10 ms·

I have tried to faithfully summarize the video here. If you notice a mistake or omission, please correct me. Rossmann’s main message: “to complain about someth

I have tried to faithfully summarize the video here. If you notice a mistake or omission, please correct me. Rossmann’s main message: “to complain about something that is an option rather than complain about all of the options that are missing misses the forest for the trees”. Key points: 1. For certain repairs, Apple’s repair program has “made availiable the exact same OEM parts and tools that they use” via rental. Renting these tools is optional and not required; Rossmann recognizes that while he (and in his opinion, most people) will likely not use these tools, their availability is a non-issue. 2. Sean Hollister’s article in The Verge was highly critical of the entire self-repair process, and called out the weight and price of this completely optional tool rental. Per Rossmann, “part of the problem with tech journalism in general is… focusing on the things that are easy rather than focusing on the things that matter”. 3. Rossmann reminds us that the right-to-repair fight is far from over. Board schematics and individual components are still not available even to authorized repair shops. He argues that these would enable him to more efficiently perform repairs. 4. Rossmann: While the tech press’s complaints are “making the right to repair people look like… fools”, “it is important to [know] that they don’t represent us [normal repair shops and average users]”.

fock 4y ago
thanks, now I've skimmed the verge piece and read your summary and have to admit: wasn't the main point of the verge that it's absolute ridiculous that the "apple approved"-way of fixing things requires two peli-cases of custom tools. This doesn't scale FOR THEM and one of the main points of criticisim in the verge revolved around that! The whole process is just designed so that in 3-4 years Apple will go to their favorite congress critters and say: "look, noones using this and it's expensive!!!". Then fast-forward to Rossmanns point 3.
- turbinerneiter 4y ago
  The article made it seem like Apple is forcing anyone to get these tools, when they are not. The article heavily falls into the exactly that trap.
  - delusional 4y ago
    Excuse me what? Did we read the same article? The conclusion of the article is literally: >The more I think about it, the more I realize Apple’s Self-Service Repair program is the perfect way to make it look like the company supports right-to-repair policies without actually encouraging them at all. Apple can say it’s giving consumers access to everything, even the same tools its technicians use, while scaring them away with high prices, complexity, and the risk of losing a $1,200 deposit. This way, Apple gets credit for walking you through an 80-page repair, instead of building phones where — say — you don’t need to remove the phone’s most delicate components and two different types of security screws just to replace a battery. > I don’t think Apple expects anyone to seriously take it up on the offer of self-service repair kits. It stacked the deck in favor of taking your phone to an Apple Store, where it can tempt you to buy something new instead. The real victory will come months or years down the road, though. That’s when Apple can tell legislators it tried to give right-to-repair advocates what they wanted — but that consumers overwhelmingly decided Apple knows best. The whole tone of the article is clearly that it's absurd to rent these tools, and that the option to do so is a red herring.
    - simonh 4y ago
      Or alternatively it was absurd for hobbyist repairers to ask for these tools in the first place, and if they’re upset now when they are given what they asked for, maybe that’s on them, not Apple.
      - Brian_K_White 4y ago
        No one did ask for this.
- heisenzombie 4y ago
  It seems very unsurprising to me that Apple internally uses industrial tools and custom jigs and fixtures to repair iPhones. Right? Like, it would be super weird if they used low-cost hand tools. So is the complaint here that in addition to making the parts available to purchase, and a rental program for the “industrial” gear, they should also have developed a parallel set of low-cost tools and procedures for the hobby/personal market? I think that’s a red-herring. A home hobbyist would be better off going “great, thanks for the parts, I’m off to pay iFixit for some tools. Oh and now give us schematics and parts for when I work out how to do SMD rework” (And for pro shops, the price quoted for those pelican cases strikes me as an absolute bargain, if they don’t already have tools they like better)
