Owners of Apple products in the United States can now opt for a company self-repair service to repair minor damage instead of sending cell phones for repair. This Wednesday, the company released repair manuals for several models in the store, as well as material for repairing them. online Self-service repair. The program is about to begin in the U.S., but the company wants to expand it to several countries, starting with the European market, by the end of the year.
The self-healing system, unveiled in November last year, consists of purchasing or renting original Apple manuals, tools, and components. So far, the program only supplies components (batteries, monitors, cameras, SIM card slots) and manuals for repairing iPhone 12, iPhone 13, or iPhone SE (3rd generation) models, but the offering is expected to expand to PCs and other brands as well. equipment.
“The pieces are the same – sold at the same price – as [peças] sent to Apple’s network of authorized repair service providers. For certain repairs, customers will receive a refund when they return the replaced part for recycling.
For example, a kit Replacing the battery in the iPhone 12 costs about $ 71 (about $ 67), but the user can get $ 24 if he sends in a damaged battery. According to the company, the goal is to provide consumers with alternative ways to repair their broken equipment.
“Increasing the availability of genuine Apple parts will give our customers even more choice if a repair is needed,” said Jeff Williams, Apple’s chief operating officer, in a statement released in November when the service was introduced. “Over the past three years, Apple has nearly doubled the number of service points that have access to genuine Apple parts, tools, and training, and now we’re offering an option for those who want to make their own repairs.”
New site Apple comes at a time when the pressure to regulate “right of repair” is increasing in several countries. The law must safeguard the right of the owner of the product to have it repaired or taken to a technician of his choice. The movement arose in response to the attitudes of some manufacturers, which began to make it difficult to repair some of their products (such as hard-to-disassemble cell phones and computers) and forced owners to take them to the brand’s own specialties. gas stations.