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The U.S. Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) examined 21 different mainstream tech devices subject to New York’s recently passed electronics Right to Repair law, and found mixed results:
- 9 devices earned A’s or B’s (including all smartphones)
- 3 products received D’s
- 6 popular mainstream devices earned F’s
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The devices that fared poorly, like the HP Spectre Fold laptop, Canon EOS r100 camera, and Apple Vision Pro/Meta Quest 3 VR headsets, usually lacked spare parts or useful repair manuals.
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While New York’s law requires manufacturers to provide tools, manuals, and parts for affordable, easy repair, PIRG says the law has been watered down with loopholes, and there has been no enforcement action taken despite numerous companies failing to comply.
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The cellphone sector has made significant strides in repairability, but other sectors like VR headsets and cameras still have major issues.
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30 states are considering “right to repair” legislation in 2024, but these bills are at risk of being weakened by industry lobbyists.
I mean, most people don’t think ease of changing a light bulb (that they never have to do) is a deal breaker for a car. I haven’t had to change a headlight since they went to LEDs. My last car that was 7 years of owning it.
I think we should insist on making things repairable, but should focus on the things that come up frequently.
Because everything is a tradeoff, things like how often it is likely to need repair, how much the car costs, functionality of the car day to day, looks, gas mileage, heck a lot of stuff will come before a once a decade thing that you’re either going to pay a shop to do or trade before it’s an issue.