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Display aspect ratio</span> Ratio between a displays width and height

The display aspect ratio (or DAR) is the aspect ratio of a display device and so the proportional relationship between the physical width and the height of the display. It is expressed as two numbers separated by a colon (x:y), where x corresponds to the width and y to the height. Common aspect ratios for displays, past and present, include 5:4, 4:3, 16:10, and 16:9.

iFixit is an American e-commerce and how-to website that sells repair parts and publishes free wiki-like online repair guides for consumer electronics and gadgets. The company also performs product tear-downs of consumer devices. It is a private company in San Luis Obispo, California founded in 2003, spurred by Kyle Wiens not being able to locate an Apple iBook G3 repair manual while the company's founders were attending Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.

IEEE 802.11ac-2013 or 802.11ac is a wireless networking standard in the IEEE 802.11 set of protocols, providing high-throughput wireless local area networks (WLANs) on the 5 GHz band. The standard has been retroactively labelled as Wi-Fi 5 by Wi-Fi Alliance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Phablet</span> Electronic device with features of both a smartphone and a tablet

A phablet is a mobile device combining or straddling the size formats of smartphones and tablets. The word is a portmanteau of phone and tablet. The term is largely obsolete by the late 2010s, since average smartphone sizes eventually morphed into small tablet sizes, up to 6.9 inches, with wider aspect ratios.

The Samsung SGH-T669 is a 3G-capable smartphone manufactured by Samsung. In the US it is also called the Samsung Gravity T; in Canada, the Samsung Gravity Touch.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Modular smartphone</span> Smartphone made of replaceable parts

A modular smartphone is a smartphone designed for users to upgrade or replace components and modules without the need for resoldering or repair services. The most important component is the main board, to which others such as cameras and batteries are attached. Components can be obtained from open-source hardware stores.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Samsung Electronics</span> South Korean multinational electronics corporation

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. is a South Korean multinational major appliance and consumer electronics corporation headquartered in Yeongtong-gu, Suwon, South Korea. It is currently the pinnacle of the Samsung chaebol, accounting for 70% of the group's revenue in 2012.

Electronics right to repair is proposed legislation that would provide the practical means for electronics equipment owners to repair their devices. Repair is legal under copyright law and patent law. However, owners and independent technicians are often unable to make their own repairs because of manufacturer limitations on access to repair materials such as parts, tools, diagnostics, documentation and firmware.

iPhone XS 2018 twelfth-generation high-end smartphone produced by Apple Inc.

The iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max are smartphones designed, developed and marketed by Apple Inc. They are the twelfth-generation flagships of the iPhone, succeeding the iPhone X. Apple CEO Tim Cook announced the devices alongside a lower-end model, the iPhone XR, on September 12, 2018, at the Steve Jobs Theater at Apple Park. Pre-orders began on September 14, 2018, and the devices went on sale on September 21. As of March 2024, the iPhone XS is the oldest iPhone model officially capable of running iOS 17, the current version of iOS.

iPhone 11 Pro Thirteenth-generation Apple smartphone

The iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max are smartphones designed, developed and marketed by Apple Inc. Serving as Apple's flagship models of the 13th generation of iPhones, they succeeded the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max, respectively, upon their release. Apple CEO Tim Cook unveiled the devices alongside the standard model, the iPhone 11, on September 10, 2019 at the Steve Jobs Theater at Apple Park. Pre-orders began on September 13, 2019, and the phones went on sale on September 20. They were discontinued on October 13, 2020, following the announcement of the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Samsung Galaxy Z Flip</span> Foldable Android smartphone by Samsung

The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip is an Android-based foldable smartphone developed by Samsung Electronics as part of the Samsung Galaxy Z series. Its existence was first revealed in an advertisement during the 2020 Academy Awards. Unveiled alongside the Galaxy S20 on February 11, 2020, it was released on February 14, 2020. Unlike the Galaxy Z Fold, the device folds horizontally and uses a hybrid glass coating branded as "Infinity Flex Display". It is available in three colors for the LTE version and two colors for the 5G version. The 5G version was also made available in a limited-edition "Mystic White" color.

iPhone 12 14th-generation smartphone produced by Apple Inc.

The iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Mini are smartphones designed, developed, and marketed by Apple Inc. They are the fourteenth-generation iPhones, succeeding the iPhone 11. They were unveiled at a virtually held Apple Special Event at Apple Park in Cupertino, California, on October 13, 2020, alongside the "premium flagship" iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max and HomePod Mini. Pre-orders for the iPhone 12 started on October 16, 2020, and the phone was released in most countries on October 23, 2020 alongside the iPhone 12 Pro and fourth-generation iPad Air. Pre-orders for the iPhone 12 Mini began on November 6, 2020, and the phone was released on November 13, 2020, alongside the iPhone 12 Pro Max.

iPhone 12 Pro 14th-generation smartphone produced by Apple Inc.

The iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max are smartphones designed, developed, and marketed by Apple Inc. They are the flagship smartphones in the fourteenth generation of the iPhone, succeeding the iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max, respectively. They were unveiled alongside the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Mini at an Apple Special Event at Apple Park in Cupertino, California on October 13, 2020, with the iPhone 12 Pro being released on October 23, 2020, and the iPhone 12 Pro Max on November 13, 2020. They were discontinued on September 14, 2021, along with the iPhone XR, following the announcement of the iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 Pro.

Right to repair is a legal right for owners of devices and equipment to freely modify and repair products such as automobiles, electronics, and farm equipment. This right is framed in opposition to restrictions such as requirements to use only the manufacturer's maintenance services, restrictions on access to tools and components, and software barriers.

iPhone 13 15th-generation smartphone by Apple Inc.

The iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 Mini are smartphones designed, developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. They are the fifteenth generation of iPhones. They were unveiled at an Apple Event in Apple Park in Cupertino, California, on September 14, 2021, alongside the higher-priced iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max flagships. Pre-orders for the iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 Mini began on September 17, 2021. They were officially released on September 24, 2021. As of March 2024, the iPhone 13 is the oldest iPhone model still officially sold by, and fully supported by Apple.

References

  1. 1 2 "The French repair index: challenges and opportunities". repair.eu. 3 February 2021. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
  2. ↑ "Repairability Index for France". support.microsoft.com. Retrieved 2022-04-22.
  3. ↑ Stone, Maddie. "Why France's New Tech 'Repairability Index' Is a Big Deal". Wired. ISSN   1059-1028 . Retrieved 2022-04-22.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Apple Is Using France's New Repairability Scoring—Here's How It Works | iFixit News". iFixit. 2022-04-22. Retrieved 2022-04-22.
  5. ↑ "Why France's new 'repairability index' is a big deal". Grist. 2021-02-08. Retrieved 2022-04-22.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.