On Nov 13, 7:54*pm, CaveLamb wrote:
And interesting essay.
But will people buy products designed to be repaired?

http://consumerist.com/2010/11/the-s...ectronics.html

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Richard Lamb
email me:
web site: *www.home.earthlink.net/~cavelamb

The basic problem is defining what is means to "be designed to be
repaired". I own an electronic assembly service and we build
everything electronic from cables to circuit boards to complete units
ready to ship to the end user. Everything we build can be repaired,
and sometimes we do have to repair them. We can do that because we
have the documentation, test equipment, and knowledge to do it. We do
not have documentation and test fixtures to repair and test other
companies devices. So, most consumer products are not repairable
because no one but the manufacture has that ability.

Unlike the radios and TV sets of the 1940-60's, the electronic
manufactures do not release documentation to repair their devices, nor
do they have spare or replacement parts kits.

We get calls every week asking if we can repair some instrument or
device. A number of calls are from people that think they have traced
a problem to a burned resistor or a connector that is broken. When we
explain that a burned resistor is a symptom of the problem and not the
cause, they begin to understand why our shop rate is $50 per hour, but
only work on devices we have actually built.

The only case where we have been able to help someone was a call
several years ago from an airplane mechanic from a small airport about
50 miles South of our plant. He had a plane stuck at the little
airport because several diodes had opened and he couldn't fly it that
way. We found diodes that would work temporarily for him and just gave
them to him.

The whole idea of repairable consumer electronics is based on
ignorance of what is involved.

Paul