Right to repair USA

[Vodder]

The Right to Repair: Recent Developments in the USA

Do you automatically think you have the right to repair your smartphone or any other electronic product you own? The fascinating debate around the right-to-repair, in which IP rights are central, reveals that this is not always the case.

www.wipo.int

I know this has kinda loosely bubbled up from a EU perspective but given right to repair looks to be happening (happened?) in the US, does anyone know or have thoughts on how this might apply to K?

At first the Premiere stuff springs to mind - and we all seem to be pretty good on here already at DIY'ing those

But then there is the "my HDD died in my Strato and now I have a very expensive door stop" because the drive isn't field replaceable and can't be sent in for "repair" outside of warranty type of example.

Can only imagine that scenario might get even more frustrating for some with the compacts which then also drives the wider view that we are in effect "renting access" with some of these devices purely for the warranty period only and anything else that is purely a bonus.

 

[cinelife]

Being a lawyer myself, this is still a complex issue when multiple technologies are involved, and is certainly not a fully defined and settled area given the various legal influences on the subject, including States laws, Case law, unsettled federal laws, questionable executive orders, and above all the costs incurred by someone bringing a case to enforce a perceived right based on these poorly written (IMO) existing laws and rules from Federal agencies. There's also the logistical issues associated with access to parts due to the changing industry landscape of companies coming and going, parts shortages, chips no longer available, etc..

I'm not at all saying the right shouldn't exist for owners, only noting this is currently still difficult to enforce.

Jim

 

[Vodder]

Aye, pretty much what I was thinking too and seems to be similar landscape this side of the pond. Just got my attention that Apple are signing up to it or something.

 

[Substance]

There isn’t much to repair inside the Strato boxes in the typical DIY fashion. If you are an advance repair guy, you can replace surface mount components, ICs, rebuilt the power supplies, re-solder broken HDMI sockets, etc. As long as you don’t attempt to modify or hack the system, only replace faulty components with “in-kind” components, you should have success resolving hardware problems on the board and the power supplies.

The HDD is complicated. Not only it is closed, the software on it is private/secured. Once activated, the HDD might (guessing here) even tattoo itself to its specific logic board with a fixed serial number. This may mean you can‘t use a perfectly functioning HDD from another (donor) unit with bad logic board. I guess Kaleidescape could offer replacement HDDs but I can see their risk in that. The Strato players were not designed to be field serviced. They visibly lack the physical attributes needed for field servicing (ex. tool-less access to HDDs). They might also lack the applicable software diagnostics built in on them. What I am saying is, without proper diagnostics, if the HDD is toast, it is unknown whether it was wear and tear that killed it or something faulty on the rest of the Strato caused it to fail. For example, the 12V rail might be leaking into the 5V rail on the SATA connector for the HDD. On the SATA power connector, the 12V rail spins the HDD platers motor (high current), the 5V rail runs the HDD controller/logic board. 12V on the controller input will fry it for sure. Imagine replacing the HDD and a week later the new one is toast too. So it makes sense that Kaleidescape sees the liability on these specific Strato units with built in HDDs.

I might be wrong on this but I think Kaleidescape offers a hefty discount (with faulty unit traded in) on a replacement unit rather than offering repairs for the Strato player/servers. I like this approach. Yes it does cost more than just replacing the HDD (not cheap either) but you get a brand new unit with warranty. The faulty device trade in allows Kaleidescape to perform their in house diagnostics to all components to identify all issues, perform repairs, replace faulty parts and create a refreshed (refurbished) product.

I believe there is a law in Japan that manufacturers must stock parts for 5 additional years after discontinuation of their products. I don’t know if such a law exists anywhere else including the US.

Right to repair makes sense for products with a decent amount of 3rd party support. As far as I know, there are no 3rd party parts for any Kaleidescape products including the legacy ones. These new EU laws are interesting. I think they will be enforcing user replaceable batteries on cell phones soon. It is ironic, all phones had user replaceable batteries 25 years ago but they all lasted more than a week on a single charge. I remember my Nokia 6110 needed to be charged twice a month or something but I could pop in a fully charged battery in 3 seconds if I needed extended battery life. Newer phones barely make it to the evening but I can’t swap its battery without destroying it . I am curious how they will handle the water/dust resistant seals on the battery covers. If I recall correctly, Motorola StarTAC 130 was the first water/dust resistant mobile phone in 1998 and you could swap its battery. And then what do we call these changes? Progress? Or going backwards to the 90s methods to move forward? The tech stuff and its business are so fascinating in general.

 

[Transepoch]

And then what do we call these changes? Progress? Or going backwards to the 90s methods to move forward? The tech stuff and its business are so fascinating in general.

Restorative

 

[DieZwei]

The HDD is complicated. Not only it is closed, the software on it is private/secured. Once activated, the HDD might (guessing here) even tattoo itself to its specific logic board with a fixed serial number. This may mean you can‘t use a perfectly functioning HDD from another (donor) unit with bad logic board. I guess Kaleidescape could offer replacement HDDs but I can see their risk in that. The Strato players were not designed to be field serviced. They visibly lack the physical attributes needed for field servicing (ex. tool-less access to HDDs). They might also lack the applicable software diagnostics built in on them. What I am saying is, without proper diagnostics, if the HDD is toast, it is unknown whether it was wear and tear that killed it or something faulty on the rest of the Strato caused it to fail. For example, the 12V rail might be leaking into the 5V rail on the SATA connector for the HDD. On the SATA power connector, the 12V rail spins the HDD platers motor (high current), the 5V rail runs the HDD controller/logic board. 12V on the controller input will fry it for sure. Imagine replacing the HDD and a week later the new one is toast too. So it makes sense that Kaleidescape sees the liability on these specific Strato units with built in HDDs.

