The Week in Repair: Dec 20-27
Hospitals battle repair and service monopoly on surgical robots. Apple iOS update fixes FaceID repair trap. The “techlash” may be working. Also: why that guy blew up his Tesla with dynamite.
Man sees Repair Estimate. Blows Up His Tesla In Protest
Tuomas Katainen, a Finland-based man, blew his Tesla up using 30kgs of dynamite upon receiving the company’s sky-high estimate for engine repair. An effigy of Elon Musk was strapped to the front seat and blown up with the car. The owner of the 2013 Tesla Model S, Katainen was unsatisfied with the company’s customer service and expressed his disappointment in quite an unusual way. He started facing issues in the instrument cluster and its repair cost was coming out to be around €20,000 and without any guarantee. (YouTube.com)
Hospitals are taking on a surgical robot "monopoly"
Several hospitals have mounted a legal battle against the company that makes the da Vinci surgical robot, alleging its monopoly position forces hospitals to buy its maintenance services and replacement parts at inflated prices even though cheaper options exist. Driving the news: In one allegation, a hospital says Intuitive Surgical remotely shut down a hospital's surgical robot "in the middle of a procedure" which forced the surgeon "to convert the procedure to open surgery with the patient on the operating table," after the hospital said it was considering a service contract with a third party. (Axios.com)
iOS 15.2 Fixes iPhone 13’s Face ID Repair Trap (and Improves Its Repair Score)
We can’t really say whether iOS 15.2 “fixes” this issue, or “corrects” it, or “undoes” it, because Apple won’t say whether its imperilment of the phone repair industry was a bug, a design decision, or an experiment (and) there’s no mention of Face ID function or repairs in the official iOS 15.2 release notes. Whatever its origin, it only took five days after our report for Apple to acknowledge it was a problem. That’s not a common occurrence with a nearly $3 trillion company. That makes this a quietly huge decimal-point software update. It’s significant enough that we’ve updated our repairability score for the iPhone 13 line, adding a point to make it 6 out of 10, back in line with most recent iPhones. (iFixit.com)
In Maine: More Devices than ever. But Nobody knows where They end up.
Mainers are generating more electronic waste than ever. And no one knows what percentage of that waste is sent for recycling. That’s a problem. Without understanding what’s available to be recycled, Maine does not know how successful its program is at diverting products from landfills, where discarded electronic devices can leach toxins. The state has no idea whether a drop in e-waste collection over the past six years is due primarily to lighter devices, fewer devices being collected for recycling — or both. (penbaypilot.com)
Podcast: Fixing at Rhino Camp Refugee Settlement
In this podcast, The Restart Project spoke to Mathew Lubari, a repairer from the Rhino Camp Refugee Settlement. Lubari is the founder and a team leader at CC4D, an environmental initiative promoting repair skills. Lubari first got interested in repair by watching his father and then while at university in Uganda, but when he had to flee his home of South Sudan, repair took on a whole new role in his life. (therestartproject.org)
Poll shows GOP Voters More Likely to support Anti-Trust Laws
There is a bipartisan consensus among voters in Republican-heavy Iowa to update legislation to hold tech companies accountable. However, in a bit of a twist, more Republicans than Democrats back measures curbing abuses of power by large technology firms and strengthening laws to keep markets competitive, according to the results of a poll by Data For Progress shared exclusively with the Daily Caller News Foundation. For example, 87% of Republicans say they at least somewhat support the American Innovation and Choice Online (AICO) Act, introduced by Iowa Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley and Minnesota Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar, compared to 65% of Democrats. (DailyCaller.com)
Consumers to make Sustainability a Business Imperative in 2022
Consumers increasingly factor sustainability into their online and offline purchasing decisions. They’re paying attention to the sellers’ ethical practices, whether products or their components are sustainably sourced, and if they have eco-friendly product packaging (size, material, and recyclability) and delivery (vehicle and location options). (emarketer.com)
Right to Repair Law Gives New Car Buyers Choice on Service in South Africa
Service or maintenance plans have been part of the purchase price of most new cars sold in SA in recent years. The Right to Repair campaign successfully lobbied to have these plans unbundled from car prices to give consumers the choice of servicing their vehicles at independent service providers (ISPs) at a potentially cheaper cost. “Ford is acutely aware of consumers’ growing desire and right to choose where they wish to service, maintain or repair their vehicles,” said Neale Hill, president Ford Motor Company Africa (timeslive.co.za)
