Logitech Partners With iFixit to Advance Circularity Goals

[GFreeman]

Logitech International announced today that it is partnering with iFixit, a global repair community that sells replacement parts and provides toolkits and repair guides for consumer electronics devices. Logitech is working with iFixit to facilitate the availability of spare parts, support beyond-warranty repair on select products, and develop relevant repair guides to support this repair.

Global electronic and electrical waste (e-waste) is projected to grow to over 75 million metric tons by 2030 according to The Global E-Waste Monitor 2020 Report. Design and repairability will need to go hand-in-hand in order to reduce the amount of e-waste the world generates. The growing e-waste challenge is fueled by higher consumption rates, short life cycles, and few repair options. Logitech is working to address this challenge by elevating its repair capabilities to increase the life-span of Logitech devices, Design for Sustainability (DfS) and drive more circular business models. Essential to Logitech's product development process, DfS plays an important role in informing design decisions, including those around repairability, refurbishment, and recycling.



"Consumers often struggle to find avenues to repair and extend the life of their product," said Prakash Arunkundrum, chief operating officer at Logitech. "More can be done by brands and by broader value chains who wish to play an active role in the shift to a more circular economy. I am excited that we are able to collaborate with iFixit to develop better designs and make it easier for consumers to have a self-repair option to extend the life of our products."

"Making spare parts available and designing more-repairable devices are the best things manufacturers can do to make their products sustainable," said Elizabeth Chamberlain, Director of Sustainability at iFixit. "We've been working with Logitech to develop designs that make it easier for people to fix their stuff. And now, we're thrilled by the opportunity to help get Logitech repair parts to people around the world. To give a healthy planet to the next generation, we need to keep our things working for as long as possible, reduce our demand for raw materials, and cut down the amount of e-waste we're generating. It's wonderful to see Logitech working towards those goals, and we're beyond happy to do what we can to help."

The iFixit Logitech Repair Hub will be the source for genuine replacement parts and batteries for our chosen launch products of Logitech MX Master and MX Anywhere mouse models. Parts will be available as standalone or in Fix Kits that contain everything needed to complete a repair such as the replacement part, tools, and a precision bit set. Genuine Logitech replacement parts for these devices will become available for purchase starting this summer in the US.

Logitech is taking action and investing in ways to innovate by designing for sustainability and developing circular models that reduce waste and extend life, such as trade-in and refurbishment programs, and also using recycled materials. Recently, Logitech also accelerated its climate action strategy and has set itself on a direct path to be climate positive beyond 2030 by capturing more carbon than it creates. It is also the first consumer electronics company to commit to providing detailed carbon impact labeling on product packaging and online across the entire portfolio.

View at TechPowerUp Main Site | Source

 

[Dr. Dro]

Well, credit where due. Congrats to Logitech for this initiative, although, they could use their strong worldwide presence to make parts available for those who aren't in the United States. Another way to help with emissions would be to sell - at least their higher-end keyboards - in the customer's preferred layout in all of their major markets.

I want to purchase a Japanese JIS layout keyboard from them, but of course they are not available in Brazil (which totally doesn't have the largest community of Japanese descendants overseas, or filthy disgusting weebs like me, promise) and I'd need to purchase it from Amazon.co.jp and have it shipped all the way over here. Why?

 

[Chaitanya]

Well, credit where due. Congrats to Logitech for this initiative, although, they could use their strong worldwide presence to make parts available for those who aren't in the United States. Another way to help with emissions would be to sell - at least their higher-end keyboards - in the customer's preferred layout in all of their major markets.

I want to purchase a Japanese JIS layout keyboard from them, but of course they are not available in Brazil (which totally doesn't have the largest community of Japanese descendants overseas, or filthy disgusting weebs like me, promise) and I'd need to purchase it from Amazon.co.jp and have it shipped all the way over here. Why?

Also they could have moved to swapable switches long time back along with maintaining user replaceble batteries(similar to G7) but bit by bit they have gone down the rabbit hole of producing ewaste.

 

[Dr. Dro]

Also they could have moved to swapable switches long time back along with maintaining user replaceble batteries(similar to G7) but bit by bit they have gone down the rabbit hole of producing ewaste.

