Summary Right to Repair & Consumer Rights Advocates
This iFixit teardown of the 2021 MacBook Pro demonstrates sustained advocacy for repair rights and consumer knowledge access. The content directly engages Articles 19 (free expression), 25 (economic rights), 26 (education), and 27 (scientific knowledge access) through published technical documentation evaluating product repairability. iFixit's structural support for free repair information and right-to-repair advocacy is partially offset by privacy concerns from behavioral tracking (Article 12, DCP modifier -0.15).
Hopefully they don't pull an iPhone and individually serialize batteries that authenticate with other chips on the phone - if they don't match you get an annoying warning and supposedly underclocked CPU causing performance issues even if it's a brand new battery.
I use my machine in closed clamshell around 90% of the time which means the battery is usually in pretty terrible shape after a couple years of use. Will be happy to see battery replacement times hopefully go down on these new machines as waiting 5-7 days isn't fun to deal with.
AFAIK, replacing the battery on the previous generation meant replacing the top part of the body, to which the battery was glued. That included replacing the keyboard and the touchpad (not 100% sure if the old keyboard and touchpad could have been kept; maybe they were replaced just because of the damage done to them by the expanding batteries). At the same time, the previous generation had battery problems and keyboard problems (as pointed out in sub-comments), which meant many were replaced for free even out of warranty (as it happened to me due to faulty battery).
I suspect someone at Apple realized how much would have been saved if only the battery was not glued to the case.
Edit: mentioned the keyboard problem, which would result in replacing the battery too it seems.
It’s the right thing to do from a service prospective, the last design had it built into the top case. I’m sure they hit supply issues with all the keyboard failures on the old model. Are the speakers in the old model removable? If not more topcase constraints ha.
In a world where Apple is pushing on-device CSAM scanning and serial number locking cameras to motherboards, it's nice to see that some of their products still respect users' rights.
Now if only we could get an iPhone Pro with this kind of respect for right to repair.
A lot of comments seem focused on the incentives to apple and what's motivating the change. All fair questions. To me, though, it feels like just a radically different approach this year.
2016 macbook felt like leadership got in a room and said "okay, let's make a list of all the sexy things we can think of that would make the macbook unique". This netted things like thin-beyond-practicality, touchbar, removing all the ports, etc.
2021 macbook feels like leadership got in a room and said "okay, let's make a list of all the top things everybody is complaining about most." And they just fixed everything (well, most things) on that list one-by-one.
Replaceable battery, after removing the trackpad to access the final set of cells. Not the easiest projecdure and still is going to result in users doing what they do today, handing the machine off to a technician rather than be able to change the batteries on their device themselves. What a fall from grace from the first unibody macbook, where you could remove the battery with no tools and five seconds of your time since they engineered a door with a latch. I guess we celebrate what small affordances we can get these days.
Really sucks to see how awesome the new MBP is. It's too bad the CSAM scandal had to happen; never buying another Apple product again because of that shit.
They are late though. Last year I have switched to Debian because of very few DIY repair options in MacBooks. And I discovered OS superiority as well. Everything in Debian (Gnome) is so fast - opening PDF files, Files (finder), Terminal, EMacs. Debian running on i5 is much faster then macOS running on i7.
I still remember when you didn't even have to open up the "MBP" and could replace the battery directly from the bottom. Even had green led indicator to show how much charge it had directly on the battery case.
Stockholm syndrome doesn’t look like Stockholm syndrome.
Everyone cheering apple on for making the laptop they should have made in 2016. Wow! No Touch Bar it’s so much better.
Semi replaceable batteries! How great.
The funny thing is, if they had dropped the ports on this generation instead of the last, less people would have cared.
Apple seems to be taking a more repair-friendly approach for high-end products recently (except the iPhone and iPad).
AirPods Max are also great:
- User-replaceable earcups with no tools needed;
- User-replaceable headband, just needs a paperclip;
- Somewhat user-replaceable battery - you can have them do it for $79 out of warranty, but a repair shop can definitely do it as well because it's just screws.
