How Easy is it to Replace a Battery?
Manufacturers have been accused of incorporating ‘planned obsolescence’ within electronic devices in order to sell more units. This is a business tactic where manufacturers design products with shorter lifespans than necessary so that consumers will continuously need to purchase new models.
Planned obsolescence has been a particularly hot topic in the past few years, with many smartphone manufacturers coming under fire for purposefully designing phones that have shorter battery lives than necessary. While Apple has been accused of this practise most recently, other famous manufacturers such as Samsung and Sony have also been accused of the same thing.
What do phone makers do to make these batteries hard to replace?
Apple has been accused of replacing the batteries in older phones with newer models with smaller capacities, which results in a phone that can run for less time between charges. In order to perform this ‘upgrade’, Apple have been accused of making it harder for consumers to replace these batteries themselves instead of paying for an official Apple replacement.
For example, Apple has been accused of using proprietary screws on their devices, which are not easily replaced with standard tools. This makes it difficult for users to open up their phones and replace the battery themselves. Apple have also made new models incompatible with existing charging cables, meaning you have to purchase a replacement if your charger is faulty.
How much does it cost to replace the battery?
While Apple has been accused of making their batteries difficult to replace, they do still allow consumers to perform this replacement themselves. The downside is that it will only cost you around $80 for a new battery, not including labour costs.
Is this an issue with other manufacturers?
Manufacturers such as Samsung, Sony and Motorola have also come under fire for making it difficult to access the batteries inside their phones. These manufacturers generally use standard sized batteries, which are easily accessible with the right tools. However, they make these batteries protrude from the device by around 1mm more than necessary. This means that if your device is dropped, the battery will impact the ground first. This results in the battery bulging and deforming, rendering it unusable.
Additionally, these batteries are glued into their housing, making them difficult to remove safely without causing damage to the phone itself.
Will manufacturers face repercussions?
Apple has been accused of using a legal loophole to make devices more difficult to repair. Apple argues that it is illegal to sell replacement parts, but not to replace the battery yourself. This loophole allows them to continue making their devices difficult to fix without breaking any laws. However, given Apple’s recent announcement of their $29 iPhone battery replacements it seems that they may be backing down from this approach somewhat.
GoMobile Repair
We at GoMobile Repair are not just offering Metro Vancouver phone repair but we are also offering better bargains than usual. Overstocked lightly used phones are available at clearance prices. For pricing and delivery zones, see our map. Contact us for phone battery replacements!