#Repairability

[mintbecrazy]

So today i decided that the time has come and i need to clean my ps4 from dust

I found a tutorial on how to disassemble ps4 and followed it. Right until i got to the moment of unscrewing metal plate under which the fan is located. The guy in the video said to unscrew ~10 screws, but there were only 4 on my ps4. Every other place where his console had screws, had plastic instead. So you could not remove it without breaking plastic.

"Maybe those were warranty seals" but no. I tried removing one to see, if there were any screws under them, and no. Those were plastic holder, which prevented users from cleaning/repairing their consoles.

So yeah fuck sony and apple and Microsoft and Samsung and every other company which makes it impossible to repair their devices without paying money to them

[netscapenavigator-official]

My whole thing about Apple’s “revolutionary” new battery adhesive is… why do we need adhesive in the first place?

My 2011 MacBook has a battery that’s screwed in. Admittedly, this device is THICC and has a big ass battery, but I just feel like there’s no reason we can’t encase smart phone batteries in metal or hard plastic and screw them into place, rather than using adhesives.

Apple’s conductive adhesive in the 16 (Plus), and the metal battery case in the 16 Pro are neat… but I’m still sat here wondering why we need to glue in batteries at all.

It can’t be that hard to securely screw one in. After all, small, more complicated parts are screwed into phones. I just don’t get it.

And don’t even get me started on laptop makers gluing their batteries in, these days.

[upmala]

a new personal achievement: repairing my mirrorless digital camera.

the last time i chucked my camera into my backpack and let it rattle around as i was travelling across countries was one time too many - the flexible ribbon cable on the bendy screen cracked, and from there on the screen wouldn’t work unless delicately wiggled into arbitrary position where the connections still worked. sure, i continued to use the camera with viewfinder only, but it was a hassle.

i looked up the part online, it’s about 20-30 euros on ebay. i looked up some videos of people repairing the camera (something about these videos is cursed - at the most important moments, the focus goes out, or the parts are slightly out of frame, or it’s a 12x timelapse - something to prevent you from grasping the full truth too easily) and decided i should probably not do it myself.

a friend took me to the local photo shop and they said they’d send it to the fuji service centre, where it would be 70 euros for diagnostics, and then whatever the repair itself cost on top of that. that’s a bit steep, i said. the helpful shop clerk asked more about the camera, and i’m glad he did: turns out fuji actually don’t even service my camera model anymore. he recommended some repair cafes around the city, which seemed like the best bet.

on our way back my friend said, fuck it. i have the little screwdrivers. i fix drones all the time. you already found the cable you need online. let’s just do it ourselves. it’ll be fun!

so i went and found the part on ebay again. now, i generally don’t trust ebay for reasons i won’t get into, but i do trust aliexpress. so i look up the part on aliexpress. for some reason, it redirects me to .de (i didn’t even know aliexpress had a german domain, but okay) the part is about 20 euros. i think to myself, this would be a good price for a german. i turn on my VPN to latvia and check the .com domain. the part is suddenly 14 euros. i buy the cable.

it arrived a mere week later (it’s too quick for me, i’m used to waiting for at least 2-3 weeks for things to arrive from china; this fast can’t be healthy) and we arranged a spontaneous meeting on a day we both had nothing to do (since the germans were busy voting). we cleared the kitchen table, laid out the tools, put on the repair video and slowly started working on the beast.

overall, the odds were in our favour: the cable replacement was minimally invasive, and the camera was held together by screws, not glue. the ribbon cable was finicky of course, and there were many moving parts it had to weave through - but we had four hands, two brains and many little screwdrivers.

success!

while it did feel like performing eye surgery, it was also fun! turns out, if you go about it carefully, it’s not rocket science. i guess companies would like you to think that repairing electronics is a dark art to be performed only as a last resort by certified dark wizards only, but this isn’t true for every device. especially the older ones. (i kinda wish i’d visited the repair cafes, but i’m sure i’ll find an excuse to do that in the future.)

[book-of-dreams]

It’s also repairable! I have a leather jacket that got a little hole torn in the shoulder, right in the middle of the panel (it’s a fairly thin leather). I moved to a new city and discovered there’s a leather and furs shop that sells refurbished vintage leather and furs and does repairs. I didn’t really think that my coat could be repaired but I took it to the shop along with another coat that’s about 50-60 years old with a tear at the pocket. The ancient Hungarian proprietor was like yeah, not a problem. He repaired both coats perfectly. Try repairing similar damage on synthetic leathers - it won’t hold.

Repairability is one of the most important aspects of sustainable consumption. Whenever possible, repair rather than replace. And you can only do that if you have items that are made with repairable materials and constructed in repairable ways.

