This is not that surprising – I have used a Bluetooth mouse and Bluetooth keyboard with my Android phone. They have the ability to do this!
The processing abilities of smart phone processors are amazing – and this seems like a logical next step – a notebook PC built on the A18 iPhone CPU.
Furthermore, the new Apple Neo is said to be remarkably repairable – no more glued in batteries, with easy disassembly of the notebook and access to internal parts. Finally – an actual environmentally friendly approach to sustainability to provides for repair and re-use.
Companies, including Apple, have long boasted they were “environmental” and cared – but they did not care at all. At best, they began offering their own electronics recycling services – sort of leaving out the “repair and re-use” scenarios.
During recent weeks I have been dealing with a Microsoft Surface Pro 7 whose battery is down to 73% of original capacity. Unfortunately, replacing the battery is extremely difficult. To open up the unit, you need to use heat to remove the LCD display – the entire SP7 is glued together – no screws. If you use too much heat, you risk damage to the unit; too little heat and you may crack the thin LCD display. Once heated up, you need to use a small plastic pick to very carefully go around the edges – but this risks damaging the Wi-Fi antenna and other parts that are located right on the edge. Once inside, you then need to disassemble many parts to get down to the glued in battery.
iFixIt rates the SP7 a 1 on a 1 to 10 scale, for repairability.
After reading the iFixIt repair guide, twice, and watching 2 videos, I concluded it is not worth spending $100 on a new battery with a risk of SP7 damage (or $200+ to hire it out) – to repair a six year old, but very functional and useful touch screen notebook – even if successfully updatde, it’s still going to be a nearly unrepairable, non-upgradeable notebook. I can buy an Apple M1 notebook, used, with low battery cycles, for $400, or a new Apple Neo for $600 – it makes no economic sense to repair and re-use the old SP7.
That’s sad – and unnecessary due to big tech companies designing disposable products.
In 2027, the EU will require that batteries on devices be replace-able – and the Neo’s new design seems to meet those requirements – as all devices must do.
