Comment by wincy
15 hours ago
With all due respect, I can buy a kit on iFixit for $55 for an iPhone 16 pro max, including the battery. I’ve replaced my iPhone battery before, aside from the glue being a bit sticky so needing a heat gun it isn’t that difficult.
Heat gun? This isn't the type of consumer-friendly battery replacement which the EU is looking for.
reminds me of finding an old scout manual that said "go to your neighborhood blacksmith" - different things are "easy" for different people.
You don't need a heat gun. A regular hair dryer is fine.
Not everyone has, or needs a hairdryer!
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A fine way to start a house fire, sure.
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Even with a good battery, bugs/features on the latest iOS can make iPhone 15 Pro Max battery last terribly, terribly short.
Part of the new requirement should be they can't kill battery lifespan in 2-year old phones through software updates, either.
Because even "replaceable battery" doesn't fix that serious problem!
I've replaced a battery in my 2019 Xiaomi phone for $5 (the costs of the battery), using basic tools - albeit the back was already ungluing itself, making that part easier. At 10x the price, it's hard not to call it a massive markup.
Which is fine - but the law is the law and will look at what Apple (et al) provide and document.
(Thought Apple's $99 to do the repair themselves isn't terribly bad all things considered; and likely part of their attempt to forestall complaints and litigations).
> so needing a heat gun it isn’t that difficult.
https://xkcd.com/2501/
And you can do it for much less if you want. I've replaced phone batteries with 6 dollars worth of tools and a hairdryer. You can buy glue or sticky gaskets for next to nothing as well if you care about waterproofing.
Most people are going to give up in 1 minute trying to open a smartphone. I can't imagine most people I know succeeding to replace the battery by themselves.
Most people I know would come to me to replace the battery in an old Thinkpad, and those were made to be easily removable!