Huge props to the hilarious polishing cloth teardown, complete with American Psycho quote, shade thrown at what else you could get for $19, and how it's actually two polishing cloths if you cut it in half.
That would be nice, but would mean reversing all the decisions from 2016. Also, I'm happy about having more ports, but not all my devices are USB-C, especially pendrives. A noticeable part of my routine is dealing with various dongles just because someone thought they will decide what I need and in which direction I should be pushed. In the meantime, all other vendors continue to support USB-A.
The 2016 wasn't leadership, it was Johnny Ive without Steve Jobs bringing him back to reality.
Touch Bar? This was nothing more than adding expense to raise the ASP (Average Selling Price) of Macbooks, that had fallen precipitously low from a shareholder perspective because of the superb value-for-money proposition that was the 13" Macbook Air.
The butterfly keyboard was Ive shaving off 0.5mm of the width for a worse user experience with a higher production cost and less reliability.
USB-C only was a philosophical move rather than a practical one that forced people everywhere to carry dongles. The USB-C cable situation was and continues to be a nightmare as different cables support different subsets of data, power and video and, worse yet, different versions of each of those. Worst of all, it was the loss of the much-beloved MagSafe. Also, the ports weren't all the same. You were better off charging from the right (IIRC) rather than the left.
Replaceable RAM and SSD being lost is still painful. Personally I don't believe this was about forcing users to pay for upgrades primarily. It was about shaving off a small amount of volume.
Ive is gone and every one of those decisions has been reversed or at least significantly amended. This is no accident.
I'm not positive, but by removing the headphone jack, they sell more AirPods and force bluetooth on which enables the airtag and find my network to be more way more functional.
Do people still use wired headphones on the go? It’s been a while since I’ve seen any. You can get decent Bluetooth wireless headphones for ~$20 now. I remember spending $10 every few months when I was using wired headphones back in the day. Every few months because the wired inevitably broke or frayed (don’t forget you have to put them somewhere when you’re not using them). It was hell with jackets and layers in the winter.
In any case where I care enough to listen wired, I also care enough to get a separate DAC. The cheap Bluetooth is competitive with the cheap wired these days and last longer.
I really don't understand why macbooks are set up to still draw off the battery when under AC power. You can only get a mac to run off ac power only if you start it up with the battery physically removed iirc. I had a macbook where I was spinning fans for most of the day and I got it down to 85% battery capacity within a year since it keeps straining the battery even when its just sitting on my desk running off a 90W power adapter at 100% charge. Its like, whats the point of paying for these workhorse laptops if you are going to be blowing through batteries once you actually start to utilize the power you are paying egregiously for? Might as well get a powerful mac mini and connect to it with ssh from a much cheaper laptop.
I wander if the new keyboard design with plastic rather than aluminium between the keys will also make it easer to replace it too, it almost looks like the module that could be swapped. I'm sure we will find out from iFixit soon!
I suppose it also means that the top case is no longer tied to different keyword layouts, fewer SKUs. That will have helped cut costs!
Yep I had annual keyboard replacements on all the butterfly macs I owned. I considered it a nice feature that the keyboard had this defect because it also meant a free annual battery replacement.
And heaer I thought I was the only person who just can't get enthused about their new MacBooks, knowing that CSAM could just get added at any point in the future without my consent.
Wow, I totally forgot about that period. I recall that I used to plug in my laptop when I arrived at my desk, then remove the battery to ensure that it was running exclusively on wall power in an effort to improve battery health. I never did have to replace that battery...
I similarly went through batteries every couple of years. I now use FruitJuice (on the App Store) as the menu bar battery indicator. If it finds that the computer hasn't been used on battery long enough, about once a month the app guides me through running a maintenance cycle to run it down to 20%. I presume that following FruitJuice's advice is why my latest third-party battery is still at 103% health after more than a year.
$20 is a ton for a cleaning cloth, but a small price to pay for consumers of apple products.
Here is the alternative (personal experience)
1. You search on amazon
2. Get presented with 1000 products
3. Read some reviews, wonder if this is the best product for your iPhone, will it work on the laptop
4. decide you don't really need a cleaning cloth
The apple solution, solves your problem for a price.
