When Apple released the iPhone 14, most of the world was underwhelmed by what looked like a very minor update on the previous year’s model. With an almost identical spec sheet, it turned out that most of the changes were under the covers. And it turns out, Apple has done something very similar with the new HomePod.
The Right to Repair is getting a lot of attention in the USA. Companies as diverse as Apple and John Deere are under scrutiny as owners demand the ability to either carry out their own device repairs or expect to be able to use third party services to maintain their equipment.
With the iPhone 14, the iFixIt team conducted a tear down and discovered that while the outside of the iPhone 14 was almost identical to its forebear, it was radically different inside. The new iPhone is significantly easier to repair. And we learned this week, that those internal changes have enabled the device to dissipate heat more effectively, thus delivering a performance boost despite running the same processor and memory.
This week, iFixIt released a video showing that the new HomePod, despite looking a lot like the model that was taken off the market by Apple a couple of years ago, is significantly easier to repair.
Although these sorts of changes may not seem significant , they indicate that Apple is listening and changing the way it designs products so they are easier to repair. Apple has been talking up its environmental credibility for some time. Almost every new hardware release mentions this commitment in some way. When Apple released its first unibody MacBooks in 2013, it was a revelation. In the video released to show the process, Apple talked about how the aluminium that was shaved away was collected, melted and reused.
And by 2018, Apple announced that it was using 100% recycled aluminium to make the MacBook Air.
Improving repairability is another step along the road to making more sustainable products. And the new HomePod, like the iPhone 14, is the next product to show this.
Anthony is the founder of Australian Apple News. He is a long-time Apple user and former editor of Australian Macworld. He has contributed to many technology magazines and newspapers as well as appearing regularly on radio and occasionally on TV.