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Comment by rdw | Hacker News Reader

Just because you're not getting that panel back doesn't mean it's destroyed and wasted. I figure that these policies simplify their front-line technician jobs, getting faster turnaround times and higher success rates. Then they have a different department that sorts through all the removed/broken parts, repairing and using parts from them. No idea if this is what they actually do, but it would be the smart way to handle it.

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It seems like they will rather shredded perfectly good parts than to let thirt party repair shops use them to help people at sane prices:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2020/10/07/apple-g...

https://www.vice.com/en/article/yp73jw/apple-recycling-iphon...

So because a company stole devices to sell them makes Apple the bad guy?

It's possible for both companies to be in the wrong.

The recycling center shouldn't have resold the devices (which is, as you point out, effectively theft). However, Apple should not be shredding hundreds of thousands of otherwise usable devices.

Apple does nothing to improve front line technician procedures. They aren't even an engineering factor. If you happen to be able to replace something on an Apple product, it's only because the cost-benefit ratio wasn't in favor of making that part hostile to work with.

Apple puts 56 screws in the Unibody MBP keyboards. They were practically the pioneer of gluing components in permanently. They don't care about technicians. Not even their own. They have been one of the leaders of the anti-right-to-repair movement from day one.

Oh hey they went back to screws on the keyboards? that's nice, they used to be single use plastic rivets, so at least you can redo that.

Also Apple's glue isn't usually that bad to work with. Doesn't leave much residue, so as long as you know where to apply the heat you can do a clean repair and glue the new component back in.

I think apple might have learned a painful lesson about keyboard repairability… with all those warranty repairs they are *still* stuck with.

> Apple does nothing to improve front line technician procedures.

I’m not a fan of planned obselence and waste but this is clearly wrong. They’ve spent loads of engineering effort designing a machine for their store that can replace and reseal and test iPhone screen replacements out back.

Sounds more like using a sword where a knife is needed.

So what’s your proposal? How big would a “phone” be with all those features that an iphone pro has? I am by no means an apple fanboy, but the same way a modern car engine can’t just be tweaked the way it was 50 years ago due to all the miniaturizations that are in large part due to efficiency gains, the same is just as true of phones.

But at the same time, a single chip with everything included will also make these phones pretty sturdy, where it either fails completely, or remain working for long years.

An interesting comparison is formula 1 cars. Peak performance and parts that can be changed in seconds while still running. Even average modern cars have hundreds of parts that a lay person can reach with simple tools. Apple are obviously making a trade off (close it down for reduced size and better weather/water sealing) but then they don't get to pretend to be an environmentally concious company as that is antithical to their design goals.

That's kind of a bad argument, considering that an F1 engine will be absolutely _fucked_ and needs to be thrown away after 2000 km.

That said, the previous poster's argument is terrible and gluing a phone is not what allows """peak performance"""

Gluing is the least of the problem - as others mentioned, it can be easily resealed, and I very much prefer my phone surviving a bit of water.

It was more a comment about their ability to have parts replaced, but you're right that the analogy has many flaws.

The reasoning was to make the device as thin as possible according to Verge iirc. The cable degrades because it's too short and can't be replaced.

Says it all pretty much.

Yes, I want a device as thin as what my wallet is going to be after its repairs

Even in school we were taught the lessons to better and sustainable environmental habits: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

In the very same order.

So, no sir. Apple isn't the environment friendly company that they claim to be. So much money, and so little accountability.

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