Tag Archives: Apple

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Repair, Tips, iPhone

iFixYouri’s Expert Advice: 5 Essential Tips to Recover Your Water-Damaged Smartphone

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The seamless integration of smartphones into our lives has made them indispensable tools for communication, entertainment, and productivity. However, a water-damaged smartphone can disrupt this seamless experience. Whether it’s an unexpected rain shower or an inadvertent plunge into a pool, water damage can wreak havoc on your device.

Fortunately, actionable steps can be taken to recover your water-damaged smartphone and prevent enduring harm. In this article, we’ll delve into iFixYouri‘s top 5 proactive tips for reclaiming your water-damaged smartphone.

Water-Damaged Smartphone
Photo by Bannon Morrissy on Unsplash

Swift Action and Powering Down

To effectively recover from water damage, time is of the essence. Retrieving your phone from the water source promptly is essential. Prolonged submersion increases the risk of irreversible harm.
Immediately after retrieving your device, power it down. This action is critical to avert potential short circuits that moisture can trigger when it contacts the electrical components. To avoid exacerbating the damage, resist the temptation to test if your phone still functions.

Eliminate Excess Moisture

Remove the case and gently wipe the outside with a soft, lint-free cloth. Follow your phone manufacturer’s instructions before opening any tray or removing components. For iPhone, Apple advises letting the phone dry before opening the SIM tray. Do not insert objects into the charging port or use compressed air to force moisture out.

Allow Airflow, Not Rice

Do not put your phone in rice or rely on a sealed bag to repair liquid damage. Leave it in a dry place with airflow and follow the guidance for your exact model. Disconnect charging cables and do not reconnect them while the phone or connector is wet. Apple’s liquid-detection guidance explains that rice particles can damage an iPhone and recommends airflow instead. A dry exterior does not establish that internal damage has been repaired.

Avoid Heat Sources

Despite the allure of hastening the drying process using heat, this approach must be resisted. Refrain from utilizing direct heat sources like hairdryers, ovens, or microwaves. Elevated temperatures can inflict damage upon delicate internal components and escalate the predicament. Adhere to the gradual drying techniques previously mentioned.

Water-Damaged Smartphone? Enlist Professional Assistance

If your phone was submerged, is malfunctioning or contains important data, contact iFixYouri to discuss an assessment rather than waiting for a rice treatment or repeatedly powering it on to test it. Explain which liquid was involved and when the exposure happened. Repair and data recovery depend on the damage and cannot be guaranteed.

Water damage to smartphones is undoubtedly distressing, yet swift action and diligent care can potentially reverse the situation. iFixYouri’s top 5 tips for water damage recovery underscore the importance of swift response, powering down the device, eliminating excess moisture, adopting safe drying practices, and enlisting professional aid when warranted. Remember, preventive measures offer the ultimate shield, so contemplate investing in waterproof cases or pouches to forestall potential mishaps in the future.

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New iPad Under the Skin: Just an Updated iPad Air?

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Last week on the iFixYouri blog, we mentioned the new iPad, now being widely referred to as iPad 5. We wrote that this new 9.7-inch iPad seems to be just a first-gen iPad Air with a few tweaks and less Air-ness (thicker, heavier). It turns out that we weren’t totally wrong. The device-dismantling extraordinaires at iFixit found evidence of this when they performed a teardown of the device.

“So remember how we said this was similar to the first Air? We were serious—take a look inside the Air 1 and iPad 5 respectively. Not much has changed.”

The teardown pros were even able to perfectly attach a iPad Air 1 display to the iPad 5. The main difference, they noted, is that the LCD and glass are unlaminated, hurting picture quality a tiny bit while making repairs a whole lot easier. Apple claimed this screen is “new” and will be better than ever, but iFixit doubts that claim.

“In Apple’s press release announcing the iPad 5, they told us it comes equipped with a “brighter 9.7-inch Retina display.” Our question is: brighter than what? It doesn’t look that different from the Air 1’s display. If they mean brighter than the Air 2, then that may simply be due to reverting to the unfused display design of the Air 1.”

On the outside, it’s obvious Apple manufactured a new casing. There are a few major differences from the Air housing: the lack of a mechanical lock switch, a single row of speaker holes, and microphone holes instead of a larger microphone “vent.” Inside, there’s a Touch ID sensor and the associated hardware necessary for running that. However, this takes the repairability down a few notches.

