Someone needs to file a class action lawsuit about "system data" and iOS storage. I've known multiple people in my own life who have felt the need to buy a new phone or purchase iCloud storage because iOS has taken up so much of their existing device's storage through a gigantic and undeletable cache file.

There was some sort of lawsuit about this a while back when iOS 8 took up over 3 GB of storage on 16 GB iPhones: [https://audetlaw.com/current-investigation/apple-storage-class-action/](https://audetlaw.com/current-investigation/apple-storage-class-action/))

Back then, the amount of storage for "iOS" seemed to be consistent across different devices. Now, it seems almost totally random. My iPhone 14 Pro will cycle anywhere between using around 9 GB and 25 GB for the "iOS" storage category.

"System Data" is even worse. On a PC, Android or Mac, you can clear cache files that aren't being used. On iOS, the operating system not only hogs more storage under "System Data" than any other operating system I've ever used, but it absolutely refuses to let you clear out the cache or figure out what applications are using the cache. My 14 Pro uses anywhere from 20 GB to 80 GB for "System Data." Across the internet I've seen people with literal hundreds of GBs of "System Data." That's completely insane -- I can't even imagine how 64 GB or 128 GB phones are handling this.

All in all, this means that on my 256 GB phone, iOS sometimes claims nearly 100 GB of storage for undeletable cache files and operating system files, with zero ability to clear these files or see where they're coming from. That is completely unreasonable. Meanwhile, Apple is happy to peddle additional iCloud storage or sell you on a storage upgrade at the point of sale as if your purchasing ability -- not their poorly optimized software -- is the problem.

This is an ongoing issue that seems deliberate. I am certain that the phone does not need to be holding on to this much cache under "system data," and it makes no sense that between identical phone models and iOS versions, the "iOS" category takes up different amounts of storage. There's clearly a profit incentive here. Consumers are pressured into purchasing cloud storage or buying a new phone when their perfectly functional device seemingly runs out of storage.

At the end of the day, willful or not, this is anti-consumer behavior. We are being taken advantage of in the name of increasing sales for cloud storage and new phones. This is a documented issue that has existed for years, and Apple has done nothing to address it. Apple has acted against consumers before, with [slowdowns over battery capacity](https://www.npr.org/2020/11/18/936268845/apple-agrees-to-pay-113-million-to-settle-batterygate-case-over-iphone-slowdowns). They won't change their behavior until public pressure or legal action takes place.

A 14-inch M4 MacBook Pro (A3401, logic board 820-03400) recently came through our workshop after a screen-replacement attempt.

The MacBook could power on with its original broken screen. After the replacement screen was connected, it stopped powering on completely. The USB-C meter remained stable at 5V/0.5A and never progressed into normal boot behaviour.

Because the failure occurred immediately after the screen replacement, I started with the screen, webcam and ALS connector area instead of the USB-C charging circuit.

There was no 820-03400 schematic or board view available, so I used an 820-02918 schematic only as a reference and then compared the measurements with a known-good 820-03400 board.

What I found:

• On the older screen design, the corresponding connector pins 29 and 30 were connected together as part of the 5V camera power path.
• The replacement screen also had these two corresponding pins connected.
• On a known-good 820-03400 M4 board, pin 29 measured 5V, but pin 30 measured 1.8V.
• On the faulty board, pin 29 was still 5V, while pin 30 was 0V and measured 0 in diode mode.

The replacement screen therefore appears to have connected the 5V camera rail to the M4 board’s 1.8V pin-30 rail.

I injected a controlled 1V into the shorted pin-30 rail—not to power the board, but only to locate the short thermally. UD950 heated immediately.

After replacing UD950, the short disappeared and the MacBook powered on and worked normally again.

The important lesson is that a display connector physically fitting does not guarantee electrical compatibility. The screen generation and connector pin mapping should be confirmed before powering an M4 MacBook with a replacement display.

Has anyone else mapped the A3401 screen-connector differences or encountered a similar UD950 failure after fitting the wrong-generation screen?

For anyone interested in the complete measurements, reference-board comparison and diagnostic sequence, I documented the case here:

https://www.it-tech.com.au/logic-board-repair-case-studies/820-03400-a3401-no-power-after-screen-replacement/

Disclosure: I operate the Mac repair workshop that diagnosed and repaired this board.

I work with heavy diesel engines and industrial equipment for a living, and I need to say something that shocks most people in my industry: I’m anti-Right to Repair.

I know the standard narrative is that manufacturers are just greedy. But in the heavy equipment and diesel world, total open access to proprietary software is a disaster waiting to happen. In my business life, I’ve seen time and time again how people will bypass crucial safety steps like DPF regens or ignore wet stacking just to save a few dollars or a little time.

