Apple adds select MacBooks to Self Service Repair offerings

Apple is introducing a few more MacBooks to the mix, four months after making its Self Service Repair options available to iPhone customers in the United States. The 2020 M1 MacBook Air, 13-inch MacBook Pro, and 14- and 16-inch 2021 M1 Pro laptops will all be covered by the laptop repair programme when it launches tomorrow.

Apple will keep launching new models (and repair kinds) going ahead, just like it did with the iPhone before it. That applies to newly launched M2 MacBooks (which were made available after project work started) as well as other devices like the iMac and Mac Studio Display.

The display, battery, top and bottom cases, TrackPad, Touch ID module, speakers, audio board, and logic board are just a few of the components that can already be repaired. As expected, prices vary quite a bit, ranging from $5 for five screws, $12 for an audio board, $29 for speakers, to $580 for the logic board. The business claims that the fees are the same as what it charges the approximately 5,000 Apple Authorized Service Providers throughout the US.

Remember that the price is after trading in the previous model. As a result, recycling is encouraged and costs are kept low for Apple, which recycles parts back into its ecosystem via refurbished products or the repair programme.

In the meanwhile, the firm nevertheless offers a discount while recycling any pieces that are just too damaged to salvage. It’s also not a little difference; one logic board, for example, costs almost three times as much if the old one isn’t returned. Additionally, it aims to resolve any possible incompatibility. There is no information on whether this problem may void the system’s warranty.

The most intriguing component of this puzzle is the logic board. Self Service Repair is likely to be used as a form of after-market upgrade for components like RAM and storage by handy people. However, the business is suppressing that inclination by limiting the discount to parts with the same SKU. This implies that if you purchase a board with a bigger hard drive, you will be required to pay the full price for the expensive component. This is done intentionally to deter people from seeking to upgrade later and therefore lower the price.

Apple is offering its own professional equipment for repairs, much as the iPhone did before it. Last time, the tool size made a splash. It’s not exactly the most convenient thing in the world to have a big hard case brought to your house to fix a little phone, particularly when you consider that businesses like Samsung and Google have teamed with iFixit for their own repair services. However, Apple essentially provides you with the same equipment its authorised repairers do. You may always use your own with the help of the website’s instructions, but as I said before, damaging the system while having it repaired would quickly void any warranties.

As always, the business would want to encourage most customers to have their devices repaired by a certified technician.

According to a press release, “Apple has almost quadrupled the number of repair sites over the last three years that have access to authentic Apple parts, equipment, and training, including more than 3,500 Independent Repair Providers.” More than 100,000 active technicians are supported by a worldwide network of more than 5,000 Apple Authorized Service Providers. Eight out of ten Apple users in the US are therefore within 20 minutes of a licenced service provider.

Also Read: What Apple Devices Support Wireless Charging?

Self Service Repair, even if the procedure isn’t very simple, at least offers the opportunity to fix it yourself since right to repair legislation seems to be on the horizon. In the end, you’ll have to calculate it yourself.

Renting the repair equipment costs $49 per week. The good news is that since a glue-melting machine is not needed, the Mac’s kit is actually smaller than the iPhones’. The second good news is that there is a little more room for mistake since Macs are bigger and less closely packed together. However, once again, the business is only advising experienced individuals to do these repairs in case anything goes horribly wrong.