Page 19 - Seniors Today - March Issue

but the scheme has yet to extend outside the The average Australian home has
US.
Impact on users
With the iPhone 12 — the latest iPhone
offering — Apple has made it even harder
for third-party repairers to fix the device,
thereby increasing users’ reliance on its
own services.
Apple has hiked its repair charges for
iPhone 12 by more than 40%, compared
with the iPhone 11. It is charging more than
A$359 to fix an iPhone 12 screen outside of
warranty and A$109 to replace the battery.
Historically, third-party repairers have
been a cheaper option. But using a third-
party repairer for an iPhone 12 could render
some phone features, such as the camera,
almost inoperable.
According to reports, fixing the iPhone 12’s
camera requires Apple’s proprietary system
configuration app, available only to the
company’s own authorised technicians.
It’s not just Apple, either. Samsung’s
flagship phones are also quite tricky for
third-party repairers to fix.
Impact on environment
When certain parts for repairs aren’t
available, manufacturers will produce new
phones instead, consuming more energy
and resources. In fact, manufacturing one
smartphone consumes as much energy as
using it for ten years.
As smartphones become harder to repair,
electronic waste will grow. Apple and
Samsung both cited environmental benefits
when they announced they would no longer
ship chargers with their phones.
Yet, they’ve turned a blind eye to the
environmental damage that would arise
from completely cornering the repair
market.
SENIORS TODAY | ISSUE #21 | MARCH 2021
6.7 devices, including televisions,
personal computers, laptops, tablets
and smartphones. With diminishing
opportunities for repair, the environmental
burden from disposing of these devices will
increase.
What is being done?
Phone giants make it tough for third-party
repairers to do their job in a variety of ways.
This includes constantly changing designs,
adding hurdles to the repair process, and
restricting access to parts, diagnostic
software and repair documentation.
Meanwhile, consumers are left with
broken phones and huge repair bills — and
repairers are left with less business.
The fight to remove barriers to repair is
gaining momentum outside Australia, too,
in countries including Canada, the United
Kingdom and the United States. Legislative
reforms have been introduced in the
European Union and Massachusetts.
France has introduced a Repairability
Index requiring electrical and electronic
equipment companies to inform consumers
about their products’ repairability on a
scale of one to ten.
This takes into account the ease of
With diminishing opportunities for repair, the
environmental burden from disposing of multiple devices
will increase
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