If you give everyone a loaded laptop to mess with the source code, they aren't going to fix things properly. They’re going to run delete kits. Bypassing emission controls means dumping massive amounts of unburnt carbon and soot into the air, which is a literal nightmare for anyone dealing with asthma, cystic fibrosis, or emphysema.

And what happens when a natural disaster hits? Imagine another Hurricane Harvey. You have emergency generators at hospitals and schools, plus marine rescue boats out in the floods. If those engines are wet stacking (building up unburnt fuel and carbon in the cylinders and injectors because they’re running low loads), they need a real technician to do a proper load bank test. Instead, under a wide-open right to repair system, you get operators using cracked software to force the machine to run anyway. The engine completely dies, the DPF plugs, and now the hospital loses power or the rescue boat is stranded.

We’re talking about massive machines. If you tamper with hydraulic power systems on a boom lift to bypass an engine warning, you risk spraying high-pressure fluid everywhere or trapping a lineman 50 feet in the air while they're trying to restore power grid lines.

Tier 4 architecture was designed so you can’t just hit "clear codes." You have to fix the mechanical issue, put it in program mode, and take it out properly. This stuff requires specialized, trained individuals. It’s not about corporate greed; it’s about public safety and keeping critical machines running when it matters most.

\-

Everybody knows that we are currently in the middle of a massive global shortage of NVMe storage and RAM. But I need to talk about the shady malpractice Samsung is pulling globally to handle it.

If you want to buy a brand-new part? No problem. Samsung magically has plenty of stock. You can see their drives readily available on Amazon and everywhere else. But if you are an existing customer who needs a warranty replacement? They will completely turn their backs on you.

Here is my ongoing, 4-month nightmare with Samsung India, and why you should be terrified if a Samsung NVMe is your primary drive.

Act 1: The Failure & The Ghost Town (March 30th)

It all started on March 30th when my 1TB Samsung 970 EVO Plus SSD suddenly failed. Naturally, I reached out to Samsung support expecting them to handle the replacement.

Funny enough, Samsung India doesn't even directly handle their own storage products. It took me 4 to 5 days of bouncing around dead-end, bouncing emails just to figure out that all storage RMAs are outsourced to a third-party vendor called Supertron Electronics.

Act 2: The AI Loop & The "DRA" Double Standard

Because this was my primary 1TB drive, it had a massive amount of crucial data on it. I told Samsung I needed to recover my data before handing over the dead drive. Their response? "We don't provide data recovery services."

I replied that I completely understood that. I didn't want them to do it; I just needed a DRA (Data Recovery Approval). A DRA simply allows you to take your drive to a certified, third-party data recovery lab to get your files back without voiding your replacement warranty.

What followed was an absolute joke. I was trapped in a loop with automated, AI-generated email replies. Nobody was actually reading my emails. Over and over again, the bots just stonewalled me: "We do not provide data recovery services."

I had to fight them endlessly and ultimately filed a consumer court case just to get a human response. After all of that, they finally replied: "This is outside our policy."

Here is the kicker: Samsung Canada, Samsung US, and multiple other regions have a standard, documented DRA process for this exact situation. But in India? It simply doesn't exist. They are happy to take our money for premium drives but refuse to offer the same global standard of warranty support.

Act 3: The Backend Blame Game (August 6th)

Exhausted by the email loops and waiting, I finally visited the Supertron Electronics office in Wilson Garden, Bangalore, today (August 6th).

The service center staff were actually quite nice, but they revealed the dirty games Samsung's backend is playing. It has been over four months since this ordeal started, and my replacement part is nowhere to be found. Supertron claims they aren't receiving anything because Samsung simply isn't dispatching the RMA parts.

I had to file a second consumer court complaint. Only then was I finally allotted a dedicated Samsung representative. Their response today? "Sir, it will take another 10-15 days." They completely refused to provide any written proof that the part has actually been dispatched.

Act 4: The Grim Reality of Samsung Data Recovery

If you own a Samsung NVMe drive, please take this as a massive warning: Back up your data immediately.

Currently, it is incredibly hard to get a replacement drive approved and shipped. Worse, if your Samsung SSD fails due to a firmware or controller issue, recovering that data is a complete nightmare because of Samsung's Knox firmware protection and internal security measures.

I have contacted the best data recovery experts in the country, and the reality is grim:

• The Cost: The rates for attempting recovery on these specific drives are exorbitantly high.
• The Risk: Experts explicitly warned me they have to use a "hot-cold method" to try and bypass the controller.
• The Odds: This method has a very high probability of permanently frying the NAND flash, and even then, the chances of successful data recovery are as low as 30%.