Right to repair one of 26 good news stories from 2021
The movement to make electronic goods easier to repair advanced in 2021. The EU led the way, introducing pioneering right to repair legislation in March. It obliges makers of washing machines, televisions and other electronic goods to ensure that their products can be easily repaired – and that spare parts are available. The UK followed suit in July with its own right to repair law. Meanwhile, Apple bowed to pressure and agreed to make parts and tools available for people to fix their own phones. (For some models only, mind). All of which could be good news for the economy. A report in August estimated that 450,000 jobs could be supported by the repair industry in the UK alone. (Positive.News)
Apple’s pledge to let consumers repair their own gadgets doesn’t go far enough
While the winds are blowing increasingly in the direction of repair, Apple’s Self Service Repair program might not be as altruistic as it seems. Taken at their worst, these commitments may be little more than “repair-washing” – an attempt to shape the narrative around repair and technology manufacturers that is increasingly becoming a public relations liability for these companies. It remains to be seen whether the commitments will meaningfully address the economic, environmental and social costs of un-repairability. (corporateknights.com)
Right-to-repair deserves attention
The Progressive Conservative government continues to be silent on the consumer right to repair. While the U.S. federal government and 50 state governments have all begun their right to repair journeys, following Europe’s example, Canada and our provincial government remain asleep at the switch, and consumers and a sustainable economy will be the worse for it. (WinnipegFreePress.com)
Massachusetts lawmakers need to ensure we should have a right to repair what we buy
For years, Apple has monopolized product repair by withholding the parts and tools that customers and independent repair shops need to fix broken products. That’s finally changing. Now, it’s time for lawmakers to ensure that all Americans have the right to repair not just their phones, but anything they buy and own. (Wickedlocal.com)
Two more embarrassing AAPL shareholder proposals will be put to vote following SEC rulings
Apple had originally faced a fourth proposal, calling for it to be more supportive of the right to repair. In this case, the company gave in and changed its stance after facing mounting pressure (including from Apple cofounder Steve Wozniak), and those behind the proposal declared themselves satisfied, withdrawing it. (9to5mac.com)
Opinion: Maybe the Techlash is working!
Apple isn’t the only company that has made changes as a result of Right to Repair campaigns. Microsoft agreed to release more parts and service information publicly and has redesigned its products to be easier to fix. Google has made phone repair software for Pixel 6 publicly available. These companies opposed Right to Repair efforts for years, so clearly these actions are not out of the goodness of their hearts. In every state where we press for repair-friendly reforms, we run into a cavalcade of opposition lobbyists. I calculated that $10.7 trillion worth of companies, including each of the “Big 5,” have taken part in the fight against Right to Repair reforms. (Slate.com)
The 2021 PIRG naughty or nice list: We’ve made a list and checked it twice
Joe Biden, McDonalds and the Framework laptop made it onto the “nice” list. Read US PIRG’s list of which decision makers have stepped up and prioritized our health, safety, and well-being this year and which are getting coal in their stockings?(uspirg.org)
Smart phones contribute 12% to global e-waste
Smartphones contribute to 12% of global e-waste, and that figure will continue to rise unless measures are taken to counter it, according to research report by Counterpoint. It estimated that smartphone production alone contributes 80-90% of carbon emissions by the device. A mobile phone has over 60 different metals, including rare earth metals that can contaminate soil and water if not disposed properly. (TheHindu.com)
A growing Right to Repair movement
The information technology asset disposition (ITAD) industry is growing, just like the e-scrap it seeks to refurbish or recycle. More than 53.6 million tons of e-scrap were generated internationally in 2019 and 17.4 percent of that was recycled, according to the United Nations.However, those numbers could change in the future as the right-to-repair movement, which encourages consumers to fix their own devices, continues to grow in the United States. The movement has become so popular that state and federal lawmakers and some original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) support it.