That post I made over new years had people at my THROAT for saying I only buy real leather. Sorry I really do think that wearing textured plastic that will fall apart in under 5 years and go on to irreparably poison the environment is the worse option here.

[pulsewriter]

🌱🔥 Futuro sostenibile in arrivo! Dal 20 giugno 2025, l'Europa si prepara a una grande trasformazione nel mondo degli smartphone e tablet grazie al nuovo Regolamento Ecodesign! 📱✨ Immagina dispositivi progettati per DURARE nel tempo, facili da riparare e sempre aggiornati. Non più oggetti usa e getta, ma compagni fidati che riducono l'impatto ambientale! 🌍💚 Siamo in un momento cruciale: i produttori dovranno adottare standard di durabilità e riparabilità, mentre noi consumatori avremo l'opportunità di fare scelte più consapevoli e responsabili. 💪♻️ Non perdere l'occasione di scoprire come queste nuove regole influenzeranno il nostro modo di vivere la tecnologia! Scopri tutti i dettagli nel nostro ultimo blog! 📖👉 [Leggi qui](https://innovateblog.info/ecodesign-smartphone-verso-la-nuova-rivoluzione-sostenibile-nei-dispositivi-mobili-in-europa) #Ecodesign #Sostenibilità #SmartphoneDuraturi #RivoluzioneTecnologica #FuturoVerde #TechSostenibile #InnovazioneResponsabile

[npi]

DONE! Governor Bob Ferguson signs two right to repair bills into law that will benefit all Washingtonians

An eight-year effort to bring sorely-needed right to repair laws to Washington State finally ended in triumph today with the signing of HB 1483 and SB 5680, championed by State Representative Mia Gregerson (D-33rd District: South King County) and sponsored by Gregerson and Senator Drew Hansen (D-23rd District: Kitsap County). Flanked by lawmakers and activists, including yours truly, Governor…

[theupfish]

The ozone layer is not only healing, but will likely be back to its 1980-state within a Millennial's lifetime

[pcktknife]

i miss the static youd get from kissing old tvs and the buttons and the av cable ports and how some of em had built in vhs or dvd players and the volume they had and huggability

[spacerockband]

Quetzalcoatlus! poised to spear her prey!

[gamesatwork]

e483 — Future Frames

e483 with Andy, Michael and Michael — framing the evolution of computing and work with a social and human lens. Featuring Meta’s Orion and Quest 3S, user experiences with kiosks, iPhone repairability and a whole lot more!

Photo by Eyekeeper Eyekeeper on Unsplash Published 30 September 2024 Co-hosts Andy, Michael and Michael are reunited and start things off with thorough discussion on the “Clark Kent-esque” Meta Orion augmented reality glasses.  The Verge article on this subject brings several perspectives into focus from the cohosts.  One observation drew attention to the “neural wristband” used to capture…

[homunculus-argument]

Today in Probably Inadvisable Homonculus Crafts: can I fix my own shoes?

[gearrice]

iFixit improves iPhone 16 repairability rating

[hopegrasping]

Let go of the idea that diy will inherently look shit. All your clothes are handmade you just don't see the people doing it.

[star-glitch]

Imagine getting a call from one of your repairsmen asking to take time off because they're scheduled to play Dungeons and Dragons at Maddison Square Garden.

[turtlesandfrogs]

Basic trouble shooting for people who aren't mechanics and have no interest in becoming one:

1. Does it have a spinny part that's not spinning, or isn't spinning the way it's supposed to? Look at it- is there anything stringy wound around the spinny part? Remove it. Applies to: vacuums, aquarium filters, blenders, and rototillers, weed eaters, and lawn mowers.

1.b Is there debris from the spinny part that is building up on an nearby surface? Remove it. Applies to: vacuums, lawnmowers, probably other things.

2. Does it have a part that air, water, or other materials move through? Look at it- is there a clog, even a small or flimsy looking one? Remove it. Applies to: lawnmowers, vacuums, pumps, probably more.

3. If it has a gas engine, does it have gas? The right kind of gas? Does it have oil? If it's electric, is it plugged in? Or is it's battery charged?

4. Does it have a filter? Is the filter dirty/clogged? Clean it. Applies to vacuums, pumps, and some small engines.

5. Is it electric? Is there a safety feature where it won't work unless a certain peice is in place? Is there something keeping it from popping up or into place? Remove it. Did a small plastic peice break off? Can you super glue it back on in a safe manner?

6. Are there fluid tanks? Do they have fluid levels between the empty and full marks?

7. Are there tubes and/or wires? Are they all attached and going where they're supposed to? If it has spark plugs, are they all where they're supposed to be? If it has belts, are they taut?

8. Are there bolts and nuts? Screws? Are they all where they're supposed to be?