iFixit finds iPhone 12 camera repair impossible without proprietary Apple tool

iFixit finds iPhone 12 camera repair impossible without proprietary Apple tool(9to5mac.com)

43 points by tlburke 5 years ago | 22 comments

The iPhone 12 camera, when transferred to another iPhone 12, appears to work on launch, but fails miserably in actual use. It refuses to switch to the ultrawide camera, responds only to certain camera modes, and occasionally hangs and becomes completely unresponsive.

There is zero doubt in my mind that this is completely deliberate, and doing some deep reverse-engineering would likely yield how it is done (if anyone does decide to investigate it, that is an article I would love to read about.) It's like the copy protection schemes in games that appear to be defeated easily, but have more hidden traps later on.

The wankers at Apple who implement this sort of thing should be ashamed of themselves. I hope the Chinese cracks this, as they are apt to do for the third-party repair industry, just to show that it can still be done.

pacamara619 5 years ago | |

> There is zero doubt in my mind that this is completely deliberate

It is, and there is proof. A two cameras have been swapped and didn't work, they worked again when swapped back so there was no damage while disasembling it.

Louis Rossmann has pointed this out in one of his recent YouTube videos, just like he points out so many other scams Apple is getting away with.

qppo 5 years ago | | |

This doesn't sound like a scam, it sounds like the peripheral is calibrated and mapped to the device in software. It doesn't surprise me that it would fail, kind of like that video where someone swapped the board out and expected everything to work when to the device it appears every single peripheral has had a failure condition and needs to be recalibrated and verified.

I don't have an issue with requiring software tools to repair software problems in modern electronics. The issue at hand is whether that tool is available for consumers and repair shops, which I doubt.

mdaniel 5 years ago |

I mean this honestly, and not as a snide comment: is this even news, or surprising one iota to anyone?

Maybe it's interesting to post this in order to further raise people's awareness about the lack of "right to repair" of Apple hardware, but I'm pretty sure if they found a way to patent a screw, and then prosecute those making screwdrivers for it, they 100% would

tlburke 5 years ago | |

It's unsurprising, but it's also another nail in the 'the restrictions on users are for security purposes' coffin. Not allowing 3rd party replacements of the entire mainboard? Okay, understandable. The battery? Mmmmaybe if you're imaginative enough (replacing the battery in a VIP's phone that's rigged to explode). But the camera? Who does this protect?

thingsgoup 5 years ago | | |

I disagree with your premises entirely. Neither of those first two things should be irreparable, and certainly not for those reasons.

Edit: to clarify the intention of my statement I am agreeing with you and going one step further by saying the coffin is already nailed shut and needs no more nails.

jacobwilliamroy 5 years ago | |

Yeah it's news. Gotta communicate to solve problems. I've already forwarded this to my friends who work in repair shops.

cblconfederate 5 years ago |

It's part of the "switch to Services"

Red_Leaves_Flyy 5 years ago | |

Apple service is pretty terrible from what I've read here and heard from friends, and seen on reddit, or the news, and etc.

qppo 5 years ago | | |

It's better than Googles

bengale 5 years ago |

My understanding is their software decisions made stolen phones worthless for resale. Except they can torn down and sold for parts to dodgy repair shops. These changes continue the quest to make the theft of these devices a worthless endeavour for criminals.

It is the case the verified repair shops are able to make these repairs and have the correct tools isn’t it?

brailsafe 5 years ago | |

Is there anything preventing a phone from being completely wiped?

bengale 5 years ago | | |

My understanding is that if you have find my iPhone enabled and you mark it as stolen then nothing can be done to recover the device without access to your iCloud to unlock it.

batt4good 5 years ago |

I could honestly care less... Apple Care is a measly fee in comparison to the cost of the phone. The one time I had a third party repair shop fix my phone, the battery was permanently damaged and I had to get a new phone.

ksec 5 years ago | |

$149 for a $699 iPhone 12 isn't exactly a measly fee.

At this point Apple should just start iPhone with AppleCare Subscription.

batt4good 5 years ago | | |

Most people who intend to really use their iPhone purchase a model that's at least $1k. Budget minded folks don't buy Apple products - Apple care isn't intended for the budget minded individual.

dmitrygr 5 years ago |

Is it possible that it just needs calibration that is unique for item?

thebruce87m 5 years ago | |

Absolutely. If you wanted it not to work, then the first thing you would do is check the serial and spit out an error. You wouldn’t accept some commands and randomly hang on others.