  - Closi 4y ago
    Yeah! It would be weird to me if Apple said the official recommended repair process was to use a domestic hand-dryer or a hot water bottle and a guitar pick.
  - Brian_K_White 4y ago
    "So is the complaint here that in addition to making the parts available to purchase, and a rental program for the “industrial” gear, they should also have developed a parallel set of low-cost tools and procedures for the hobby/personal market?" No. It's that this is mostly a diversion that does nothing to address what someone actually needs to reapair a device, which is parts and for the software not to artificially brick the hardware. But it makes everyone else who don't repair things think that Apple is trying to be reasonable and cooperative while they're still not at all.
- Gigachad 4y ago
  You don’t need those tools. It’s very easy to do with a hairdryer and a guitar pick. The point of the tools which is mentioned in the video is it allows a moron with no skill or hand to eye coordination to reliably replace batteries all day with no failures and a perfect finish. You, a competent person, will just use a guitar pick and your fingers to do the same job. Or at least you won’t have anyone else to blame if you mess it up when apple offered the tools or the in store service to have it done. Apple has a tool for putting glass screen protectors on phones, or unplugging the power cable from their monitors. All things normal people can manage just fine with their hands. But the tool costs very little when used regularly at a store and prevents the rare mistakes.
  - arka2147483647 4y ago
    Iphones have IP ratings. Make tiny mistake in battery swap and display re-gluing process, and your phone is no longer waterproof. There is a difference in doing something properly, and doing it ”good enough”.
    - Gigachad 4y ago
      Sure, and if you care, you can either rent the tools, or bring your phone to a store that has them. I’m not sure what more could be done.
  - seanp2k2 4y ago
    To be fair, the person at The Verge couldn’t make it perfect because they didn’t remove all the adhesive around the screen, so already it’s Apple: 0, fools: 1.
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
ksec 4y ago
Unpopular opinion. The Verge did exactly what Apple would have like them to do. And you could argue whether that was intentional or not. ( Part of the whole PR play is to shape public discourse ) By showcasing the proper way of doing it, or how it is done when you paid $69 in the Apple Store, the article has correctly set the stage for 99% of Tech readers. ( Non-Tech people never give a damn or wouldn't want to try it themselves anyway ).
- samsa 4y ago
  Apple would like you to have them / their contractors repair your device, or better yet buy a new one. Everything about this program signals that Apple is grudgingly doing this. It's designed to scare people away from doing the repairs themselves.
  - nudgeee 4y ago
    The idea of OEM repairs is to get the product back as close to factory quality as possible with as little margin for error as possible by the operator. This often requires custom tools and jigs to maximize repeatability at a high quality standard, especially on something as complex and highly integrated as a smartphone. The gripe of the right to repair movement isn’t that tech should be made less complex, it is that the access to parts, information and schematics/designs should be made more accessible for repairs — useful if you have the necessary skills required to carry out repairs without OEM tools. This is coming from someone who does board level repairs on the side.
    - fartcannon 4y ago
      Mostly I don't want to have to worry what booby traps might trip in a device I payed a substantial amount for because of some petulant CEO.
    - Bud 4y ago
      This may be the gripe of your particular highly-skilled niche of the right-to-repair movement, but wide swaths of said movement are agitating for products to be wholly redesigned in the ways they prefer, to aid in much easier repairs. Never mind what the other 98% of the market might like.
g051051 4y ago
Thanks for the summary. His choice to film this walking around with the camera rolling and pitching like a ship on the high seas made it unwatchable for me. I felt the same way about the article, the author seemed to try as hard as he could to find fault with the whole process.
larossmann 4y ago
Wow. If I ever start doing videos with a script, I will hire you to write them. This is so much easier than watching a 7 minute rant. Thank you!

