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Next year, Apple will send you parts so you can repair your iPhone yourself

The service will start with the iPhone 12 and 13, but it is planned to expand.

iphone 13 in all colors

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UPDATE 4/27/2022 4/26 PM ET: Apple’s Self Service Repair program is now live, enabling US-based users to buy parts and tools to repair their own devices. The original story follows below.

Okay, we’re not quite sure what’s going on at Apple right now, because the usually-opposed-to-right-to-repair company just announced a new program aimed at letting you fix your own devices at home.

It’s called Self Service Repair, and it’s aimed at the most common repairs, like screen, camera, or battery replacements.

To start with, the program will be available early next year in the US, for the iPhone 12 and iPhone 13. Apple also plans to expand things to include Macs that run the M1 chip “soon,” once the program is underway.

Apple says it will “focus on the most commonly serviced modules, such as the iPhone display, battery, and camera.” Additional repair options are planned for later on in the year. It’ll be really interesting to see just how many parts of the iPhone can be serviced at home, as they’ve historically been difficult to repair.

When the program is officially up and running, a customer will first head to the new Apple Self Service Repair Online Store, to find online, text-based repair manuals for their device.

Once the customer has figured out which parts they need for the repair, Apple will let them order those, as well as “Apple genuine” tools to carry out the repair. That’s essentially the same program that is used by the 2,800 Independent Repair Providers and 5,000 Apple Authorized Service Providers in the U.S.

You’ll even get a credit against the total price of the parts if you send the old, damaged component back to Apple for recycling.

You might be wondering why Apple has reversed its thinking about home repairs, or anyone other than an Apple technician touching the inside of its pristine devices.

Well, President Biden signed an Executive Order back in July that gave the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) instructions to create some rules against DIY and third-party repair restrictions.

The FTC also announced shortly afterward that it was going to increase law enforcement against those restrictions. Apple is likely getting ahead of the game here, but whatever the reasons, it’s nice to see that it’s finally an option for consumers.

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Maker, meme-r, and unabashed geek with nearly half a decade of blogging experience at KnowTechie, SlashGear and XDA Developers. If it runs on electricity (or even if it doesn't), Joe probably has one around his office somewhere, with particular focus in gadgetry and handheld gaming. Shoot him an email at joe@knowtechie.com.

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