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I was unfamiliar with the practice of "parts pairing" in Apple devices, which it seems can even prevent you from cannibalizing functional parts from an old iPho
by zuminator 3y ago
I was unfamiliar with the practice of "parts pairing" in Apple devices, which it seems can even prevent you from cannibalizing functional parts from an old iPhone to replace damaged parts in your current device. Does Apple even have some kind of consumer friendly justification for this practice, or is it just unabashed fuckery?
- criddell 3y agoSome parts need to be cryptographically linked for security reasons. For example, when the phone used to have a fingerprint sensor I believe all communication between that module and the rest of the phone used public key cryptography so that you couldn't replace the sensor with something less secure. A second reason for doing this is to make theft of devices less lucrative. If you can't sell a stolen phone for parts, then there's less incentive to steal the phone. I think there's more that Apple could do to make third party repairs easier without sacrificing security or theft disincentives. Maybe there could be a setting where I, as the owner, can authorize parts salvage of the phone before I sell it.
- JoshTko 3y agoI love that Apple is doing this. Making thieves not want to steal my phone is 50x more valuable to me than having a slightly easier time repairing my phone.
- pixl97 3y agoThis is a case of conflicting needs of users. If security is your primary need, it is great. If sustainability is your primary need then it sucks.
- bzzzt 3y agoApple supports and repairs phones for a long time. It's not about sustainability, it's about the price Apple charges for repairs. What is so sustainable about having and using the right to mount a cheap, bad battery that will have to be replaced again in a year or so?
- JoshTko 3y agoThis.
- pixl97 3y agoThings have a long tail. The world is unstable. Politics can suddenly change and now you're throwing tons of things in the trash not because the items cannot be fixed, but that Apple directly cannot sell you parts.
- bzzzt 3y agoIt's not you can magically repair any Apple phone if only they made parts replaceable. The tiny amount of phones that can't be repaired due to 'world unstability' is probably irrelevant to the general climate/environment problem.
- zuminator 3y agoBut instead of making parts unexchangeable by default, couldn't they blacklist parts that come from phones specifically reported as stolen? And then any phone with a blacklisted part installed could be disabled/reduced in functionality/reported to authorities, etc. Meanwhile people who just wanted to recycle their old screens or whatever wouldn't be penalized.
- JoshTko 3y agoDeterring criminals requires consistent, accurate, fast reporting by customers which will never happen since customers have no incentive at all to report (not even considering the level of effort of educating the iPhone customer base abotu how to report). You can recycle your phone today by dropping it off at Apple.
- bzzzt 3y agoIt's not the parts that are locked, it's the phone that wants specific parts. If you give people the possibility to change their phones to accept other parts you instantly create a market for stolen parts. Maybe Apple should lock both sides. Another reason for locking parts to the phone is to prevent non-genuine parts. Those cheap batteries or TFT replacement screens for OLED iPhones will not give the experience Apple intended and will damage their reputation.
- philwelch 3y agoIt’s an anti-theft measure.