Joining Apple, Samsung began support for self-service repair in the United States this past week.
For consumer advocates, this was a major victory – and one a long time coming – but, obviously, manufacturers like the aforementioned Apple (among others) weren’t necessarily on board.
In addition to repair services being pretty profitable, they’re also increasingly complex. Nonetheless, authorities are increasingly coming down on the side of consumers in this debate and this news out of Samsung is just part of that trend.
The press release detailing the launch is pretty standard language for such an event although there were a few tidbits of information that provide some insight into how all of this will work. To start, Samsung is partnering with iFixit to provide authorized tools and parts. Also included are a series of guides for consumers that want to repair their own devices.
Vice President of Customer Care at Samsung Electronics America Mark Williams said of the program launch:
“Samsung is continually offering more convenient options for consumers to extend the use of their devices, promote a circular economy, and minimize e-waste. Samsung Self-Repair is another way for customers to prolong the life of their devices, before they are recycled.”
It is interesting to see Samsung tying this back to sustainability, particularly seeing as how that’s the latest hot-button issue between smartphone makers and governments across the world (as we covered in this recent story).
Outside of repairing it yourself, Samsung will continue to support independent service providers as well as mail-in repair and same-day service. The company also offers a “We Come to You” repair solution in certain markets thus making fixing it yourself one among a growing list of options for Samsung fans.
What’s your stance on the right to repair? Let us know in the comments.
We have some other news you might like to read over in our Photography News section.
[Samsung]