“Thumbs up for fingerprint reading. Thumbs down for a harder repair, since the sensor is uniquely paired to its logic board at the factory. At least this lovely button is still a button (unlike the solid-state un-button that debuted on 7-series iPhones).”

There you have it. The screen on the iPad 5 will be easier to replace (and that’s the most common repair) but the addition of a Touch ID button will cause the same problems as with those repairs in the iPhone 7 and 2016 MacBook Pro. So go ahead; buy the new iPad 5, safe in the confidence that iFixYouri will be able to repair whatever you do to it. Just bring it to any of our walk-in locations or use our convenient mail-in repair service.

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Apple’s New, Upgraded iPad Barely New, Barely Upgraded

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We got so excited about the new red iPhone 7 this week, we almost forgot about the other product announcements from Apple. In a quiet press release (no “one more thing”!) the tech giant debuted…the iPad. Perhaps intended as a replacement for the iPad Air 2, the (new) iPad is officially the fifth-generation iPad, marking the Air and Pro lines as offshoots from the official main line. If this is the case, it’s odd that the end result is essentially a cross between the Air 2, the original Air, and the 9.7” Pro while not really being any of those.

 

As part of their announcement, Apple announced that they would not be updating any of the current iPad lines besides the two-year-old Air 2. The 9.7-inch iPad will include an Apple A9 chip, which is an improvement over the A8X in the two-year-old Air 2 but not as powerful as the Pro’s A9X. It’s a little thicker and a little heavier than the Pro and Air 2 (which have the exact same dimensions), being a little more than a millimeter thicker and ever so slightly heavier. The screen takes a major downgrade even from the comparatively ancient iPad Air 2. The LCD which is no longer laminated to the front glass like in the Pro, Air 2, and Mini 4. Our repair technicians are jumping for joy (much easier to repair and replace) but that tiny gap between the LCD and glass will hurt brightness and contrast. There’s also no anti-glare coating.

 

The cameras are borrowed from the Air 2: you get an 8MP flashless rear shooter and a 1.2 FaceTime camera on the front, whereas the Pro has 15MP and 5MP respectively. We mentioned the processing cheap being a bit of a downgrade from the Pro but you get the same 2GB of RAM; presumably, Apple doesn’t want consumers to miss out on the multitasking features introduced in iOS 9 or suffer any slowdown. Of course, you get TouchID and a headphone jack, but that’s about it. You won’t have a lot of the desirable features of the Pro, such as the gorgeous True Tone display and DCI-P3 color gamut support, or support for productivity accessories like the Apple Pencil or Smart Keyboard. So why would anyone buy such a Frankenstein’s monster of a device, about as confused with its identity as we are with its function? The price. In a surprise move, this 5th-generation iPad will be…a budget iPad.

 

As per usual, the new iPad will be available in Wi-Fi-only and cellular, and in two different memory sizes. 32GB models cost $329 for Wi-Fi and $459 for cellular, and 128GB models are $429 and $559 respectively. Rose gold is missing from the lineup (boo!) but the usual space grey, silver, and gold colors will be offered. The 9.7” and 12.9” iPad Pros are still being sold for the same prices and capacities as before.

 

Us here at iFixYouri are a little confused as to what exactly Apple’s plan is here. We get that they want to bring the iPad line back into focus and are seemingly debuting this as their next tablet flagship, but what of the iPad Pro? Was that not the flagship, Tim Cook’s darling? Offering a cheaper gateway into the line is smart but not really part of Apple’s credo. The iFixYouri technicians are happy, though: non-laminated screens means faster (and potentially cheaper!) repairs for our customers.

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(PRODUCT) RED + iPhone = Drool-Worthy 7 and 7+

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We’ve talked before about color-customizing your tech, making your day-to-day smart devices help you stick out from the crowd. Now you can do it without breaking the bank, thanks to Apple and (RED). For the past 10 years, Apple’s partnership with (RED) has raised over a hundred million dollars to highlight the AIDS fundraising campaign, primarily through the sale of products and apps designed around a red color scheme. On World AIDS Day back in November, Apple turned its App Store and several top apps bright red in support. This year, they’re doing something special: iPhone 7 and 7+ in a bright, aluminum red. In the past, Apple has offered special red cases for the iPhone previously, but this is the first time the phone itself will be offered in a red finish. It’s been a long time coming, too: most people associate the partnership with red-colored devices, starting with the iPod Nano and continuing down the MP3-player line, including the Shuffle and, most recently, Touch.

