Apple’s Independent Repair Provider program will soon be available in more than 200 countries, nearly every country where Apple products are sold. Launched originally in 2019 and expanded to Europe and Canada last year, the program enables repair providers of all sizes access to genuine Apple parts, tools, repair manuals, and diagnostics to offer safe and reliable repairs for Apple products. There are now more than 1,500 Independent Repair Provider locations serving customers across the US, Canada, and Europe.

“Being a part of the Independent Repair Provider program has been a huge benefit to my business, employees, and customers,” said Scott Baker, owner of Mister Mac in Wimberley, Texas. “Since joining, we’ve received great support from Apple, and we’re able to deliver that same level of service to our customers. It has even brought genuine excitement to our town.”

“The Independent Repair Provider program has been a very positive experience for us and for our customers,” said Nils Weber, project manager for Pro Repair GmbH in Germany. “During COVID-19, reliable access to parts has allowed us to adapt our business to accommodate the sudden high demand for mail-in repairs from our customers.”

Step by step

Apple is cutting the prices for its AppleCare Plus extended warranty for both its M1 MacBook Air and MacBook Pro laptops. AppleCare for the new M1 Air now costs $199 (versus the old $249 price), while AppleCare for the M1 Pro is down $20 to $249.

AppleCare Plus for Macs extends the 90 days of coverage included with a new laptop to three years. It also gives users two damage replacements every 12 months, with an additional charge of $99 for replacing the screen or outside of the laptop, or a $299 for “other damage.”

Note that at this exact same moment prices for parts that independent services use rose a lot, but prices of parts that Apple gets are steady and solid, some of them even dropped.

The new iPhone 13 completely disables its flagship Face ID functionality when you replace its screen

One of the most common phone repairs that could once be done with hand tools now requires a microscope. This means you won’t be able to fix your iPhone screen yourself without sacrificing major functionality. It also has huge implications for the professional repair industry, for which Apple is the dominant brand to service. Small shops could be shuttered, forced to choose between spending thousands on new equipment or losing a major source of income.

It’s hard to believe, after years of repair-blocking issues with Touch ID, batteries, and cameras, that Apple’s latest iPhone part lock-out is accidental. As far as our engineers can tell, keeping Face ID working on the iPhone 13 after a screen swap should be easier than ever, since its scanner is wholly separate from the display.

https://www.ifixit.com/News/54829/apples-new-screen-repair-trap-could-change-the-repair-industry-forever

Apple is launching a Self Service Repair program that will let you repair products yourself using official Apple parts and tools. The option will be available in the US in early 2022 (later that year for other countries) and will initially give the resources to fix an iPhone 12 or iPhone 13, with M1-based Macs eligible soon afterward.

The new store will offer more than 200 individual parts and tools, enabling customers to complete the most common repairs on iPhone 12 and iPhone 13.

https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2021/11/apple-announces-self-service-repair/