Repairability ratings based on official European government standards found that Apple received the worst repairability ratings for both iPhones and MacBooks.
However, the MacBook Neo turned out to be quite an exception in our ranking of laptops, so perhaps there is hope for the future…
The French government legally requires manufacturers to display repairability ratings according to a set of standards aimed at enabling like-for-like comparisons between brands. The EU has very similar criteria, and the US consumer organization Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) uses these in its rankings.
Its latest report shows repairability grades for four smartphone brands and eight laptop brands, with Apple receiving the lowest score in both categories. PIRG said it investigated detailed repair information for a total of 105 devices.
The grade takes into account seven different issues that affect the practicality of the repair.
- repair documents
- Ease of disassembly
- Availability of spare parts
- Spare parts pricing
- Fasteners used
- Required tools
- Long lifespan of software updates
Apple’s mistakes
Motorola topped the smartphone repairability ranking with a B+ grade. Google was second with a C-minus rating, Samsung was second with a D-rating, and Apple was last with a D-minus rating.
For laptops, Asus received the highest repairability score of B+, while Apple received the worst, C-.
MacBook Neo is an honorable exception
However, there is one thing in Apple’s favor. First, the MacBook Neo is clearly an exception, widely praised for its repairability. This reflects the conclusion reached by iFixit after a teardown a few weeks ago.
iFixit published its own teardown and repairability analysis of the MacBook Neo, finding it to be “the most repairable MacBook of the past 14 years.”
It remains to be seen whether this is a one-time anomaly related specifically to the design of this model, or whether it represents a change in direction for the company.
Photo: iFixit
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