Teardown team open-sources gadget repair guides

Virgin launches similar chargeable system

The gadget teardown experts at iFixit have decided to make the firm’s entire catalogue of gadget repair guides available to all - and for free.

With immediate effect, iFixit has licensed all of its repair manuals under the Creative Commons BY-NC-SA licence – meaning anyone can read the guides for free and make alterations to them, provided they meet the Creative Commons’ terms and conditions – available here.

Guides are available for numerous gadgets, though iFixit said it has invested thousands of hours documenting how to repair Apple hardware. As a result, iFixit’s 91 Mac manuals are now available for perusal and alteration, in additions to 34 iPod guides and a couple for the iPhone.

The firm said its media servers also currently host 154,556 images and over 1000 step-by-step guides.

Why has iFixit suddenly made such a dramatic turn? Apparently, the firm feels that it is “the right thing to do” because consumers need “the ability to take control of their devices and their environmental footprint”.

In related news, Virgin has launched a company designed to help British consumers solve their problems with digital technology.

Virgin Digital Help gives consumers access to a mixture of downloadable tools, online and phone support, and home visits from tech people.

Further information about the service and its charges is available online now. ®