The Google Pixel Tablet is just a few months old, but iFixit is already offering authorized replacement parts and repair guides for the device. It’s yet another sign of the healthy relationship between Google and iFixit, which began working together late last year. While iFixit hasn’t published a reparability score for the Pixel Tablet, repair guides for this device are all of “moderate” difficulty, which is a promising sign.
At the time of writing, iFixit offers repair guides for the Pixel Tablet’s battery, screen, enclosure, speakers, rear camera, and USB-C charging port. All of these guides require the removal of the Pixel Tablet’s screen, which is held down by an adhesive. As a result, you’ll need a heat gun and other tools when performing Pixel Tablet repairs.
You’ll also need some cash. Pixel Tablet parts don’t come cheap, with the screen and porcelain enclosure clocking in at $200 each (they’re expensive because they contain some integrated components, such as cameras and volume buttons). A new battery costs $60, the four speakers are $25 apiece, and the rear camera is $25. You can see the full list of genuine Pixel Tablet parts at iFixit’s web store.
As you may know, iFixit is a leading advocate for the Right to Repair movement. It offers free repair guides and sells replacement parts for thousands of products. In recent years, iFixit has partnered up with Google, Microsoft, Samsung, Valve, Logitech, and several other tech brands that want to offer authorized repair materials to their customers. The big outlier is Apple, which has an in-house Self Service Repair program. While brands like Google are regularly praised for working with iFixit, the Apple Self Service Repair program is criticized for its slow rollout of new materials, bizarre repair processes, and exorbitant prices (it’s often cheaper to repair an iPhone at the Apple Store).
If you need to repair a Pixel Tablet, check out the guides on iFixit’s website. Then, buy the appropriate parts from iFixit’s web store (you can buy parts individually or in a bundle with the necessary tools). I suggest that you closely follow iFixit’s guides while performing repairs, as there’s nothing worse than damaging ribbon cables and other small components when trying to fix a phone or tablet.
Source: iFixit via 9to5Google
