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JPack

macrumors G5
Mar 27, 2017
12,670
23,576
Apple blocks new parts from being used. They block old parts. They block re-manufactured and third-party parts.

It's pretty obvious what they want.

And no, those old parts are not being shipped to China. They can make plenty of aftermarket parts.
 

raythompsontn

macrumors 6502a
Feb 8, 2023
592
792
Imagine if this scenario was for your car.
Actually that does happen with some vehicle components. Radios in high end cars will refuse to operate if the serial numbers do not match. Designed to prevent theft. In fact, BMW will disable the radio if the power is ever lost completely in the vehicle.

Your BMW radio code is an important part of your car’s security system. If your radio is ever lost or stolen, the code will prevent anyone from being able to use it. This makes it a valuable tool in deterring theft and keeping your car safe.

So it is not just Apple that is taking steps to require serial numbers, or codes, for parts to work properly.
 
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vertsix

macrumors 68000
Aug 12, 2015
1,662
4,598
Texas
Actually that does happen with some vehicle components. Radios in high end cars will refuse to operate if the serial numbers do not match. Designed to prevent theft. In fact, BMW will disable the radio if the power is ever lost completely in the vehicle.



So it is not just Apple that is taking steps to require serial numbers, or codes, for parts to work properl.

Indeed, it's not just Apple, but as far as I understand there is no evidence to suggest that serialization of parts serves as an effective deterrent for theft, at least in a large statistical scale. If you have sources for the contrary, please share. I would love to read on it.
 

raythompsontn

macrumors 6502a
Feb 8, 2023
592
792
So you are okay locking the repair into "Apple only" supplied new parts.
Absolutely. Using a third party part has risks. If something does not work in the device is it the third party part? Or is it something else in the device. Having three parties involved, the repair facility, the part manufacturer, and the device manufacturer, where does the blame fall? Each entity is going to blame the other with no one taking responsibility. The consumer loses.
 

Realityck

macrumors G4
Nov 9, 2015
10,338
15,568
Silicon Valley, CA
Actually that does happen with some vehicle components. Radios in high end cars will refuse to operate if the serial numbers do not match. Designed to prevent theft. In fact, BMW will disable the radio if the power is ever lost completely in the vehicle.
So it is not just Apple that is taking steps to require serial numbers, or codes, for parts to work properl.
Good examples.
 
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JPack

macrumors G5
Mar 27, 2017
12,670
23,576
It's a common practice for corporations. They try to shove anti-consumer decisions under a small layer of "positivity" and marketing mumbo jumbo, just to mislead consumers themselves.

Reminds me of the printer industry. More and more DRM with every generation of hardware. They asked consumers to ship empty cartridges back, just to destroy them and reduce the availability of third-party and re-manufactured parts. Current HP printers now need a constant Internet connection to accept a print job.
 

raythompsontn

macrumors 6502a
Feb 8, 2023
592
792
there is no evidence to suggest that serialization of parts serves as an effective deterrent for theft, at least in a large statistical scale. If you have sources for the contrary, please share


Multiple sources on the web indicating the serializing car parts reduces theft. The same analogy will apply to electronic devices.
 

fbr$

macrumors 6502a
Feb 6, 2020
547
1,124
The issue at hand is not "planned obsolescence ", which is defined as the practice of designing products to break quickly or become obsolete in the short to mid-term. Considering how long most Apple products last and are supported, the company arguably does the exact opposite.
... except for the low-RAM iPhones and iPads that, in just few years after launched, became obsolete in the past due to the lack of enough RAM.
 

JPack

macrumors G5
Mar 27, 2017
12,670
23,576
Okay, so you go to a hole-in-the-wall phone repair shop and they install a third party camera that just happens to be infested by malicious malware that sends your pictures to who knows where. Okay with you?