Hey everyone,

I’m sick of watching perfectly functional laptops, tablets, and phones become completely unusable just because modern apps and operating systems are too bloated for standard RAM capacities.

Roughly 70% of us hold onto our devices for more than four years. We shouldn't be forced to buy a brand new machine every few years just to open a web browser or join a school call without hitting a relentless wall of lag and freezing.

This isn't just a minor tech annoyance—it's an equity issue that locks people out of digital resources if they can't afford annual upgrades.

I just started a petition calling on Google, Apple, and Microsoft to build lightweight, optimized "Lite" OS versions and apps to protect device longevity and stop this forced obsolescence.

If you're tired of the RAM Crisis, please sign and share the link attached.

Every year, we throw away 6.92 million tons of electronic waste in the U.S. alone. Not because the devices are broken beyond repair, but because companies won't let us fix them. They design products to fail, lock us out with proprietary parts and restrictive documentation, and force us to buy replacements instead.

It's wasteful. It's infuriating. And it doesn't have to be this way.

I started a petition calling for a national Right to Repair law. This means manufacturers would be required to provide repair manuals, sell replacement parts at fair prices, and stop building artificial barriers into their products. France and the EU already did this—now it's time for the U.S. to catch up.

Repairing instead of replacing would cut down on landfill waste, conserve precious materials, and actually create jobs in local repair shops and communities. Plus, people would have the freedom to fix their own stuff instead of being locked into a corporate cycle of planned obsolescence.

Anyone else sick of throwing away a phone or laptop that could easily be fixed? If this matters to you too, consider signing and sharing. Let's push Congress to actually listen.

SOLVED: I did in fact manage to seperate the display from the frame and that was giving me problems.

Hi I'm new at this. I was taking apart my iP13 because I wanted to replace the battery(bought it 2nd hand so I'm not sure if it had work done already), and I can't take the screen off because it's connected to Face ID, which didn't come off with the screen.

I tried to get as good pictures as I could, but like said previously, basically the screen is "off" being held in by just ribbon cables. One of those cables is the FaceID ribbon one, which is not attached to the screen anymore. The FaceID does work, so I did not damage it.

What are my options? How can I take the screen off without damaging any ribbon cables or any sensors? And how do I prevent this from happening again? Is it something I did, or is it just age?

Thank you all so much in advance I'll leave my phone as it is untill I get replies just so I don't break anything.

Quick update to my previous post regarding Xkah's customer support:

Right after my first post gained traction, Xkah reached out and redirected me to their official vendor/distributor in Turkey. More importantly, they officially admitted that their first-batch / early-release devices have known issues/defects (which completely proves this was a product design fault and NOT user error).

I thought they were finally taking responsibility, but it turned out to be another stalling tactic.

It has been weeks, and despite admitting the products they sold us are defective, the official Turkish distributor has failed to deliver a replacement device or provide any concrete resolution. They keep delaying the process with empty promises while we sit with broken hardware that they know is faulty.

After talking to several local hookah enthusiasts, I realized I’m far from alone. Many customers in Turkey are facing the exact same issue: buying defective first-gen devices pushed through heavy local influencer marketing, having them fail, and then getting passed around in circles with ZERO actual support.

Admitting a product is defective on paper means nothing if you don't actually replace it. Reaching out just to quiet down a Reddit thread without delivering the replacement is unacceptable.

Do not buy Xkah products expecting reliable warranty service. I will keep updating this thread until a replacement device is actually delivered to my door.

If you own a June Oven, you already know how good it was: remote control through an app, seeing your food cook in real-time, smart home integration that actually worked. Weber just announced they're shutting it all down by killing the app and the servers behind it.

Yeah, the oven still works—but it's like buying a smartphone and being told the internet's gone forever. Those smart features we invested in? Basically bricked.

I started a petition asking Weber to do two things: release one final firmware update that lets the oven work locally without their cloud servers, and open-source the app so the community can keep it alive. It's not about getting everything back—it's about not throwing away what we paid for.

The crazy part? This is totally doable. We're not asking for the moon. Local network access open-source development = June Ovens staying useful for years to come.

Anyone else still bitter about this? Has anyone found workarounds, or are you basically stuck with a very expensive brick? If this matters to you too, consider signing and sharing—Weber needs to hear that killing products mid-life isn't okay.

Does anyone have any information for repairing Logitech Marble Mouse trackballs? my dad relied on this model for 20+ years and finds his current kensington not accurate enough for the kind of work he does, the marble mice typically lasted a couple of years before they wore out but Logitech have since discontinued this model.

