Repairing a cell phone costs two thousand yuan, while buying a new one costs six thousand yuan. Why are official repairs so expensive?

Some time ago, I was walking on the street and sending messages to a friend. My hand slipped and the screen broke into several cracks .

While I was distressed, several solutions quickly came to my mind:

1. Find official repair

2. Go to a small shop for repairs

3. Take advantage of the Double Eleven shopping spree to buy a new phone

4. Forget it, just use it for now, and change it if it doesn't work

Broken screens are a common problem, but they are not necessarily easy to repair | Pexels

For my phone model, the official screen replacement service costs more than 2,000 yuan . In contrast, third-party repairs only cost a few hundred yuan, but the reviews are mixed. There are also many people who say that if the third-party repair breaks it, they will spend more money to get the official repair.

The high repair costs are a win-win for the merchants. If you choose to "replace without repair", the merchants can still sell you a new phone. Consumers pay for it, but also get a pile of electronic waste , which makes people want to ask one question: Is it so difficult to repair a mobile phone? Why is it so expensive?

Why are official repairs so expensive?

People born in the 1980s and 1990s may still remember the popular mobile phones around the millennium: the batteries were generally removable , and many people would carry a spare battery with them; the LCD screen could only play simple games such as pinball, but it was not easy to break...

The universal charger that was common in childhood, you can charge your phone by just pulling out the battery｜dacota.tw

Later, as Jobs' design style and smart phone technology took over the market, today's mobile phones have become more and more similar in appearance, all with large screens and integrated designs.

In many ways, the integrated design does bring a better user experience .

Today's mobile phones are thin and light, with many styles . This is not only because of the advancement of chip technology, but also because the internal parts of the mobile phone are fixed with glue instead of screws, slots and interfaces that are easy to disassemble, which saves a lot of space. The mobile phone case can no longer be disassembled as easily as before, but it is also better at preventing dust, shock and water .

Not only mobile phones, but also laptops, tablets and other devices are increasingly adopting integrated designs | Pixabay

On the other hand, the integrated design also makes it more difficult to repair the product . The various components are tightly integrated and embedded inside the phone, so if you want to repair it, you have to disassemble most of the phone; glue and adhesives also increase the difficulty of disassembly and repair, and self-disassembly may damage the components.

As a result, if a mobile phone has a minor problem, consumers have to rely more on the repair service provided by the merchant. Merchants use high repair service prices to stimulate consumers to purchase additional maintenance plans or buy more new products.

What does a mobile phone that is easy to repair and saves money look like?

It is possible to make mobile phones more repairable, but manufacturers do not do so. This is a form of planned obsolescence .

It is estimated that in 2022, about 5.3 billion mobile phones will be scrapped worldwide, and only a small portion of them will be properly recycled. The rest of the mobile phones will either be mixed into ordinary garbage, polluting the environment, or just lie in people's drawers and gather dust.

Only 17% of e-waste worldwide is properly recycled | Pixabay

To reduce the environmental impact of e-waste, it is necessary not only to improve recycling and processing channels, but also to improve the repairability of products , that is, to make electronic products easier to repair through unofficial channels at a reasonable price.

For consumers, when products are easy to repair, inexpensive, and quick to repair, you are more likely to continue to use your old phone and extend its lifespan . This not only saves money , but also reduces the generation of electronic waste .

Specifically, the repairability of mobile phones and other electronic products can be summarized into three aspects:

1. The equipment can be repaired with cheap and common tools ;

2. Easy to disassemble and assemble repeatedly without damage;

3. Important parts are easily accessible , including those most critical to product operation and those most likely to require repair.

Comparing these three aspects, we can find that:

Several phones from vivo, Meizu, and Huawei also scored 7 points, and Xiaomi's Redmi Note 3 scored 8 points. And the phone that scored a full 10 points is one you may not have heard of, and that is Fairphone .

1. Many mobile phones use specially designed screws that can only be disassembled with specialized equipment ;

2. Electronic components fixed with glue are difficult to disassemble and install repeatedly;

3. If you are not an electronics enthusiast, it is difficult for ordinary consumers to understand the various components in a mobile phone , let alone where to buy it.

Based on these criteria, the iFixit website scored the repairability of multiple mobile phones with a maximum score of 10.

