In what appears to be more information from Apple regarding their calibration machines, over the course of this year, the company will be allowing 400 third party repair centers, across 25 countries, to receive the elusive Horizon Machine.
The mysterious machine is what the company uses to repair cracked screens on iPhones, it is about the size of a microwave, and was previously only available in 500 of the firm"s retail locations, it is quite a guarded asset.
However due to longer waiting times and pressure from the "Right to Repair" bills being pushed in some US states, it seems the company has decided to share the repair machine with some others like Best Buy.
Some people think that Apple is raking in super-profits from its repair business, since the company doesn"t declare how much they make from official repairs. The "Right to Repair" bill pushers want to open up the ability for small shops and individuals to find original parts and manuals so that they can also fix phones. Apple and others say that this might lead to shoddy repair work, but more importantly if they release all their repair tools, machines, and parts: they argue that hackers may be able to discover new ways to invade our smartphones, which do hold so many details of our lives.
We all know that there are numerous unofficial repair shops where one could go and get the screen of your iPhone fixed. However, this might be with parts not manufactured by Apple. Also if the technician were to damage your phone, beyond the screen, your warranty from the company would most likely not be honored.
The Horizon Machine can also fix the tougher cracks frequent on an iPhone, not just the screen crack, but also cracks to the fingerprint sensor. This means authorized third party repair shops will be able to do more for you and perhaps with a little more quality and precision. Certainly some new ground from the usually secretive and guarded company, but also a move that will hopefully give those with cracked screens a few more reliable options.