{"id":8236,"date":"2021-10-07T18:18:31","date_gmt":"2021-10-07T18:18:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/TheNextWeb=1369210"},"modified":"2021-10-07T18:18:31","modified_gmt":"2021-10-07T18:18:31","slug":"valves-steam-deck-teardown-is-a-breath-of-fresh-air-for-the-right-to-repair","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/?p=8236","title":{"rendered":"Valve\u2019s Steam Deck teardown is a breath of fresh air for the right to repair"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/img-cdn.tnwcdn.com\/image\/plugged?filter_last=1&amp;fit=1280%2C640&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn0.tnwcdn.com%2Fwp-content%2Fblogs.dir%2F1%2Ffiles%2F2021%2F10%2FSnag_190d51d0.png&amp;signature=97625e08cc763310a8e018465ae772ad\" class=\"ff-og-image-inserted\"><\/div>\n<p>It is an unfortunate truth that most modern gadgets \u2014 and the companies that make them \u2014 are hostile to consumer repairs. Not only are gadgets designed in a way that practically forces people to buy a replacement for even simple repairs, but companies often actively make changes to inhibit repair by consumers and third-party repair services.<\/p>\n<p>Valve has taken a refreshingly different approach with its upcoming Steam Deck \u2014 before the Nintendo Switch-like console has even launched. The company released a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Dxnr2FAADAs\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">teardown video<\/a> that shows how to take the unit apart and gives you a good look at its internals, as well as clearly spelling out all the potential pitfalls of such an operation. It\u2019s a breath of fresh air for those of us who believe in the right to repair.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Take a look inside Steam Deck\u2122!\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Dxnr2FAADAs?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen>[embedded content]<\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Some might argue that Valve\u2019s language during the video \u2014 \u201cyou really shouldn\u2019t do this\u201d \u2014 and the design of the unit itself is counter to the right to repair. The company says \u201ceven though it\u2019s your PC\u2026 and you have every right to open it up and do what you want, we at Valve really don\u2019t recommend that you ever open it up.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In particular, the company notes that opening up the device will immediately reduce its drop resistanceand that many components are carefully chosen for the small form factor. The particular SSD used, for instance, was chosen for its low power consumption and to minimize interference with the Steam Deck\u2019s wireless module. Meanwhile, the thumbstick is made up of a custom configuration of components.<\/p>\n<p>But the fact that this video even exists, let alone at such an early stage, is nearly unheard of among mainstream tech companies. It\u2019s especially rare for a tightly integrated compact product such as the Steam Deck (as opposed to, say, a desktop computer or a bike). Yet despite all the warnings, Valve still goes through and shows you how to replace the SSDs and thumbsticks, arguably two of the most common components one might want to replace on a device like this.<\/p>\n<p>Valve even says to \u201cstay tuned\u201d for an update where it tells you <em>where<\/em> you can get some of the replacement components. I feel like I\u2019m living in an alternate universe where companies actually care about their consumers a little bit, and not <em>just<\/em> their money.<\/p>\n<p>As far as I\u2019m concerned, the battle for the right to repair isn\u2019t just about making it as easy as possible for users to fix a system (although that\u2019s certainly appreciated). Sometimes, making a compact tech product does require some compromises to repairability. I get that.<\/p>\n<p>But it usually doesn\u2019t require being actively hostile to the user. Simply acknowledging that the user has the right to try to repair a product they bought \u2014 even if they stand the chance of damaging it in the process \u2014 goes a long way. I can only hope more companies take a leaf out of Valve\u2019s book, but I won\u2019t hold my breath.<\/p>\n<p><i>Did you know we have a newsletter all about consumer tech? It\u2019s called Plugged In \u2013 <a href=\"https:\/\/hello.thenextweb.com\/plugged\">and you can subscribe to it right here<\/a>.<\/i><\/p>\n<p> <a href=\"https:\/\/thenextweb.com\/news\/valve-steam-deck-right-to-repair\">Source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>It is an unfortunate truth that most modern gadgets \u2014 and the companies that make them \u2014 are hostile to consumer repairs. Not only are gadgets designed in a way that practically&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8237,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8236"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8236"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8236\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/8237"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8236"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8236"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8236"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}