I have long railed against construction that makes phones, tablets, and laptops difficult to repair. But this might be a new low.
As the iFixIt folks make their way through the Microsoft Surface Laptop teardown, it becomes clear that getting inside is no easy task. And these folks are pros at taking things apart. It’s their raison d’etre, their primary gig.
The whole thing turns a bit ugly. Just look at the picture in Step 5. Here’s a quote:
Now that we’ve got a clear look at the plastic, it seems these aren’t reusable clips at all, but weak ultrasonic spot welds that we’ve been busting through. This is definitely not going back together without a roll of duct tape.
Yeesh. I wonder what plan Microsoft has for repairing these units when they start rolling in. Will they simply replace the cover, discard the old?
[H/T John Kordyback]
normal people don’t care about this. nor do i. do you think you’ll be able to DIY repair the ultra devices of the future? you know, the clear flat comm devices in all sci-fi? nope. currently, apple can service their products with specialized tools and machines. i’m fine with that since it enables them to give me even better devices with added value i’m interested in — thinness, lightness, power efficiency, etc.. but ill no more complain about lack of DIY service for my computing devices than i do my car, and will instead let the pros worry do it.
also, iFixIt’s reason for being is to sell parts. the guides help them do this.
“The Surface Laptop is not a laptop. It’s a glue-filled monstrosity”
You can always count on ifixit for a great quote.
But it’s a Mac Killer.
the tech press got a pardon about this machine even though it is an overpriced, underpowered, out of date POS.
$999 for 4GB RAM and 128 SSD?
Oh, and it runs Windows, which is like stepping in dog poop.
By the Way, ask that gasbag Laporte if he enjoys being one of the 15,000 suckers who both the Surface Studio, another overpriced underpowered miracle from Redmond that Leo can’t stop raving about.
Tried one out at the EMPTY Microsoft store. Garbage.
It’s part of OWC’s business, too. But I’d still want options for, say, repairing an older iPhone’s cracked screen without having to replace the device completely.
IIRC, though, the iPad can’t have its screen replaced.
I wonder if you’d still hate it so much if it weren’t running Windows? Obviously your feelings for MS are driving a lot of your perception of this device. For people who wanted to draw on the screen, it’s apparently pretty nice.
I wonder what plan Microsoft has for repairing these units when they start rolling in.
Replace covers, as suggested. (Or re-ultrasonic-weld them?)
I can’t think this is a huge issue, though – if they build them half right they shouldn’t be repairing that many, anyway.
What percentage of laptops in that price range ever see a repair shop?
(And if they do, for a big drop, well … that means “new chassis” anyway, doesn’t it?)
The Studio is a great machine … for a visual artist.
The problem with it is the idea that it’s really good for anything else.
I don’t think they’re trying to make a general-audience machine. The consumer windows market is pretty frugal. The pro and “prosumer” market is a niche … but one that spends money. Apple has tapped that market nicely. Microsoft made a machine that’s aimed straight at them. A lot of pros don’t care as much about the OS as about the app. I applaud the approach. So long as they aren’t copying apple for once…
For years people have been complaining that Apple products aren’t fixable by mortals. Personally I haven’t had a problem since I give my gimped device (yes, I’m a klutz) to someone who knows what they’re doing – later they give it back and I don’t worry if it’s fixed properly.
I suspect they’ll have something like you suggest or maybe they’ll just bite it and give you a new one.