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Have you thought about the future? Have you thought about what things may be like in 20 years? I have, and there's a BIG determiner that's currently being fought out in court!
Right to repair!
What is right to repair, why hasn't it been a problem, and why is it important?
Right to repair!
What is right to repair, why hasn't it been a problem, and why is it important?
Right to repair is based around the concept of ownership of the devices you have spent your money on. As devices have become more and more advanced with integrated electronics carrying greater and greater capabilities, some companies say that this changes ownership
They argue that they own the copyright rights to the computer systems and their OSs within those devices, and it's perfectly ok for them to lock users out of those devices and force them to get said devices repaired at a dealer or authorized repair location
Many also argue that this applies to modification of the systems themselves or the physical parts of the device, since that can be twisted to fall between the cracks of existing copyright law, essentially preventing users from repairing the things they bought
So why hasn't this been a problem in the past? Well, things weren't digital many years ago! Even if a company wanted to restrict repair, they physically couldn't since fridges, cars, phones, and whatever else didn't have any way of preventing access to those parts
If a part on your car broke, you could just take it off and replace it. Boom, no issues. If you wanted to run your car with no fender, there was nothing preventing you from doing so. If you wanted to replace an OEM part with a 3rd party one, again, no problem
However, with the rise of integrated computing systems, companies have now been able to start doing this, either by locking reset commands behind a paywall, limiting access to proprietary tools, or by using deliberately nonstandard parts to make physical repair harder
A good example of this in action are with many new phones, such as iPhones. The new iPhone 12 features many non-standard screw heads, including pentalobe, tri-wing, torx, phillips, and standoff. Each of the screws are also a different length, further complicating repairs
iPhones in particular are really bad, because Apple also ties components to their phones, such as the face-ID scanner, battery, screen, earpiece, and even the camera! These parts will either not work or be limited in some way if not done by an Apple repair center
@HughJeffreys described this appalling behavior in a recent video on the iPhone 12, where nearly every component inside is now tied to the phone, and is extremely difficult/impossible to replace by the end user or by independent repair technicians
This is SERIOUSLY bad in every regard, not only for repair techs, but for users, the economy, and the environment. Repair techs will be out of a job if this trend spreads and users will be forced to pay obscene amounts of money for repair or throw away their device!
This can, and will MASSIVELY worsen the ongoing e-waste crisis we have, and at the moment, there's not a lot we can do to stop it! There's more examples of companies starting to lock users out of their devices, with more appearing by the day!
Tesla automobiles are an icon of the future, but they have had an intense and ongoing battle with right-to-repair initiatives and legislation. Only recently were they FORCED to give users access to basic software diagnostic tools by a Massachusetts law!
Tesla's argument was that it could weaken cybersecurity surrounding the car's integrated GPS, Internet connection, and other control systems, but I mean that's condescending AF lmao. If I wanna risk getting hacked then goddammit let me risk getting hacked https://electrek.co/2020/10/14/tesla-fights-right-to-repair-initiative-over-cybersecurity-concerns/
We have the ability to design parts to be easily replaced, serviced, and adapted to modern standards now, so there is no reason to let this disgusting trend exist. Companies talk about being "environmentally friendly 
", but a core part of that is making your shit repairable!
", but a core part of that is making your shit repairable!
Which do you think has a bigger impact on the environment?
Removing the charger from the phone box
or
MAKING SAID PHONE LAST FOR MORE THAN 3 YEARS
Removing the charger from the phone box
or
MAKING SAID PHONE LAST FOR MORE THAN 3 YEARS
Anyways, there's a movement for #RightToRepair going, and I'd highly recommend you take a look, contact your state representative, and tell them to stand up for this. We want to be able to fix our own shit and keep it running for as long as we can https://www.repair.org/stand-up
If we don't act and get these laws set up at a FEDERAL LEVEL ASAP, the era of disposability and corporate greed within our humble appliances, devices, cars, and god knows whatever else becomes inevitable
WOULD YOU LOOK AT THAT!! Now THIS is a phone I like! The Fairphone 3 is MODULAR and designed to be repairable, used for years, and even *upgradable* over time with STANDARDIZED components from newer phone releases. THIS is the direction we need to go in
Unfortunately, this phone compromises quite heavily on modern features, like multiple cameras, a nearly bezel-less screen, wireless charging, and in performance. The price of around 700 bucks makes this a hard sell unless they can prove that it's worth it. Still, THIS IS GOOD
