Apple brings good news to iPhone repair users, 'bad news' to iPhone thieves

Later this fall, Apple will allow customers and independent repair shops to use parts from used Apple devices for repairs, helping to extend the life of the product while minimizing the impact to the repair environment.

Old iPhone components can also be repaired.

With that, used genuine Apple parts will now benefit from the full functionality and security provided by initial factory calibration, just like genuine parts. Apple's new company.

Apple's senior vice president of hardware engineering, John Ternus, said: 'At Apple, we're always looking for new ways to deliver the best possible customer experience while reducing costs. the impact we have on the planet and a big part of that is designing products that last.'

'Over the past two years, teams at Apple have innovated in product design and manufacturing to support the repair of used Apple components without compromising safety, security or privacy of the user. With this latest repair program expansion, we're excited to add more choice and convenience for customers, while helping to extend the life of our products and their components' .

Apple says even biometric sensors will work in the future to self-repair. To simplify the repair process, customers and service providers will no longer need to provide the device's serial number when ordering parts from a DIY Repair Shop for repairs, as long as no involves replacing the logic board.

Thieves with locked iPhones often remove components to sell, but the new measure will prevent that.

Bad news for thieves

Notably, Apple will expand the popular Activation Lock feature to iPhone components to prevent thieves from stealing other people's iPhones and then selling the disassembled components. At the request of customers and law enforcement officials, this feature is designed to limit iPhone theft by preventing reactivation of lost or stolen iPhones. If a device being repaired detects that a part was taken from another device that has Activation Lock or Lost Mode enabled, the ability to calibrate that part will be limited.

Additionally, users can always check if their device uses genuine parts by going to the Settings app > General > About and selecting Parts and service history. Later this fall, Apple said it will expand this functionality to show whether a part is genuine new or used.

Micah Soto

Update 12 April 2024