Slightly different topic but I feel it runs home.
Long gone are the days when consumer electronics came with detailed schematics and descriptions of inner workings to aid in repairing electronic devices. Louis Rossmann is a computer repairman specialising in apple computers and seems to levy hard for right to repair.
Now he might just get the help of Steve Wozniak to help out.
Very interesting time for the industry.
If the right to repair is put through in America, then we would notice the difference here too.
Everyone here knows how important a schematic for a radio can be when diagnosing an issue or fault.
I think access to parts and info on repairing modern products is hugely important so we can start to get out of our disposable society habits.

https://youtu.be/8hVjvKQ5CXY

Link to his video

One of the biggest, if not the biggest offenders here is Apple. With the release of the most recent iPhone came parts with serial numbers and if the serial number built in to any part is deemed not the original, or a geuine replacement part installed by Apple-authorised people then the phone will simply not work.

They started off some years ago by bastardising battery chargers. They did this by inserting a chip inside the connector that plugs into the phone and if the phone cannot sniff the 'genuine article' signal from this chip when the phone's owner tries to recharge the battery then the recharge will not be completed. This was a clever way for Apple to get more revenue by doing nothing except wiping out competition. If a charger manufacturer does not pay Apple for these chips, then the non-Apple charger won't work.

Because of underhanded behaviour like this, companies like Apple have more money than many sovereign governments. In my mind, the only way to stamp this behaviour out is to stop buying their products. Sadly, this sort of thing seems to attract people rather than repel them. They can keep their bloody phones.

As I am not an app collector, I still use a Windows 10 phone and it works well and thus I have no interest in replacing it. I use a cheap, prepaid-SIM Android phone to run the ServiceNSW app for QR codes.

A boss of mine used to refer to Jobs as The iSatan and would have nothing to do with any of his stuff. I'm very happy to avoid all of it, too.

As for the right to repair movement, I fully support it.

Hopefully we here in Australia also get some form of Right To Repair legislation as well. Also the fact that companies such as Apple have enough leverage and power to make (or force) component manufactures such as Qualcomm not sell the parts that they make for Apple to the outside market is ridiculous. Apple will never have my business. There are many more alternatives to them out there.

As for Big Tech, the Indians are circling the wagons: https://www.smh.com.au/business/companies/biden-turns-up-the-heat-on-tech-giants-with-sweeping-overhaul-20210713-p5897n.html

This is also being pushed for by farmers who do not appreciate being told in the middle of the harvest that the serviceman can't come to fix their cotton or wheat harvester for two weeks at the earliest.

On that subject, John Deere is in hot water in the US for ripping off farmers the same way.

Australia had it's first Repair Summit in Canberra just last week.

An extract from the webpage.

This full day summit is an opportunity for interested Repair stakeholders to genuinely engage with Government, policy makers and industry to discuss the emerging Right to Repair movement in an event that welcomes discussion, relevant questions and respectful debate. A draft of the program will be available shortly.

You will hear about the current state of the Right to Repair movement in Australia (such as the recently introduced Mandatory Sharing of Car Repair and Service Information legislation as well as the recently released ACCC’s Agricultural Machinery: After sales market inquiry, the Productivity Commission’s Right to Repair Inquiry and about recent Repair policy and legislative initiatives internationally. You will also hear of the groundswell of support for repair in the repair industries and community, which will highlight the repair movement’s role in improving Australia’s environmental sustainability.

Attendees will be encouraged to discuss and network and ask questions of participants and to provide contributions and feedback about the Right to Repair movement.

It has been noted that most legislation re-consumer protection & restrictive trade practices are just useless toothless Tigers & just another bureaucratic sheltered workshop.

The ACCC has been caught out asleep at the wheel several times.

It is fortunate that the 70 year old tractor has a cult following & most bits you can get. Ute is similar. I have Factory workshop manuals for both which makes life easier. When, after 35 years since engine major overhaul, it decided to blow the head gasket. The only thing that held up repairs was Christmas. All the parts I needed I got & all the accumulated bugs got sorted out while waiting for the head to be overhauled.

Then I put it all back together, with the exception of the timing case seal, as that takes two people to remove the front wheels, axle beam etc as one assembly to get at it.

I've never bought anything from Apple, ever, and never will. Tell me why a USB to d connector cable costs $35 at Coles for something that is just a common cord.

I fully support the right to repair, and the return of schematics and service manuals at reasonable availability and cost.

Another problem is even if you had all that, many things use custom parts that are no longer obtainable, so that needs fixing too, again at a reasonable price.

And, if that wasn't enough, most things use PCBs with miniature parts that need specialised equipment to replace, surface-mount parts and so on. Its usually cheaper just to replace the PCB - if you can get it.

So many obstacles.

It has reached the point where any vehicle over ten is not tradeable to a dealership and if it is its normally scrapped. I had a 20 year old Mazda that loved killing water pumps. But really was criminal to scrap when so many were looking for cars in that overpriced at dealership range. It was spotted by a person wanting a nice small car for his daughter, & was basically snapped up before the engine got cold, or was due for service.

Due to Mazda's attitude, it was not replaced with a Mazda.

Mate had an Audi & you could not get a new computer for that. One over $100 part failed. An hour getting it out & back (not designed to easily get at) and 12 minutes including soldering iron warmup; to fix it.

Speaking of Audi, I once had a slip of the tongue and referred to a guy's Audi as his Aldi. He wasn't amused, but the name has stuck with me.

Re DangerousDave

Thanks for mentioning that. I took a look and it's something I'll investigate further.
Here's a link to it for anyone interested.

https://www.pc.gov.au/inquiries/current/repair#draft

Maybe some of you can make your own submissions!
It's good to get the ball rolling on this one

I am lucky enough to be in the service / repair industry that still has a demand and can make comfortable living out of it. As for consumer goods, their inital purchase price would have to increase substantially to allow for the serviceability of them through their life. I'm not sure we are prepared to do that. We have had it too good for too long. Do we buy a $30- toaster that we can replace with a shiny new one a couple of years later or a $300- toaster that we can hang onto for 10 plus years and maintain?
I still have a Morphy Richards toaster that was made in the fifties. My parents received it second hand when they married and I still use it to this day. Unfortunately This mentality has changed and is not likely to return. Everything was once repaired. Even frying pans were sent away to have new elements fitted.

I note that on edge there is a sporadic hang as soon as one logs in? This is being done from Firefox.

I have a friend with two Bakelite Sunbeam Toasters of some age (Her Mum's and hers) every now and then one arrives for some trivial repair, however, they seem to be indestructible.