“People should have access to the tools, information and parts needed to repair their devices,” says Kyle Wiens, CEO of iFixit, an ITAD support company for people looking to repair their own devices. “Back in the day, that used to be normal. If you bought a television, you could go to a shop or repair it yourself." (Recyclingtoday.com)
Ending corporate America’s coercive contracts
Currently, the law heavily favors the enforcement of contractual obligations and allows those with vast amounts of wealth and market power to exploit, extend, and enhance their position. But public policy surrounding contracts can, and should, change. (Democracyjournal.org)
WSJ: tech that will change your life in 2022
Sustainability also means holding on to the same devices longer. “The real problem is that the industry develops products with very short life time, that are hard to repair and that go to landfills,” said Magali Delmas, professor of management at the University of California, Los Angeles.
Device makers are attempting to address that, too. Apple is launching a self-service repair program in early 2022 to allow customers and independent technicians to repair devices using genuine Apple parts, a move Right to Repair advocates long lobbied for. And Dell recently showed off Luna, a concept laptop with fewer screws and no fan for maximum repairability.(wsj.com)
My favorite laptop of the year was completely unexpected
For me, the most exciting thing that happened in the world of laptops this year was the debut of the Framework Laptop. In our Framework Laptop review we called it the anti-MacBook, and with good reason: the Framework is designed from the ground up to be customizable and repairable, the antithesis of Apple’s MacBooks with their soldered-on components and chassis intentionally designed to be hard to open. (tomsguide.com)
Best and worst tech moments of 2021
In a world that’s increasingly concerned with e-waste and the environmental impact of upgrading your phone every year, the right to repair movement seeks to give users the ability to service their own tech without having to go through convoluted channels set up by manufacturers. And in 2021, the movement got a real boost.
New laws passed in the UK and the EU that enforce certain manufacturers to make spare parts available for their products, and for the repair and replacement process to be easily understood by the general public.
This doesn’t apply to all pieces of tech, with the law focusing mostly on white goods, but it didn’t stop other companies from getting in on the action early.
Apple announced a new ‘Self Service Repair‘ program, wherein customers can order the tools they need from Apple to fix their iPhone 12 or 13 themselves. That’s a huge step in the right direction and we only hope that more companies continue to follow suit into the New Year. (trustedreviews.com)
Will one repairable laptop change the world?
This year, the company Framework designed a laptop that is easy to repair and upgrade. The potential of this laptop to change our understanding of upgrading, repairability and portability should not be underestimated. Its design brings me back to the days during the beginning of the home computer revolution, where expanding the functionality of the device was the center piece of every product, not a forethought, like many devices are today. Framework is the first company, that I know of, that could be in a position to change the upgrade and discard landscape. The fact that this particular laptop even exists cuts through the lies and puts to shame Apple’s argument that from a security and reliability perspective, it’s not a good idea to make devices more repairable. (scottrlarson.com)
Is Apple making the same mistakes as Nokia?
The American multinational Apple, founded by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne, is the second most valuable company in the world after Microsoft. But the tech giant is making the same mistakes as Finnish telecommunications and information technology company Nokia. Slowed sales, controversy, and a lack of innovation could push Apple into decline.(fiorreports.com)
Other Repair News...
Tech policy storylines to watch in 2022 (dot.la)
Fairphone will never make a flagship phone (and that’s OK) (makeuseof.com)
Why companies and governments need to focus on e-waste management (digitalinformationworld.com)
Microsoft moves towards supporting the Right to Repair Surface devices by teaming up with iFixit (PatentlyApple.com)
The Hackers Podcast Episode #10: Biella discovers why simply repairing your own device may make you a hacker. (bbc.co.uk)
Repair or Despair: Right to Repair and the Law (4freecle.blogspot.com)
With a Repair score of 1 out of 10, there’s no fixing that Surface Tablet that Tom Brady smashed (YouTube)