• Apple has expanded its Self Service Repair options with the launch of a new diagnostic tool.
• The tool gives professional repairers more transparency and autonomy to troubleshoot issues with Apple devices like MacBooks and iPhones.
• The company has also now spread the service to more countries, but South Africa is yet to be included.

On Wednesday Apple announced that it was expanding its Self Service Repair options, which are now available in 33 countries and support 35 Apple products. Self Service Repair is a group of resources and services that make it easier to repair an Apple product, like an iPhone or Mac PC.

These options are tailored for people with experience repairing electronic devices, particularly those who have expertise with Apple devices, like those who work at certain third-party repair shops or what Apple calls “Independent Repair Providers,” as well as “Apple Authorized Service Providers” such as the iStore.

The service launched in the US initially in 2021 first for the iPhone 12 and iPhone 13 lineup in the hopes of adding more repair options for device owners, and has been gradually expanded since then.

Wednesday’s update to the service brings a new diagnostic tool – Apple Diagnostics – that “gives users more transparency and autonomy to troubleshoot issues,” according to an announcement from Apple. As of Wednesday this diagnostic tool is now available in the US and allows the testing of Apple devices for optimal parts functionality and performance, and to identify which parts may need to be replaced.

Self Service Repair is now available for the iPhone 15 range and Mac models that use the M2 chip, including the 14″ and 16″ MacBook Pro, the 15″ MacBook Air, Mac mini, Mac Pro, and Mac Studio. The service is now in 24 new European nations, including Croatia, Denmark, Greece, Netherlands, Portugal, and Switzerland.

Unfortunately, Self Service Repair is not fit for, at least according to Apple, the average consumer. “For users who don’t have experience repairing electronic devices, visiting a professional Apple Authorized Service Provider with certified technicians who use genuine Apple parts — designed and tested to internationally recognized standards — is the safest and most reliable way to get a repair,” the company says.

Apple said that it would make as much resources and information as necessary, including spare parts, available to repair shops across the US to allow more options for users to have their products fixed as part of California’s Right to Repair act.

In the past, Apple has been criticised for imposing unnecessary software barriers for people who work at repairing or refurbishing their products, from Mac PCs to iPhone devices. While the hardware may be in good condition, arbitrary restrictions like “activation locks” keep people from fixing, reusing or reselling older products from the company.

But with Apple publically supporting the Right to Repair in the US, it may be possible that in a few years services included in Self Service Repair will become more consumer-friendly, to allow as many people as possible to fix the devices that they rightfully own through purchase.

Apple’s Self Service Repair options are not yet available for South African repair shops or licensed resellers, according to its support page. However, some information can be accessed online through the US version of the service, such as the Apple repairs manuals for most of its products, including iPhone, Mac notebooks and desktops and displays.

[Image – Photo by Sophia Stark on Unsplash]