I´m just wondering why a media player needs a physical HDD in the first place. I do see the need for a server - Terra of course and also Strato S - but why in a pure player?

 

[Substance]

I´m just wondering why a media player needs a physical HDD in the first place. I do see the need for a server - Terra of course and also Strato S - but why in a pure player?

I believe the Strato and the Strato S were technically server/player combos. They could play from other servers and they served to up to 2 external players. They were the entry level offerings before the Compact Terra became available.

 

[DieZwei]

I believe the Strato and the Strato S were technically server/player combos. They could play from other servers and they served to up to 2 external players. They were the entry level offerings before the Compact Terra became available.

Mh, was there another player besides the current Strato C movie player (which is a pure player that can serve to other players) and the Strato S?

 

[Substance]

Mh, was there another player besides the current Strato C movie player (which is a pure player that can serve to other players) and the Strato S?

I believe Strato was offered with and without HDD initially. I think Strato C wasn’t available during this time. Strato with HDD could function on its own without needing a server but Strato without HDD required a Terra server.

Strato S is internally identical to Strato. Strato is 2RU height and Strato S is 1RU height. 12TB HDD became available after Strato was discontinued so Strato S could be ordered with 12TB HDD whereas Strato maxed out at 10TB HDD.

Strato C is internally identical to Strato and Strato S but without HDD. It is 1RU height and half component width.

 

[DieZwei]

I believe Strato was offered with and without HDD initially.

Strato C is internally identical to Strato and Strato S but without HDD.

Ah, thanks for clarifying. I wasn´t aware that there are (were) three Strato models, didn´t know the 2RU Strato.

 

[mpierson]

There isn’t much to repair inside the Strato boxes in the typical DIY fashion. If you are an advance repair guy, you can replace surface mount components, ICs, rebuilt the power supplies, re-solder broken HDMI sockets, etc. As long as you don’t attempt to modify or hack the system, only replace faulty components with “in-kind” components, you should have success resolving hardware problems on the board and the power supplies.

The HDD is complicated. Not only it is closed, the software on it is private/secured. Once activated, the HDD might (guessing here) even tattoo itself to its specific logic board with a fixed serial number. This may mean you can‘t use a perfectly functioning HDD from another (donor) unit with bad logic board. I guess Kaleidescape could offer replacement HDDs but I can see their risk in that. The Strato players were not designed to be field serviced. They visibly lack the physical attributes needed for field servicing (ex. tool-less access to HDDs). They might also lack the applicable software diagnostics built in on them. What I am saying is, without proper diagnostics, if the HDD is toast, it is unknown whether it was wear and tear that killed it or something faulty on the rest of the Strato caused it to fail. For example, the 12V rail might be leaking into the 5V rail on the SATA connector for the HDD. On the SATA power connector, the 12V rail spins the HDD platers motor (high current), the 5V rail runs the HDD controller/logic board. 12V on the controller input will fry it for sure. Imagine replacing the HDD and a week later the new one is toast too. So it makes sense that Kaleidescape sees the liability on these specific Strato units with built in HDDs.

I might be wrong on this but I think Kaleidescape offers a hefty discount (with faulty unit traded in) on a replacement unit rather than offering repairs for the Strato player/servers. I like this approach. Yes it does cost more than just replacing the HDD (not cheap either) but you get a brand new unit with warranty. The faulty device trade in allows Kaleidescape to perform their in house diagnostics to all components to identify all issues, perform repairs, replace faulty parts and create a refreshed (refurbished) product.

I believe there is a law in Japan that manufacturers must stock parts for 5 additional years after discontinuation of their products. I don’t know if such a law exists anywhere else including the US.

Right to repair makes sense for products with a decent amount of 3rd party support. As far as I know, there are no 3rd party parts for any Kaleidescape products including the legacy ones. These new EU laws are interesting. I think they will be enforcing user replaceable batteries on cell phones soon. It is ironic, all phones had user replaceable batteries 25 years ago but they all lasted more than a week on a single charge. I remember my Nokia 6110 needed to be charged twice a month or something but I could pop in a fully charged battery in 3 seconds if I needed extended battery life. Newer phones barely make it to the evening but I can’t swap its battery without destroying it . I am curious how they will handle the water/dust resistant seals on the battery covers. If I recall correctly, Motorola StarTAC 130 was the first water/dust resistant mobile phone in 1998 and you could swap its battery. And then what do we call these changes? Progress? Or going backwards to the 90s methods to move forward? The tech stuff and its business are so fascinating in general.

I was quoted £4795 in the UK for a replacement 2U Strato, trading in my failed hard drive OOW unit. Decided against it. Quoted over £1000 for a replacement 6TB drive for my 1U server. Still deciding whether to pay that to keep it going for a bit longer or accept now’s the time to move on. Prices a lot higher in the UK but is obvious that staying in warranty is the only sensible way to own a K system.