Microsoft Enlists IFixit To Extend Surface Spare Parts Program

Microsoft has extended its spare parts program for Surface PCs by selling components at teardown artists iFixit.

The software giant’s hardware side hustle first started slinging spares in June 2023, when it used its own Store to sell a limited range of components to users with enough skill and/or confidence to attempt DIY repairs. But only in the USA, Canada, France.

On Thursday Microsoft extended the program by teaming with iFixit to sell Surface parts at a Microsoft Repair Hub.

iFixit sells parts for 13 Surface models. Just one spare is available for the Surface Pro 7 – the kickstand, an oblong slab of metal/

The Surface Pro 9, a year-old device, scores the longest list of replacements, namely:

• Kickstand
• Display
• Removable solid-state drive
• Battery
• Surface connect charging port
• Back cover
• Speakers
• Thermal module
• Camera front and rear
• Camera and Wi-Fi deck
• Power and volume button
• Motherboard
• SSD Door

Replacement displays are available for eleven Surface models, while rubber feet are available for seven. Motherboards are available for just four machines.

The Register’s Australian outpost loaded some kit into iFixit’s shopping cart and was able to arrange local delivery, and was offered 30 nations to which it was possible to arrange shipping. However, we could only find the link to the Microsoft Repair Hub on iFixit’s US site.

Stock levels were not high – fewer than ten items were in stock for several items.

Maybe it’s early days.

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The collab with iFixit is, at least, more widely available than Microsoft’s previous efforts and represents an improvement to its repairability policies.

Microsoft is far from alone in doing so. Even Apple, a company infamously fond of sealed boxes, this week endorsed the right to repair its devices (in the USA) and pledged to make more parts and tools available.

Repairability is on the agenda because new laws have introduced a right to DIY, giving hardware vendors incentive to do better.

However, plenty of kit remains unloved.

Apple, for example, recently ended support for the $17,000 version of its original Watch.

Cisco has frequently told customers it won’t patch old devices with known security flaws, and recommends acquiring new ones instead. Cisco argues that some of its devices are sufficiently old that even if it fixed their flaws, they no longer represent its best or adequately safe tech. Cisco, Apple, and plenty of other hardware vendors happy to brick or stop repairing their kit also insist they have enthusiastically embraced sustainability. ®