 

“Apple is the world’s largest corporate donor to the Global Fund, contributing more than $130 million as part of its partnership with (RED),” said Deborah Dugan, (RED)’s CEO. “Combining the global reach of the world’s most loved smartphone with our efforts to provide access to life-saving ARV medication in sub-Saharan Africa, customers now have a remarkable opportunity to make a difference and contribute to the Global Fund through the purchase of this new beautiful (PRODUCT)RED iPhone.”

 

It’s nice to see Apple getting a bit more colorful for a change. The company is usually loath to offer alternate color options. Everyone was shocked (and pleasantly surprised) to see a rose-gold iPhone 6S, and the last color change to its iPhone lineup was warmly received even if it was just a different black finish (talking about, of course, the gorgeous glossy jet black for the iPhone 7). The new red finish is striking, softened by the matte aluminum finish, and although it’s “only” for a good cause, it is nice to see a relaxing of the strict black-or-white binary most consumers within the Apple ecosystem have been forced to choose from.

 

“Since we began working with (RED) 10 years ago, our customers have made a significant impact in fighting the spread of AIDS through the purchase of our products, from the original iPod Nano (PRODUCT)RED Special Edition all the way to today’s lineup of Beats products and accessories for iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “The introduction of this special edition iPhone in a gorgeous red finish is our biggest (PRODUCT)RED offering to date in celebration of our partnership with (RED), and we can’t wait to get it into customers’ hands.”

 

The (PRODUCT) RED finish will be available for the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus (including replacements through AppleCare) starting Friday, March 24th in 128GB and 256GB models, at the usual price starting at $749. The face of the phone will be white, so iFixYouri will be able to replace the screen at the regular price of non-red devices.

News

Tired of White AirPods? Paint It, Matte Black

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It didn’t take long after the Apple AirPods (delayed) release for consumers to already find gripes. The most petty of those complained, “Why are they only in white!? Why not jet black or rose gold or space grey! We want options!” Apple has done what they do best: ignored them. On one hand, they’re totally right in doing so. On the other, what’s wrong with wanting your tech to match your own personal aesthetic? The little white buds in your ears are intended to be just as iconic as the old earbuds were in iPod advertising, so it’s doubtful that Apple will provide a rainbow anytime soon. But if we learned anything from high school economics class, where there is demand, there is supply. So who’s got the plasti-dip?

Apple products are notoriously difficult to paint. Whatever proprietary glossy plastic the company uses is totally vandal-proof, which is normally a good thing…unless you actually want to mark your products somehow. The toughest, most durable paints are no match for the shiny white plastic that comprises most Apple tech. Even this writer attempted to put a dot on one Apple earbud to know, at a glance, right from left. The industrial-strength paint marker rubbed off inside of 48 hours. This unreal level of stain-resistance is especially problematic for those with an individual flair who like to color-mod their devices. That’s where the professionals come in.

Shortly after the AirPods release, a Brooklyn-based “team of skilled artisans” snatched up a snappy URL and began offering BlackPods. These are presumably black-painted AirPods, although it’s hard to glean details when their website only offers low-res renders of the product. They appear to be a matte finish, and that’s your only option; if the company can do other colors, they’re not offering them at this time. The price? $249 (about a $90 premium over the original) or $99 if you send them your own pair.

Black not your color? The good folks at ColorWare will send you AirPods in one of 58 colors, and you can choose between matte or gloss finish. They’ll even do each earbud and the case all in different colors, if you so choose. At $339 ($140 and $40 extra for a painted charger/case, on top of the $159 cost) so at that point, you should just forgo black-on-black and go with someone that expresses your individuality a bit more. We’re currently trying to convince our CEO to buy these slick AirPods in iFixYouri colors for everyone in the office…

…and maybe a matte-green iMac for each desk. Got to represent the team colors, you know?

Yes, ColorWare does expert paint jobs for all kinds of consumer tech devices. They have a long history (it’s a family-owned business dating back to 2000) and, more importantly, a beautiful website. It’s easy to burn up your lunch break playing with the visualizer and drooling over color combinations for your future disposable-income purchases. What’s your favorite look? Take a screenshot and leave it in the comments below!

