Category: Repair

Microsoft publishes independent review of its repair policies

Read the full story from E-Scrap News.

Requiring consumers to drive to repair shops can completely negate the greenhouse gas benefits of repairing the devices, according to an analysis commissioned by one of the world’s biggest tech companies.

Instead, mailing in broken devices and ensuring they don’t travel via air freight is a lower-impact approach, consulting firm Oakdene Hollins found.

“If end users drive their broken devices to a repair facility, even over a short distance, GHG emissions may increase rapidly. The study showed that ‘mail-to’ services offered an order of magnitude lower GHG emissions impact even over much larger transport distances and, therefore, should be encouraged,” according to the document, titled “An assessment of the greenhouse gas emissions and waste impacts from improving the repairability of Microsoft devices.”

Despite a first-ever ‘right-to-repair’ law, there’s no easy fix for wheelchair users

Read the full story from Kaiser Health News.

Power wheelchair users have long been fighting for the right to repair their wheelchairs themselves or through independent repair shops. Medicare and most insurance companies will replace complex wheelchairs only every five years. The wheelchair suppliers that have contracts with public and private health insurance plans restrict access to parts, tools, and service manuals. They usually keep a limited inventory of parts on hand and wait until health plans approve repair claims before ordering parts.

Some chairs require a software passcode or a physical key for any repairs. Wheelchair users who make fixes themselves may void their warranty or lose out on insurance payments for repairs.

Colorado set to become first state with right-to-repair wheelchair law

Read the full story in the Colorado Sun. See also Wheelchairs break often and take a long time to fix, leaving millions stranded from WBUR to better understand why this is important.

Repairing powered wheelchairs can be a long and costly process. But a new bill would require manufacturers to make it easier for owners and independent repairers to make fixes.

Dare to repair: A hands-on exploration of sustainability & community

Read the full story from the University of Minnesota.

You can’t break something that is already broken. Understanding this piece of wisdom is the first step in the process of repair and part of the foundation for a new freshman seminar in the College of Design, DES 1408: Dare to Repair.

Google the latest to face shareholder action on repair

Read the full story at E-Scrap News.

Activist investors have used shareholder resolutions to pressure Microsoft and Apple on their repair policies. Now, Google is feeling the heat.

Investment firm Green Century Capital Management has filed a right-to-repair proposal with Alphabet, the parent company of Google, according to a press release. The resolution from the Boston-based firm urges the technology giant to make its devices more repairable by consumers and independent repair shops.

Green Century said Google doesn’t address device repairability when assessing the environmental impacts of its electronics, and the company has been known to lobby against right-to-repair legislation. The U.S. Public Interest Research Group (USPIRG) recently wrote about Google’s past lobbying against state repair legislation.

Commentary: Ability to repair devices will reduce e-waste

Read the full story at Recycling Today.

Mark Kasper of Clean Earth supports the right to repair movement and wants to see more electronics manufacturers follow Microsoft’s lead, making manuals and parts available to repair devices.

Valve’s Steam Deck teardown is a breath of fresh air for the right to repair

Read the full story at The Next Web.

It is an unfortunate truth that most modern gadgets — and the companies that make them — are hostile to consumer repairs. Not only are gadgets designed in a way that practically forces people to buy a replacement for even simple repairs, but companies often actively make changes to inhibit repair by consumers and third-party repair services.

Valve has taken a refreshingly different approach with its upcoming Steam Deck — before the Nintendo Switch-like console has even launched. The company released a teardown video that shows how to take the unit apart and gives you a good look at its internals, as well as clearly spelling out all the potential pitfalls of such an operation. It’s a breath of fresh air for those of us who believe in the right to repair.

A big win for right-to-repair

Read the full story at Grist.

President Joe Biden signed an executive order directing the Federal Trade Commission to tackle at repair monopolies.

Biden signs executive order targeting right to repair, ISPs, net neutrality, and more

Read the full story at The Verge.

President Joe Biden has signed an executive order meant to promote competition — with technology directly in the crosshairs.

The order, which the White House outlined earlier this morning, calls on US agencies like the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to implement 72 specific provisions. The topics include restoring net neutrality provisions repealed during the prior administration, codifying “right to repair” rules, and increasing scrutiny of tech monopolies.

Right to repair is on the way

Read the full story at Green Biz.

Beyond enshrining consumer rights, the right to repair could combat planned obsolescence and a throwaway culture that has turned e-waste into the fastest growing waste stream around the globe.