Yes, a malware infested camera lens. If they can achieve that level of miniaturization, complexity, and cost, Apple should turn to them instead of Sony for camera modules. 😄

Next thing you'll hear is, don't use third-party MagSafe accessories. Some malware could jump over!
 

vertsix

macrumors 68000
Aug 12, 2015
1,662
4,598
Texas

Multiple sources on the web indicating the serializing car parts reduces theft. The same analogy will apply to electronic devices.
I understand the arguments. This source just restates what has been discussed before. I'm looking for a source, research or otherwise, that statistically shows that the serialization of parts discourages thefts or has resulted in a reduction of theft.
 

raythompsontn

macrumors 6502a
Feb 8, 2023
592
792
Current HP printers now need a constant Internet connection to accept a print job.
Brother printers are almost as bad.

I have a Brother Color laser. The fusing drum failed when it developed a tear. The printer was under warranty. Before Brother would send the part and authorize the repair it was necessary for me to provide the serial number of the toner cartridge and the imaging roller. Brother needed to make certain that only Brother parts were used before they would authorize any repair under warranty.

Using third party toner cartridges or imaging rollers voids any warranty and Brother will not provide parts to repair the printer.
 

Realityck

macrumors G4
Nov 9, 2015
10,338
15,568
Silicon Valley, CA

Multiple sources on the web indicating the serializing car parts reduces theft. The same analogy will apply to electronic devices.
Interesting how this is first looked at as unfair until you see the number of comments that spin it as warranted to prevent repair quality deterioration as well as someone installing cheap substandard parts as a repair.
 

vertsix

macrumors 68000
Aug 12, 2015
1,662
4,598
Texas
Okay, so you go to a hole-in-the-wall phone repair shop and they install a third party camera that just happens to be infested by malicious malware that sends your pictures to who knows where. Okay with you?
While this is theoretically possible, it is extremely hard and costly to implement, and there would be several indicators to show this is happening (such as battery drain). Not to mention this would require having multiple security exploits to iOS to allow it to do what you said.
 

raythompsontn

macrumors 6502a
Feb 8, 2023
592
792
Next thing you'll hear is, don't use third-party MagSafe accessories. Some malware could jump over!
I guess you have never heard of "Juice Jacking".


There is firmware in the MagSafe cable. I just recently did an update. So it may be technically possible. I also think the NBC News article was sprinkled with a lot of sensationalism. The UEFI boot BIOS was thought to be very secure. Yet is has been compromised on some MSI motherboards.
 
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raythompsontn

macrumors 6502a
Feb 8, 2023
592
792
statistically shows that the serialization of parts discourages thefts or has resulted in a reduction of theft.
Basically impossible as there have not been un-serialized parts in use in Apple devices. That is what the EU wants to happen. The EU demands will have to take place before statistics can be gathered.
 
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TheGenerous

macrumors 65816
Nov 14, 2010
1,096
405
I'm an Austronaut
if it wasn't because of planned obsolescence, our data will already be encrypted remotely by Russian/Chinese/North Korean/Uganda ransomware and I wouldn't be able to access my beloved Excel files and my old photos of me eating Trix cereal
 

klasma

macrumors 603
Jun 8, 2017
5,938
16,685
I'm not happy about the serial number requirement, but this part is crazy. Apple has been criticized for years for not giving customers the ability to repair their own phones, but now they're being criticized for giving customers the tools they need to repair them? They can't win.
Macrumor’s wording here is a bit of a misrepresentation. HOP is critiquing that the self-service repair kit is very expensive and inconveniently heavy (79 lbs in total), which discourages its use. This is a fair criticism. They don’t tie it directly to a negative environmental impact.
 

rpmurray

macrumors 68020
Feb 21, 2017
2,148
4,319
Back End of Beyond
How so? Genuinely curious.
I would think that Apple would only deem the device fit for purpose if it contains genuine parts while still under warranty, because they can't guarantee it with third-party parts. After the warranty expires you can have at it with whatever black market parts you can find, because it's no longer Apple's problem.
 

JPack

macrumors G5
Mar 27, 2017
12,670
23,576
I guess you have never heard of "Juice Jacking".


Everyone has heard of juice jacking. The difference is it's a USB or Lightning port designed to communicate all sorts of data.

A camera module is designed to send only pixel data with near zero possibility of an exploit. It would be like a MacBook Pro getting malware through the HDMI port.

It's situations like this where some people know little about tech but try to extrapolate and end up completely wrong.
 
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