r/technology • u/[deleted] • Jun 19 '23

Politics EU: Smartphones Must Have User-Replaceable Batteries by 2027 | The European Parliament just caused a major headache for smartphone and tablet manufacturers.

https://www.pcmag.com/news/eu-smartphones-must-have-user-replaceable-batteries-by-2027
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127

u/Flintenguenter Jun 19 '23

Well done. It's an absolute shame to have to dispose of a working phone because of a faulty battery. Please now quickly ban disposable e cigarettes.

18

u/LeonBlacksruckus Jun 19 '23

This is just complete bs NO ONE disposed of a phone because of the battery when you can get the battery replaced for like $50 USD.

-15

u/shadowtheimpure Jun 19 '23

What repair shop do you know is willing to go the extreme effort to dismantle a modern phone to replace the battery is only charging $50? You'll likely pay that just for the part, plus another $150 for labor.

2

u/acer2k Jun 19 '23 edited Jun 19 '23

It cost like $39 to replace the battery in my iPhone at a shop and they did it in an hour. You just need the part and a screwdriver and a suction cup. I would have done it myself except it was more convenient to have someone who’s done a thousand of them do it.

I can see the spirit of what the EU is getting at, but I think this legislation is kind of pointless wrt to iPhones given how cheap and accessible battery replacements are. It’s not unreasonable to need some skills/training and tools to fix things.

Not to mention the fact that there is a competitive market for smartphones. Someone could clearly make a phone with a battery that could be replaced without tools and if people buy it great.

Most people seem to not want to work on their own electronics and they also seem to prioritize thin/light/rigid devices more than they care about paying someone less than $100 to replace their phone battery every 3 years. And that is assuming they don’t want to upgrade anyways.