Because ColorWare and similar companies must disassemble the device to paint it, the warranty is obviously voided in full. ColorWare does provide their own separate warranty for painted devices, but in case something goes wrong with your AirPods or other painted Apple product, you can’t rely on AppleCare like you normally would. That’s where iFixYouri comes in. If you have a color-modded smartphone, computer, or camera and the screen breaks or battery dies or one of a million little things goes wrong with it, bring it to one of our 15 locations or use our mail-in service and the iFixYouri technicians will diagnose the problem (for free!) then repair it using high-quality parts and precision tools. And we’ll be sure to not scratch the finish.

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Apple Breaks Sales Records in End of 2016…but How Well Are They Doing?

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The results for the final quarter of 2016 are in, and Apple came out as the winner. With 78.4 billion dollars, the tech giant broke its own incredible records for quarterly earnings. CEO Tim Cook presented these findings, citing record sales company-wide, including the iPhone, Mac, Apple Watch, and Services divisions. However, Apple had the advantage of a fiscal quarter that ran a little longer than their competitors. Due to (totally legal and normal) calendar quirks, Apple’s Q1 was 14 weeks instead of the usual 13. It is worth noting that the calendar year doesn’t line up with the Apple’s fiscal year, which ends on September 24th, so 9/25-12/31 is Apple’s first fiscal quarter in their 2017 fiscal year. In the earnings report, Apple CFO Luca Maestri openly addresses the extra week while mentioning a number of handicaps that he claims counteract the year-over-year boost. Among them, the company received a one-off $548 million patent infringement payment in the same quarter last year, the iPhone 7 being released earlier in September than the iPhone 6S was last year (causing more revenue to be accrued in Q4 instead of the following quarter), and supply issues in the new products failing to meet customers’ demands. No mention of demand for the iPhone 7 being so low that Apple scaled down production almost immediately after its release, but the company traditionally refuses to discuss sale counts.

Financial mumbo-jumbo aside, clearly getting a big leg-up from the 14th week was the iPhone. 2016 overall wasn’t a strong year for iPhone sales; it was actually the first full year of decline, with a 7% drop. But the added seven days helped Q1 2017 iPhone sales beat out the last quarter of 2015 by 4.7%. On a bigger scale, Apple is now the largest provider of smartphones worldwide, finally beating out close rivals Samsung Electronics. This isn’t so much a huge achievement for Apple as it is a down note for Samsung, and no, the Note 7 issues weren’t much to blame. The South Korean mega-corporation is slowly losing its foothold over smartphone-crazed Asia, and Chinese competitors are popping up with high-quality phones at lower price points and better innovations. Take OPPO, for instance, arguably the most successful smartphone company in China (exact numbers are difficult to come by). They took the Chinese smartphone market by storm after popping up in 2008, and since then have debuted both the world’s thinnest phone (2/3rd the thickness of an iPhone 7) and possibly the first “selfie-phone” with a 16-megapixel front-facing camera (and a paltry 12MP shooter on the back). Other Chinese brands like Vivo (owned by the same parent as OPPO) and Huawei are close behind, and their presence is leaking into other major Asian markets such as India. Samsung just can’t keep up.

So, yes, Apple made a fair amount of money in late 2016, but when you look past the headline, it wasn’t as earth-shattering as it is at first glance. In our opinion, you’d expect a lot more to happen when a company of Apple’s size and stature releases a new phone, new laptop, new smartwatch, and debuted their first wireless headphones…all in the span of a few weeks. The sign of a truly successful quarter in this case would see Apple sweeping the tech world, annihilating everyone in their path. Instead, each product was met with grumbles about price, gimmicky features, and/or availability.

As both consumers and other manufacturers look to Apple to innovate within the tech industry, the pressure builds. Criticism is coming in whispers, of the product ecosystem growing stale, of Tim Cook’s inability to fill the massive shoes left behind by the late Steve Jobs, of the famed cult of die-hard fans becoming disheartened with the most recent device lineup. Apple can’t rest on their laurels (despite the nice stock jump the announcement gave them) and they need to let this good news push them through 2017, where we’ll hopefully see, at the least, a new iPad model.

