Apple has promised to fix a problem with its iPhone 13 that means that screen repairs performed by unofficial parties break its Face ID feature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The model contains a chip that “pairs” a screen with a specific phone and requires special software tools to “match” a new one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Repair firms have found that without those tools, the facial-identification security function no longer works.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Apple, whose repairers use the tools, says it will issue a software update.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The feature has been widely criticised by right-to-repair advocates, who suggest it was included to limit who could repair iPhones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The issue was first reported by iFixit, a company specialising in tools, parts and tech repair guides.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It labelled the new link between screen replacements and Face ID as a “dark day for fixers, both DIY and professional”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Authorised repairs
\nThe repair firm discovered that the new chip ensures that unless the replacement screen is “matched” to the phone’s unique serial number, Face ID does not work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The only known existing work-around for independent or do-it-yourself repairers involves delicate, laborious work to transplant the chip from the old screen to the replacement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The procedure needs specialist equipment and training, which only a fraction of repair shops were capable of, according to iFixit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Apple told news outlets, including The Verge and The Register, a solution would be made available in a future update but gave no date.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It is not clear whether the issue was a bug or – as some right-to-repair advocates argued – part of a wider move by Apple to restrict third-party repairs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Apple has often been labelled one of the main opponents of right-to-repair legislation, reportedly arguing that allowing consumers to repair their own devices could lead to injury.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The company’s co-founder, Steve Wozniak, who made the first Apple machines in a garage with Steve Jobs in the 1970s, has expressed support for the right-to-repair movement, saying Apple would not exist without the kind of tinkering repair enthusiasts are campaigning for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Reacting to Apple’s pledge, iFixit’s Kevin Purdy wrote: “It’s a good day, if media attention and public pushback truly forced Apple’s hand.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But he also warned that it was “an endless fight”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“Apple – and the many companies it inspires – will advance again with more parts lockdowns, more feature reductions, more reasons why only their profitable repair centres can do this work,” he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Apple has promised to fix a problem with its iPhone 13 that means that screen repairs performed by unofficial parties break its Face ID feature. The model contains a chip that “pairs” a screen with a specific phone and requires special software tools to “match” a new one. Repair firms have found that without those … Continue reading “Apple to fix iPhone 13 Face ID screen repair glitch”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3577","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tech-battery.com\/batteriesblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3577","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tech-battery.com\/batteriesblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tech-battery.com\/batteriesblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tech-battery.com\/batteriesblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tech-battery.com\/batteriesblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3577"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.tech-battery.com\/batteriesblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3577\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3578,"href":"https:\/\/www.tech-battery.com\/batteriesblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3577\/revisions\/3578"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tech-battery.com\/batteriesblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3577"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tech-battery.com\/batteriesblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3577"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tech-battery.com\/batteriesblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3577"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}