I haven't bought the apple cloth, but have and am considering it.
Man, I wish they would go back to having battery indicator on the case again. Truly miss that as I don't want to wake it just to find out if I need to seek a plug.
Maybe you also remember batteries wore terrible, especially durability. It was quite common to see people replacing batteries on less than 1 year old laptops. Nowadays batteries easily endure 2 to 5 years without becoming useless. Sure, there are still memory issues and reducing total time over the years. But replacement is required way less often.
Editorial Channel
What the content says
+0.40
Article 19Freedom of Expression
High Advocacy Framing
Editorial
+0.40
SETL
+0.14
Core engagement: iFixit publishes technical product analysis and critical evaluation freely; teardown is protected expression assessing product design; aspirational title frames design choices within advocacy narrative.
FW Ratio: 50%
Observable Facts
Page published as publicly accessible news article on iFixit platform
iFixit provides free publishing platform for technical teardowns and product criticism
Inferences
Publishing technical product criticism constitutes protected expression under Article 19
Platform's free publication model structurally supports freedom of expression for consumer advocacy
Title framing represents editorial expression protected by free speech principles
+0.40
Article 27Cultural Participation
High Advocacy Framing
Editorial
+0.40
SETL
+0.14
Core engagement: Teardown is technical knowledge documentation shared publicly; advocates for consumer right to access and understand product designs; directly advances principle of shared benefit from scientific advancement.
FW Ratio: 50%
Observable Facts
iFixit's stated mission focuses on repair rights and access to repair documentation
Teardown content published freely as public technical knowledge without paywall
Navigation prominently features 'Right to Repair' section
Inferences
Publishing repair documentation serves Article 27 principle of sharing benefits of scientific/technical advancement
iFixit's transparent mission directly advocates consumers' right to benefit from technical knowledge about owned products
+0.35
Article 25Standard of Living
High Advocacy
Editorial
+0.35
SETL
+0.19
Repair access directly supports adequate standard of living by reducing consumer costs and enabling resource conservation; title frames repairability as design value enabling product longevity.
FW Ratio: 50%
Observable Facts
Teardown content enables consumers to extend product lifespans through repair rather than replacement
Free access removes cost barriers to repair knowledge participation
Inferences
Repair access supports Article 25 right to adequate standard of living by reducing consumer expenditures
Resource efficiency through repair supports sustainable consumption and waste reduction
+0.35
Article 26Education
High Advocacy Framing
Editorial
+0.35
SETL
+0.13
Teardown is technical and scientific educational documentation; publicly discloses product engineering and design details; directly supports right to share in scientific advancement.
FW Ratio: 50%
Observable Facts
Content is technical documentation of product disassembly and engineering analysis
iFixit platform provides free access to educational repair guides and teardowns
Inferences
Teardown documentation serves as scientific knowledge supporting public education about product design
Free platform removes economic barriers to technical education about consumer product engineering
+0.20
PreamblePreamble
Low Advocacy
Editorial
+0.20
SETL
+0.10
Title framing 'A Glimpse at a Better Timeline' suggests aspirational advocacy for improved product design aligned with consumer and human dignity principles.
FW Ratio: 60%
Observable Facts
Page title uses aspirational framing: 'A Glimpse at a Better Timeline'
Content published as technical teardown freely accessible on iFixit platform
iFixit navigation includes 'Right to Repair' advocacy section
Site implements Google Tag Manager, Facebook pixel, and third-party analytics (Diffuser) with consent-gating. Consent mechanism is present but tracking occurs unless explicitly opted out, shifting burden to user.
Terms of Service
—
No ToS content visible in provided page data.
Identity & Mission
Mission
+0.25
Article 27
iFixit's core mission emphasizes repair rights and access to repair documentation, directly aligned with economic and consumer rights.
Editorial Code
—
No editorial code visible in provided page data.
Ownership
—
Ownership structure not evident from page code provided.
Access & Distribution
Access Model
+0.15
Article 19 Article 27
iFixit provides free access to repair guides and information, reducing barriers to knowledge and consumer information.
