People can fight back against planned obsolescence by fixing the tech we already own, but the consumer electronics industry isn’t making it easy.
There’s a fight brewing between giant tech companies and tinkerers that could impact how we repair gadgets or choose the shop where we get it done by a pro. At issue: Who owns the knowledge required to take apart and repair TVs, phones and other electronics?
Manufacturers stop us by controlling repair plans and limiting access to parts. Some even employ digital software locks to keep us from making changes or repairs. This may not always be planned obsolescence, but it’s certainly intentional obfuscation.
Thankfully, the Internet is making it harder for them to get away with it. My first stop with Shira’s TV, a 2008 model, was Samsung itself. On its website, I registered the TV and described what was broken.
Read the full story here from the Wall Street Journal, September 8, 2015
More Resources:
Read our article, Repair & re-sell: Do you have the right to fix your own gadgets?, by Sophia Bennett, February 14, 2015
Read the New York Times editorial, Patent Law Shouldn’t Block the Sale of Used Tech Products, September. 7, 2015
Find out more about the issue by visiting the Digital Right to Repair Coalition
