In a recent podcast, Google elaborated on its "plan to make Pixel phones and tablets easier to repair in the future." Steven Nickel, Director of Consumer Hardware Operations at Google, has been advocating for a better "right to repair" program internally, and believes that all Pixel users should be able to repair their devices on their own. To achieve this goal, he believes that reducing the amount of glue used in Pixel phones is a start.

Steven Nickel stated that Google's DIY phone repair initiative aims to allow users to replace parts like screens and cameras using only items commonly found in the kitchen.

Interestingly, Apple had similar ideas about allowing users to repair their phones earlier, and launched a DIY repair program. How should we evaluate the idea of Apple and Google allowing users to repair their phones on their own? Let's discuss this in today's Sharp Review.

Lessons from Apple's Experience

If Google's "DIY phone repair" program is still in the planning stage, Apple has already put it into practice, leading Google by a few years.

On November 17, 2021, Apple officially launched its DIY repair program, stating that it would initially apply to iPhone 12 and iPhone 13 series products. Starting in early 2022, it will first be available in the US and expand to other countries in 2022 or later. Users will have access to parts, tools, and manuals for iPhone displays, batteries, and cameras, just like over 5,000 Apple Authorized Service Providers (AASP) and 2,800 independent repair service providers.

On August 23, 2022, Apple announced that its DIY repair program would expand to MacBook Air and MacBook Pro models with M1 series chips.

Regarding the target audience for the DIY repair program, Apple explained that it is suitable for technicians with knowledge and experience in repairing electronic devices. For most users, the safest and most reliable way to obtain repair services is still to visit a professional repair service provider and have the device repaired by certified technicians using original Apple parts.

Similarities and Differences

What are the similarities and differences between Google's DIY repair program and Apple's? Let's start with the similarities. Both are aimed at consumers who have purchased their products.

Now, let's talk about the differences. According to Steven Nickel, Google's DIY repair program is aimed at a wider audience, namely the general public. As long as a user is physically able, they can execute Google's DIY repair program.

If ordinary users can repair their phones on their own, street-side repair stalls and after-sales repair shops in shopping malls will lose their purpose and likely go out of business in large numbers.

Apple's DIY repair program, on the other hand, is not as universal as Google's. It has much higher requirements for users. Firstly, they need to be hands-on and have repair experience. In other words, Apple's DIY repair program is suitable for users who have excellent hands-on skills and frequently dismantle and assemble electronic products.

As long as this type of user obtains the official parts and repair tools of Apple products, they can instantly become "off the shelf" Apple product repair personnel.

In this comparison, one cannot help but feel that Google's self-service repair plan is more user-friendly, but when it can be put into practice is a big question mark; And Apple's self repair plan is only applicable to a small number of users, easy to implement, and will not have an impact on the existing electronic device repair system.

The advantages and disadvantages of self-service maintenance

If Apple and Google's self repair plans can be widely promoted, what are the advantages and disadvantages of self repair for users?

Firstly, let's talk about the positive side. When users are able to self repair their phones, there are really too many benefits. For example, to avoid being scammed by unscrupulous merchants, some users take advantage of convenience and directly hand over their mobile phone products to small shops on the street for repair. As a result, the original parts are replaced with third-party inferior parts, and labor costs are added, making the user a scapegoat and being scammed by unscrupulous merchants.

For example, saving time and peace of mind, if users go to the official designated after-sales service center to repair their phones, and encounter staff who are too busy to come over, they will need to wait for a long time, ranging from a few hours to several weeks, which is a waste of time. Furthermore, there is a privacy breach issue when sending mobile phones for repair. When Edison Chen sent his computer for repair, it was exposed that the "photo scandal" caused a sensation.

On the other hand, the downside is that without diamond, one cannot engage in porcelain work. Users need to self repair their phones on the premise of having specific repair tools, which require purchase and is a significant cost for users.

Taking Apple as an example, earlier media statistics showed that among the nine self repair models supported by Apple's iPhone 12 series, iPhone 13 series, and third-generation iPhone SE, the official provided 17 tools. After selecting all of them, the total price was $1054.51, approximately RMB 7634.

These seven thousand yuan is just the price of the tool, and if we include the official replacement parts, the price is even higher than going to an Apple store for repairs. Not to mention the screen adhesive and screws that almost every component repair requires.

If you are not a maintenance professional, the frequency of using the tools purchased for self repair is not high, and they also take up space.

Moreover, maintenance is a technical task, and users do not have the ability to repair it themselves. Forcing self repair will only cause damage to the product and even pose safety hazards if not properly handled.

Write at the end

It is worth mentioning that although Apple has launched a self repair program since 2021, the company has also imposed a restriction on users to repair their phones themselves - they must use official parts provided by Apple, otherwise anyone with the ability to repair Apple's products will be "scrap metal".

On February 8, 2024, the Oregon State Legislature proposed a new bill aimed at restricting the practice of encrypting accessories. The bill requires original equipment manufacturers not to restrict users from choosing third-party repair services or using non original parts for repairs through "part pairing", nor to reduce equipment performance through this means, nor to display misleading information.

Apple has expressed opposition to this, and John Perry, senior manager of Apple's security design team, stated that Apple's use of component pairing is to "make maintenance more convenient" while ensuring that devices and their data are "kept safe.".

Assuming that Apple detects user self repair and the use of parts that have not been verified by Apple, the related functions will not function properly. For example, once Apple detects that a user's device is using a "non genuine" screen, they will restrict features such as Face ID.

The accessories certified by Apple are very expensive. Just a 60W USB-C charging cable sells for 145 yuan, not to mention those officially designated self repair parts, and they do not allow buying cheap third-party parts. Apple is expected to make a big profit through self repair.

Apple has turned self-service repair into a business, and I wonder if Google's self-service repair, which has not yet been implemented, is also like that? Only time can give the answer.