fock 4y ago

thanks, now I've skimmed the verge piece and read your summary and have to admit: wasn't the main point of the verge that it's absolute ridiculous that the "apple approved"-way of fixing things requires two peli-cases of custom tools. This doesn't scale FOR THEM and one of the main points of criticisim in the verge revolved around that! The whole process is just designed so that in 3-4 years Apple will go to their favorite congress critters and say: "look, noones using this and it's expensive!!!". Then fast-forward to Rossmanns point 3.

turbinerneiter 4y ago
The article made it seem like Apple is forcing anyone to get these tools, when they are not. The article heavily falls into the exactly that trap.
- delusional 4y ago
  Excuse me what? Did we read the same article? The conclusion of the article is literally: >The more I think about it, the more I realize Apple’s Self-Service Repair program is the perfect way to make it look like the company supports right-to-repair policies without actually encouraging them at all. Apple can say it’s giving consumers access to everything, even the same tools its technicians use, while scaring them away with high prices, complexity, and the risk of losing a $1,200 deposit. This way, Apple gets credit for walking you through an 80-page repair, instead of building phones where — say — you don’t need to remove the phone’s most delicate components and two different types of security screws just to replace a battery. > I don’t think Apple expects anyone to seriously take it up on the offer of self-service repair kits. It stacked the deck in favor of taking your phone to an Apple Store, where it can tempt you to buy something new instead. The real victory will come months or years down the road, though. That’s when Apple can tell legislators it tried to give right-to-repair advocates what they wanted — but that consumers overwhelmingly decided Apple knows best. The whole tone of the article is clearly that it's absurd to rent these tools, and that the option to do so is a red herring.
  - simonh 4y ago
    Or alternatively it was absurd for hobbyist repairers to ask for these tools in the first place, and if they’re upset now when they are given what they asked for, maybe that’s on them, not Apple.
    - Brian_K_White 4y ago
      No one did ask for this.
heisenzombie 4y ago
It seems very unsurprising to me that Apple internally uses industrial tools and custom jigs and fixtures to repair iPhones. Right? Like, it would be super weird if they used low-cost hand tools. So is the complaint here that in addition to making the parts available to purchase, and a rental program for the “industrial” gear, they should also have developed a parallel set of low-cost tools and procedures for the hobby/personal market? I think that’s a red-herring. A home hobbyist would be better off going “great, thanks for the parts, I’m off to pay iFixit for some tools. Oh and now give us schematics and parts for when I work out how to do SMD rework” (And for pro shops, the price quoted for those pelican cases strikes me as an absolute bargain, if they don’t already have tools they like better)
- Closi 4y ago
  Yeah! It would be weird to me if Apple said the official recommended repair process was to use a domestic hand-dryer or a hot water bottle and a guitar pick.
- Brian_K_White 4y ago
  "So is the complaint here that in addition to making the parts available to purchase, and a rental program for the “industrial” gear, they should also have developed a parallel set of low-cost tools and procedures for the hobby/personal market?" No. It's that this is mostly a diversion that does nothing to address what someone actually needs to reapair a device, which is parts and for the software not to artificially brick the hardware. But it makes everyone else who don't repair things think that Apple is trying to be reasonable and cooperative while they're still not at all.
Gigachad 4y ago
You don’t need those tools. It’s very easy to do with a hairdryer and a guitar pick. The point of the tools which is mentioned in the video is it allows a moron with no skill or hand to eye coordination to reliably replace batteries all day with no failures and a perfect finish. You, a competent person, will just use a guitar pick and your fingers to do the same job. Or at least you won’t have anyone else to blame if you mess it up when apple offered the tools or the in store service to have it done. Apple has a tool for putting glass screen protectors on phones, or unplugging the power cable from their monitors. All things normal people can manage just fine with their hands. But the tool costs very little when used regularly at a store and prevents the rare mistakes.
- arka2147483647 4y ago
  Iphones have IP ratings. Make tiny mistake in battery swap and display re-gluing process, and your phone is no longer waterproof. There is a difference in doing something properly, and doing it ”good enough”.
  - Gigachad 4y ago
    Sure, and if you care, you can either rent the tools, or bring your phone to a store that has them. I’m not sure what more could be done.
- seanp2k2 4y ago
  To be fair, the person at The Verge couldn’t make it perfect because they didn’t remove all the adhesive around the screen, so already it’s Apple: 0, fools: 1.
deleted 4y ago
[deleted]

ksec 4y ago

Unpopular opinion. The Verge did exactly what Apple would have like them to do. And you could argue whether that was intentional or not. ( Part of the whole PR play is to shape public discourse ) By showcasing the proper way of doing it, or how it is done when you paid $69 in the Apple Store, the article has correctly set the stage for 99% of Tech readers. ( Non-Tech people never give a damn or wouldn't want to try it themselves anyway ).

samsa 4y ago
Apple would like you to have them / their contractors repair your device, or better yet buy a new one. Everything about this program signals that Apple is grudgingly doing this. It's designed to scare people away from doing the repairs themselves.
- nudgeee 4y ago
  The idea of OEM repairs is to get the product back as close to factory quality as possible with as little margin for error as possible by the operator. This often requires custom tools and jigs to maximize repeatability at a high quality standard, especially on something as complex and highly integrated as a smartphone. The gripe of the right to repair movement isn’t that tech should be made less complex, it is that the access to parts, information and schematics/designs should be made more accessible for repairs — useful if you have the necessary skills required to carry out repairs without OEM tools. This is coming from someone who does board level repairs on the side.
  - fartcannon 4y ago
    Mostly I don't want to have to worry what booby traps might trip in a device I payed a substantial amount for because of some petulant CEO.
  - Bud 4y ago
    This may be the gripe of your particular highly-skilled niche of the right-to-repair movement, but wide swaths of said movement are agitating for products to be wholly redesigned in the ways they prefer, to aid in much easier repairs. Never mind what the other 98% of the market might like.

g051051 4y ago

Thanks for the summary. His choice to film this walking around with the camera rolling and pitching like a ship on the high seas made it unwatchable for me. I felt the same way about the article, the author seemed to try as hard as he could to find fault with the whole process.

larossmann 4y ago

Wow. If I ever start doing videos with a script, I will hire you to write them. This is so much easier than watching a 7 minute rant. Thank you!