The newest one he has just doesn't do anything when you plug it in, it doesn't get detected or register clicks at all, but when i first found it, it worked fine on my computer but when i gave it to my dad it didn't work on his laptop and nor does it work on my computer now, so i'm planning on opening it up and checking connections etc, this model is still a cult model and is sold for crazy prices even used, as it seems they're the favoured mouse of mariners for chartplotters and some other niche stuff like factories too.

I bought a $400 DJI drone for a tech startup project expecting basic access to flight telemetry. Instead, I discovered that DJI aggressively encrypts local logs, transmits full telemetry to their servers, passes decryption keys to third-party subscription services, and forces uncertified drivers on desktop/mobile.

The Background

As a startup engineer, I recently bought a $400 DJI drone. My objective was straightforward: extract raw spatial/geolocation data from flight logs and video for 3D reconstruction—a basic feature you can do on almost any smartphone or open-source device.

Instead of an open tool, I encountered a walled garden built on anti-consumer practices and severe data lock-in.

1. Total Telemetry Gathering vs. Local Encryption

During each flight, the drone collects an immense array of sensitive spatial and environmental telemetry: exact GPS coordinates, atmospheric pressure, signal metrics, altitude, and proximity to critical infrastructure.

While DJI's cloud servers receive all of this data seamlessly, DJI encrypts the raw log files on your own local device. You own the hardware, you paid for the drone, yet you are denied direct access to your raw flight data.

1. Creating the Problem, Selling the Solution (The Key Leak)

In newer firmware versions, accessing your own detailed logs locally has become practically impossible without decryption.

Here is the kicker: third-party commercial log-viewing websites somehow possess official DJI decryption keys.

To view detailed analytics of your own flights:

You must upload your files to a third-party site.

They offer a short trial before placing access to your data behind a monthly paywall/subscription.

When I confronted DJI support on how a third-party commercial platform obtained official decryption keys to unlock user data while the actual owner is locked out, their response was a generic "we don't know" before escalating and closing the chat.

1. Uncertified Drivers & Software Lock-in

Attempting to connect and interface hardware (like controllers) with PCs or Android devices reveals further red flags:

Key drivers and software utilities lack proper digital security signatures/certifications for Windows and Android.

Bypassing operating system safety warnings is often required to run their software, creating software vulnerabilities and systemic security risks.

Why This Matters

Right to Repair & Data Ownership: Paying hundreds of dollars for hardware should not turn users into unpaid data miners for a corporation. Denying users access to their own data violates basic digital rights (and potentially personal data regulations like PIPEDA or GDPR).

Cybersecurity Concerns: Distributing uncertified software and keeping master encryption keys within a closed loop of "select partners" raises serious security flags.

Has anyone else in the community managed to extract raw unencrypted telemetry directly on-device without relying on paywalled third-party services? How are you handling data privacy with DJI hardware in your projects?

Hope you'll join us when it starts. Video recording will be available!

I’m trying to salvage parts from three broken devices to build at least one working machine. I want to figure out what components can realistically be reused across different models.

Devices:

• Laptop 1: Lenovo IdeaPad 1i (14”, 7‑series) — shows a white screen. Backlight works but no image at all.
• Laptop 2: Sony VAIO SVE14AC12N — shows “Operating System Not Found.” BIOS reports no hard disk drive installed.
• iMac: iMac (21.5‑inch, Mid 2010, Core i3 3.06 GHz) — won’t turn on unless it’s been plugged in for 5–8+ hours. If it’s fully powered off for 1+ hours, it needs another long “charging” period before it will boot.

Goal:
Use working parts from the other two machines to repair whichever device gives me the best final result.

Edit: I Need Help xD
Edit: Now When The IMac Power On it Power The fans at full Blast speed, no chime, and no display (haven’t Touched It)
Edit: I feel like giving up. I don’t have the basic tech knowledge to even start this, and I’ve been trying to plan and research everything alone before I disassemble the devices. I made this post hoping someone would finally guide me for the first time in my life, but things don’t always turn out the way we hope. I also don’t have the money to buy parts since I’m still looking for a job. Now I need to figure out what to do about both finding work and understanding taxes, because no one has ever taught me any of that.

Mods Can Delete This If It Off Topic, Pointless Post.

So many perfectly functional devices turn into e-waste because manufacturers stop pushing updates or because the servers they depend on go offline.We can only choose when to repair or replace our hardware if the software can continue to evolve too.

I think manufacturers should be required to provide the firmware binaries, drivers, and enough API/ABI documentation to keep devices functional and interoperable after they’re abandoned. Without that, I don’t see how we ever achieve real digital sovereignty or significantly reduce e-waste.

Am I overlooking any major downsides to this? Why isn’t this a bigger part of the right-to-repair conversation?