Buy a desktop computer and you can probably keep using it for a decade or longer because if anything breaks or needs to be upgraded you can probably open the case and make the changes yourself.

Things are little different with most modern smartphones and tablets, and many laptops. If a component breaks, there’s a good chance you won’t be able to fix it yourself.

Case in point: online repair shop iFixit recently gave the new Microsoft Surface Laptop a repairability score of 0 out of 10 since the CPU, memory, and storage cannot be upgraded, it’s dangerous to replace the battery, and it’s hard to even open the case without breaking the laptop.

But European officials may be taking steps to reverse the trend of non-repairability.

Samsung Galaxy S8 teardown (iFixit)

This week the European Parliament issued recommendations for “making consumer products more durable and easier to repair.” Right now these are just recommendations, and include a request to create a voluntary label that could be affixed to products that meet the recommendations.

But the European Commission could vote on the guidelines in the future, turning them into law.

Among other things, the recommendations include:

  • Essential components including batteries and LEDs should be removable unless there’s a safety reason for them to be fixed to the product. It’s not clear that this means you should be able to pop out a battery on the fly, but at the very least once you open the case you should be able to replace a defective battery.
  • Device makers should make spare parts available.
  • Device owners should be able to get their products fixed by an independent repairer.
  • European Union member states should provide incentives for device makers to create durable, repairable products.

Overall, if member countries adopt these rules we could see longer product lifetimes for consumer electronics, a more robust market for repair shops and second-hand sales, and a reduction in e-waste.

It’s unlikely that the US would adopt these rules anytime soon, if they have an impact on the design of products sold in Europe that could change the way device makers design products sold around the world… even in the US, China, India, and other large markets that haven’t adopted right-to-repair regulations.

On the other hand, maybe people will decide planned obsolescence isn’t such a bad thing after all. I’m sure there are some folks who normally replace their smartphones every year or two who would hold onto them longer if they were easier to repair. But when Apple or Samsung unveil a new model with better specs or a sleeker design comes out, I suspect there will still plenty of demand.

These days, upgrading to a new phone is only partially about functionality: it’s also about fashion.

via Motherboard

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7 replies on “Europe considers rules requiring gadgets to be repairable”

  1. I have to wonder if Europe is just out to piss off any tech company that isn’t European.

    1. To some extent, yes, that is the case, as has been claimed by many since the big Google fine. Not that I blame them, necessarily. Pissing off companies solely motivated by profit, IMHO, can be a good thing.

  2. It is a shame that this type of (potential) law would never to considered in the USA. It is too pro-consumer. Hopefully we will reap some of the benefits if the EU does in fact make this law.

  3. If a cellphone oem would market a phone with a guarantee of inexpensive replaceable parts (screen & battery), you would think that customers would choose that product over others.

    1. I don’t understand how their trying to say that they need to make the battery non-replaceable in order to maintain water proofing.. Kyocera managed to make their batteries replaceable, and maintain water proofing just fine..

    2. With Apple charging $150 for screen and $80 for battery, they appear to be the most reasonable oem. It looks like they already might comply to this EU regulation. Now if they would only charge less for the phone and allow all the apps that I like…

  4. I think there should be a clause about ingress support (dust/water resistance).
    That if a device with an IP68 rating is serviceable/serviced by a third-party for the Battery or Screen… the IP-rating should be forfeited. That way OEMs have zero excuses to not sell devices that are serviceable.

    The watch industry has an understanding a kin to this, and its very sensible when it comes to servicing the watch by third-party watchmakers. They even have experts you can take your watch to after repairs, to restore the watch’s ATM resistance.

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