A major new report on gadget repair has placed Apple at the very bottom of the list for both iPhones and MacBooks.
The study, now in its fifth year, looked at 105 different phones and laptops from the most popular brands. Researchers graded each company on how easy its devices are to fix, how long they get software updates, and whether the company supports or fights against repair laws.
For smartphones, Apple got a D-, the worst score. Samsung wasn’t far ahead with a D. Motorola came in first with a B+, followed by Google at C-.
For laptops, Apple again finished last with a C-. ASUS took the top spot with a B+. Acer earned a B. HP, Dell, Samsung, and Microsoft all tied at B-. Lenovo got a C.
This year’s report used a brand new scoring system from the European Union for cellphones. The EU now requires a repair label on phones, much like the fuel economy stickers you see on cars in the United States.
The label shows a letter grade from A to E and looks at six things. These include how many steps it takes to swap out a battery, whether you need special tools, if spare parts are available, how long the company provides software updates, and whether repair instructions are easy to find.
The report’s authors said this new EU system fixes a problem with an older French method that did not put enough weight on how easy a device is to take apart. Laptops are not yet covered by the EU system, so the report kept using the French scores for those.
The report noted that Apple has improved its policy on parts pairing. That is the practice of linking a specific part to a specific phone, which makes third-party repairs harder. With the latest iPhone and software update, Apple added a new Repair Assistant and now lets used genuine Apple parts be reused in repairs.
But repair advocates said Apple still has a long way to go. Third-party parts, which can cost half as much as Apple’s own parts, remain mostly blocked. Independent testers also found that Face ID replacement is still restricted. And Apple extended its anti-theft feature to individual parts, which advocates say will keep many parts out of the repair market.