Among them, the first generation iPhone released in 2007 only scored 2 points because its back cover was easily damaged during the opening process, and the battery was fixed with welding, making it difficult to replace.

Newer models have improved their scores, with the highest-scoring Apple phone currently being the iPhone 14 Plus , which scored a 7. Replacing screens and batteries has become easier, but proprietary screws and parts still pose some inconveniences for repairs.

Cell phones with replaceable batteries are coming back!

Fairphone means "fair phone". This company was founded in the Netherlands and is committed to reducing the environmental impact of mobile phone production and consumption . One of its measures is to use standard parts and detachable design to make mobile phone repairs easier and more convenient. Although Fairphone's market share is not large, more and more manufacturers will adopt the same concept under the impetus of the repair right movement in Europe and the United States.

The right to repair refers to the right of consumers to repair their own products or to choose a third party other than the manufacturer to repair them . If the design of the mobile phone itself becomes easier to repair, consumers can also use the same mobile phone for a longer time, saving money and protecting the environment.

Thanks to the efforts of some groups, the European Parliament passed a regulation in October last year requiring mobile phone manufacturers to uniformly adopt USB-C interfaces to achieve compatibility between mobile phones and charging cables. This regulation will officially take effect next year. Recently, the EU passed a new regulation requiring mobile phones, game controllers and other electronic products to adopt replaceable battery designs , which will take effect in 2027.

Apple previously opposed the right to repair bill because its AppleCare warranty program also brought in good revenue. As Apple pays more and more attention to environmental protection, it has turned to support the right to repair in the past two years, such as allowing consumers to rent tools to repair their phones and buy device parts .

However, renting a complete set of repair tools costs $49, and people who don’t have hands-on skills may break the repair…｜apple.com

Likewise, big companies like Microsoft have begun offering accessories and tools to help repair devices, and have partnered with repair guide site iFixit. Repairing products instead of replacing them can significantly reduce waste and carbon emissions.

Extend equipment life

For many consumers, the right to repair is not just about allowing electronics enthusiasts to repair their own phones, but about allowing manufacturers to design phones that are easier to repair and reduce the difficulty of repair , so that consumers don't have to spend too much money to get their phones repaired.

Extending the life of electronic devices is good for consumers’ wallets and the planet . Now, we can also develop some good usage habits to make the mobile phones on hand last longer. Some feasible practices include:

1. Cherish your belongings and configure screen protectors, phone cases, and lanyards based on your own usage habits to avoid damage;

2. Clean and maintain regularly to remove dust, dirt and debris to keep the equipment clean;

3. The battery greatly affects the experience of using the device, so prevent damage to the battery caused by overcharging and discharging ;

4. Choose second-hand products on the premise that they meet your usage needs;

After the data of unnecessary products is cleared, they can be transferred to others or recycled at a discount.

By the way, guess what happened to my phone?

When I was tinkering with my phone, I tried to scratch the edge of the cracked screen and found that the tempered glass screen protector had blocked the impact of the small stone. The phone was intact! I bought a new screen protector and replaced it myself. It only cost 20 yuan to make the phone look brand new.

Let's say it loudly, thank you for the film! And don't play with your phone while walking! | Maya Blue

References

[1] Jeff Suovanen. iFixit. How iFixit Scores Repairability[EB/OL]. https://zh.ifixit.com/News/75533/how-ifixit-scores-repairability. 2023-05-18/2023-09-08.

[2] iFixit. Smartphone repairability score [EB/OL]. https://zh.ifixit.com/smartphone-repairability?sort=score. 2023-09-08.

[3] Victoria Gill. BBC News. E-waste: Five billion phones to be thrown away in 2022[EB/OL]. https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-63245150. 2022-10-22/2023-09-08.

[4] Charlotte Elton. Euronews. New EU law to force smartphone makers to build easily replaceable batteries[EB/OL]. https://www.euronews.com/green/2023/06/22/new-eu-law-to-force-smartphone-makers-to-build-easily-replaceable-batteries. 2023-06-22/2023-09-08

[5] Katie Collins. CNET. Phones With Replaceable Batteries: How They Might Make a Comeback[EB/OL]. https://www.cnet.com/tech/mobile/phones-with-replaceable-batteries-how-they-might-make-a-comeback/

Author: Maya Blue

Editor: Little Towel, Mai Mai

Title image source: Pixabay