- New EU repairability rules for phone makers coming in 2027
- They mean that phone batteries will have to be replaced
- However, a return to the full emergent mechanism is unlikely.
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Having recently ruled on age verification, device interoperability and app store monopolies, European Union lawmakers are now turning their attention to the repairability of phones and, in particular, the ease with which a phone’s battery can be replaced.
As The Olive Press reported, new laws will come into force in 2027 that mean manufacturers must make it relatively easy to remove and replace batteries in mobile devices. These laws will only apply to the EU, but the mechanics of mass production mean that devices in other markets could also be affected.
However, we’re unlikely to see a return to the old approach to battery replacement – where you could remove the phone case by hand and swap out the battery in a couple of seconds. As SamMobile notes, the regulations specifically refer to batteries that are “readily removable and replaceable” by the end user.
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This means batteries that can be removed without using “specialized tools, unless provided free of charge with the product.” So perhaps it’s less a case of popping batteries and more a case of a couple of small disassembly tools included in the box, although we’ll have to wait and see exactly how phone makers react.
As Bloomberg reports, this doesn’t just apply to phones and tablets. Smart glasses are among the devices that will also be affected, while Nintendo has apparently already developed a Switch 2 console with a replaceable battery.
The right to repair
EU to mandate replaceable batteries in phones and tablets from 2027 from r/apple
While batteries in today’s phones can’t be changed as easily as in the past, it’s actually not that difficult if you know what you’re doing. Apple already offers do-it-yourself repair kits to change batteries and other components, for example, in part because of this incoming legislation and other laws around the world.
In fact, it looks like Apple won’t have to worry at all: as noted on Reddit, batteries that can maintain an 80% capacity level after 1,000 cycles are not covered by the new rules. Apple meets that standard, according to its official support documents, on models starting with the iPhone 15 released in 2023.
Apple’s new CEO John Ternus has previously said that he supports the right to repair broadly, but believes that “isolated repairability” is not always the best answer, and that making products that last is a higher priority than making them repairable.
As for users, the reaction has been mostly positive: Redditors have called the incoming rules a “big consumer-friendly change” and a “good move” from the EU, with many pointing out that the battery is often the first component to fail in a phone.
In fact, the legislation has been several years in the making, but will finally come into force from February 2027. This means that devices like the Samsung Galaxy S27 could be among the first to have to comply with the new guidelines in the EU.
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