Tearing down tech may be our forte, but we’re always wary of new tablets on our teardown table: high-performance hardware in a small package seems to be a recipe for trouble. Thankfully, HP’s Elite x2 1012 G2 has a good pedigree and a free online repair manual to boot—so naturally, we’re excited to get started.
Last week, we tore down Apple’s newest iPad offering: the iPad 5. But as our teardown showed, the new iPad isn’t all that new. Sure, it got a major hardware boost from the faster A9 processor—but the new iPad is mostly just an updated original iPad Air. The news sparked a lot of questions from our community members about compatibility across models. Would the iPad 5 accept parts from its Air predecessors? Or vice-versa? We decided to find out.
As fixers, we pride ourselves on teaching consumers how to make their tech last as long as possible. But recently, we had the chance to do something a little different. Two of us teardown engineers headed to MD&M West in Anaheim, the “World’s Largest Annual Medtech Event,” to talk about manufacturing with real-life manufacturers.
It’s that time of year again! We’re done with our Apple teardowns and we’ve already started on writing repair guides for the new iPhones. Which means we can get onto the stuff that really matters: internals wallpapers pics for your new iPhone 7 or 7 Plus! With internals wallpapers on your phone, it’s basically like looking straight through the screen and into the heart of your phone. Which means you can show off all the beautiful guts that make your iPhone 7 tick. Find them on iFixit.org/blog.
This week, we got a little treat from HP—a tablet that they actually want you to fix yourself. HP is billing the Elite x2 1012 G1 as a tablet designed for serviceability—complete with online repair documentation and readily available parts. Naturally, our interest was piqued. So, we did a quick teardown in the name of repairability. Spoiler alert: we were impressed.
With the craziness of teardown season behind us, our technical writing crew has settled into writing guides for the latest crop of gizmos. And that means even more awesome photos for you! This time around, we’re bringing you internal wallpaper pics for the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus. Check our blog for your free, x-ray vision wallpapers.
In India, cycling isn’t a pastime; it’s a necessity. On the streets of Mumbai, you’ll see hawkers and farmers alike, peddling modified transport bikes (think pallets, rope, and training wheels)—going to and from the bazaar and customers’ homes. On a recent trip to India, I witnessed a new level of ingenuity: the knife sharpener. And no, I don’t mean a foot-long whetstone.
Valve traditionally operates in the realm of PC gaming—the last true bastion of upgradability and modularity—and it looks like this attitude carried over to this smaller package. A screwdriver, prying tool, and pair of hands were more than enough to unwrap our little gift. All in all, the Steam Controller impressed us, scoring an 8 out of 10 on our repairability scale.