Ad/Tracking
-0.10
Article 12
Multiple advertising and behavioral tracking pixels present (GTM, Facebook Pixel, Diffuser). Ad personalization and user data collection enabled by default.
Accessibility
+0.10
Article 2
Page includes skip-to-content link for keyboard navigation and proper heading hierarchy in CSS, indicating accessibility awareness.
+0.35
Article 19Freedom of Expression
High Advocacy Framing
Structural
+0.35
Context Modifier
ND
SETL
+0.14
Platform architecture enables free publication and distribution of user-generated repair analysis without editorial gatekeeping or censorship.
+0.35
Article 27Cultural Participation
High Advocacy Framing
Structural
+0.35
Context Modifier
ND
SETL
+0.14
DCP modifier +0.25: iFixit's mission emphasizes access to repair information and consumer right to understand/modify owned products; free technical knowledge platform without IP restrictions on consumer access.
+0.30
Article 26Education
High Advocacy Framing
Structural
+0.30
Context Modifier
ND
SETL
+0.13
iFixit provides free educational repair guides and technical documentation platform; removes economic barriers to technical education.
+0.25
Article 25Standard of Living
High Advocacy
Structural
+0.25
Context Modifier
ND
SETL
+0.19
Free repair documentation reduces barriers to consumer economic self-sufficiency and resource conservation practices.
+0.15
PreamblePreamble
Low Advocacy
Structural
+0.15
Context Modifier
ND
SETL
+0.10
Site provides free technical documentation supporting human rights principles; privacy tracking creates countervailing signal per DCP.
+0.15
Article 1Freedom, Equality, Brotherhood
Low Advocacy
Structural
+0.15
Context Modifier
ND
SETL
0.00
Free access model ensures equal structural access to repair knowledge regardless of user economic status.
+0.15
Article 17Property
Low Advocacy
Structural
+0.15
Context Modifier
ND
SETL
+0.10
Free documentation of repair information structurally supports consumer property rights and modification.
ND
Article 2Non-Discrimination
Low
Free access model eliminates economic barriers that could create discriminatory access patterns to repair information.
ND
Article 3Life, Liberty, Security
No observable engagement
ND
Article 4No Slavery
No observable engagement
ND
Article 5No Torture
No observable engagement
ND
Article 6Legal Personhood
No observable engagement
ND
Article 7Equality Before Law
Low
Free access to repair information provides equal structural support regardless of user status or resources.
ND
Article 8Right to Remedy
No observable engagement
ND
Article 9No Arbitrary Detention
No observable engagement
ND
Article 10Fair Hearing
No observable engagement
ND
Article 11Presumption of Innocence
No observable engagement
ND
Article 12Privacy
Medium Practice
DCP identifies Google Tag Manager, Facebook Pixel, and third-party behavioral tracking (Diffuser); consent-gating present but tracking default-enabled, shifting burden to users.
ND
Article 13Freedom of Movement
No observable engagement
ND
Article 14Asylum
No observable engagement
ND
Article 15Nationality
No observable engagement
ND
Article 16Marriage & Family
No observable engagement
ND
Article 18Freedom of Thought
No observable engagement
ND
Article 20Assembly & Association
Low
Site includes Community section and repair advocate forums supporting freedom of association.
ND
Article 21Political Participation
No observable engagement
ND
Article 22Social Security
No observable engagement
ND
Article 23Work & Equal Pay
Low Advocacy
No direct structural engagement observable
ND
Article 24Rest & Leisure
No observable engagement
ND
Article 28Social & International Order
Low
iFixit's repair advocacy contributes to international right-to-repair movement; global platform supports order favoring consumer rights.
ND
Article 29Duties to Community
Low
Site structure includes community engagement and repair education, supporting duty to develop repair knowledge communities.
ND
Article 30No Destruction of Rights
No observable engagement
Supplementary Signals
How this content communicates, beyond directional lean. Learn more
build 6ae9671+7klc · deployed 2026-02-28 16:24 UTC · evaluated 2026-02-28 16:29:11 UTC
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