How to Determine the “maintainability Score” of an Apple Product
New economic regulations in France now make it easier to judge whether Apple products can be repaired anywhere in the world.
Beginning in 2022, France will require all companies to provide assessments of the ability to repair a wide range of electronics, home appliances and other products sold in the country. The French government hopes to increase product repairs from 40% to 60% over the next five years, as part of an effort to encourage people to buy refurbished products and thus reduce waste and extend the life of products.
In line with the new requirements, Apple is already issuing ratings for many of its products currently available, including all iPhones in the iPhone 7 and iPhone 12 series, as well as several MacBook, MacBook Air and MacBook Pro models. Products are rated on a scale of ten, and each is listed at the bottom of the device’s Apple Store page (at least on the French website). The higher the score, the easier it is to repair.
Full reports for all tested devices are also available on Apple’s French support page . The reports are entirely in French and are only available in PDF format, meaning you cannot run them through Google Translate to see what they actually say unless you speak French. Fortunately, the maintainability numbers are shown in the green boxes at the bottom of the table:
Please note that ratings are calculated by Apple and not third party. While Apple is open about its calculation methods, companies can boost product ratings through seemingly unrelated means, such as explaining how iOS updates are installed.
However, a maintainability score can help you estimate the value of a product more accurately. Although the smartphone industry is built on annual iterations, many users don’t buy a new phone every year, and if they do, they might opt for an older device that is more affordable.
However, buying the more expensive iPhone 12, which has 6 repair points, may be a better investment than buying the cheaper iPhone 11, which has only 4.5. The iPhone 12 is more expensive, but it is also easier to fix and therefore will last longer. This could save customers money in the long run and keep the device from landfilling.
[ The Verge ]