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AirPods: Good Enough, but Worth the Wait? (Or the Price?)

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The wait is over, and Apple’s AirPods have arrived. For $159, you get a plastic box resembling a Tic-Tac container with rounded corners, but instead of mints, there are wireless earbuds inside! Superficially, they resemble the old EarPods with the cords cut, but they’re a little beefier; the thicker stalk presumably holds the W1 chip (in all its connective glory) and enough battery for the promised 5 hours of use.

The AirPods fit decently well. They’re slightly larger than the wired EarPods for a more secure fit, but that means you’re out of luck if you already have issue with getting the stock Apple buds staying put. If they fit, though, they fit. After a few migraine-inducing head-shakes and creaky jumping jacks, the AirPods stay put. Sweaty exercise (although we’re ashamed to admit that our three jumping-jacks met that criteria) might be a whole other animal, however. Pairing them to a device is as simple as advertised; just open the lid of the case and hold it a few inches away from your iPhone, hit “Connect” on the prompt, and…that’s it, let the tunes flow.

The sound quality is about what you’d expect from this price point. Full, rich sound, nowhere near wired over-the-ears, but the bass response is surprisingly adequate. Many are pleased by how much nicer the quality is over the EarPods, but $159 headphones should always sound better than the freebie ones. We played genres from classical to club music and it all sounded fairly good, and the bass didn’t get crunchy even at higher volumes while vocals stayed crisp.

As a controller, the AirPods work great. Pull one out of your ear and the music stops after a second; pop it back in and it continues. You can also call up Siri by double-tapping. If you don’t use Siri regularly, it seems especially odd to call her up without a visual interface and you might not initially know what to do with her besides play the next track or find an album or playlist, but off the top of my head, I like the idea of having Siri jot down memos or add to my shopping list. If you’re not a Siri fan, just open the settings via your iPhone and change the double-tap to simply pause and play.

Overall, we think the AirPods are solid but not mindblowing. It’s sort of absurd that early iPhone 7 adopters had to wait so long and pay so much for something so ordinary. The price point is a little unnerving, especially when you consider the $69 price to replace a lost bud regardless of warranty. But they do work, and they work well. If Apple is able to start bundling the AirPods in for free (as they do the EarPods), it’ll definitely push the company ahead as far as audio is concerned. For now, we recommend saving a little more and exploring the other options out there on the market. If the headphone jack on your device is broken, you should know that iFixYouri repairs them for much less than the cost of good Bluetooth headphones, so send it in and save some money!

TearDown, laptops

MacBook Buyer Beware

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Stunned by the Touch Bar on the new MacBook Pro? Thinking about buying one for yourself or a loved one? Don’t rely on the only hit to your wallet being just the exorbitant one upfront.

2016-macbook-pro-ports

iFixit, a website known for their “teardowns” of new electronics, just released their dismantling of the 15″ MacBook Pro. This model, along with the 13″, scored a 1 out of 10 on their scale of “repairability.” Issues brought up included direct soldering of the RAM to the logic board and the proprietary solid-state drive. Upgrading your performance or storage is practically impossible, so you’ll want to be sure to buy the model with the optimum specs for your daily use. Also, the newfangled Touch Bar is stunningly easy to break during repair, being held down by a ridiculous amount of glue (iFixit’s experienced teardown techs accidentally destroyed it on both builds). The power button also doubles as a Touch ID sensor, and is thus connected directly to the logic board; this might mean that swapping out a faulty power button will require replacing the logic board (!).

repairability

If a MacBook Pro is in your buying future, we strongly recommend purchasing an AppleCare plan with it. While it seems pricey ($349 for the 15″ MBP) it’ll definitely pay off if something goes wrong. iFixYouri is currently in talks with suppliers about parts for the new models, but we can tell you right now that they won’t be cheap to repair. Save yourself a lot of money and a huge headache by thinking ahead of time. The total price goes up to $2,750 (before dongles) but if you can comfortably pass the $2,000 mark for a laptop, you shouldn’t be worrying much.

If you own a current or older model of MacBook Pro, and your screen is giving you issues or battery life isn’t what it used to be, give us a call. iFixYouri does all sort of repairs for Apple laptops, from one Air to seventy Retina MacBooks for corporate clients, with quick turnaround and excellent customer service.