Yeah, I agree. I go through one of their keyboards every year on average. My G Pro K/DA has begun to chatter in a few keys, it's quite annoying. Cleaned it out already but issue always comes back :/

 

[Dammeron]

Also they could have moved to swapable switches long time back along with maintaining user replaceble batteries(similar to G7) but bit by bit they have gone down the rabbit hole of producing ewaste.

I think so too. G502 X Lightspeed would be perfect for me if it used AA batteries and had alternative BT connection.

 

[Wirko]

Well, credit where due. Congrats to Logitech for this initiative, although, they could use their strong worldwide presence to make parts available for those who aren't in the United States. Another way to help with emissions would be to sell - at least their higher-end keyboards - in the customer's preferred layout in all of their major markets.

I want to purchase a Japanese JIS layout keyboard from them, but of course they are not available in Brazil (which totally doesn't have the largest community of Japanese descendants overseas, or filthy disgusting weebs like me, promise) and I'd need to purchase it from Amazon.co.jp and have it shipped all the way over here. Why?

How big a market would that be? Hundreds of thousands of people who actually use a Japanese keyboard (or a German keyboard, for example)? And that number would be for many manufacturers and all models combined.

I think a better (and greener) way for Logitech would be to keep sets of replacement keycaps separately on stock in Brazil, then either sell them to you, or swap the keycaps on a new keyboard and ship it to you if you don't want to tinker with it yourself.

 

[Dr. Dro]

How big a market would that be? Hundreds of thousands of people who actually use a Japanese keyboard (or a German keyboard, for example)? And that number would be for many manufacturers and all models combined.

I think a better (and greener) way for Logitech would be to keep sets of replacement keycaps separately on stock in Brazil, then either sell them to you, or swap the keycaps on a new keyboard and ship it to you if you don't want to tinker with it yourself.

The problem is that quite a few widely spoken business languages do not use standard ANSI 101-key layouts. Japan's JIS layout is close to ANSI but has special function keys for toggling between character sets, Brazil's ABNT contains several punctuation keys that aren't otherwise present, Germany uses a modified QWERTZ, French AZERTY, etc. This problem is worsened by TKL and miniaturized keyboards which intentionally remove most auxiliary keys.

Needless to say it wouldn't be as simple as simply making keycaps available, they need to make the keyboards themselves usable. Large countries with hundreds of millions of people with diverse backgrounds speaking many languages are a reality in our day and age.

 

[Chrispy_]

Yeah, I agree. I go through one of their keyboards every year on average. My G Pro K/DA has begun to chatter in a few keys, it's quite annoying. Cleaned it out already but issue always comes back :/

Just out of curiousity, why do you keep buying them?

I have two mechanical keyboards on their original switches (Keychron opticals are unlikely to EVER wear out) and my CM Stealth TK was manufactured in 2013 so it's had almost a decade of me daily-driving it. Genuine Cherry MX switches seem to last a looonnnnnnnng time.

I stopped buying Logitech mice because the switches failed - Omron China is garbage.
After RMA'ing a G9X twice (each one got me a new warranty) I just ebayed the third replacement BNIB and switched to Roccat.
My MX Air is also suffering from switch failure and it's barely used (but a few years old at least).

IMO this iFixit partnership is good but your average joe isn't going to desolder an Omron switch, so it'd be nice if Logitech stopped using garbage switches in the first place, or socketed the switches for easy replacement. I suspect neither of those things will happen though....

 

[rojo]

They need to use better quality parts in their products and make them more modular.

Otherwise, if they still keep using cheaper parts that we can swap out. That won't cut the waste down long term.

 

[Wirko]

The problem is that quite a few widely spoken business languages do not use standard ANSI 101-key layouts. Japan's JIS layout is close to ANSI but has special function keys for toggling between character sets, Brazil's ABNT contains several punctuation keys that aren't otherwise present, Germany uses a modified QWERTZ, French AZERTY, etc. This problem is worsened by TKL and miniaturized keyboards which intentionally remove most auxiliary keys.

Needless to say it wouldn't be as simple as simply making keycaps available, they need to make the keyboards themselves usable. Large countries with hundreds of millions of people with diverse backgrounds speaking many languages are a reality in our day and age.

Yeah, I see. Changing the keycaps could be a solution for many languages but certainly not a universal solution. Actually, if you wanted to buy this Das Keyboard, you'd first have to check if the version you need exists al all. Never thought about it before, and I would have the same issue with our Slovenian layout.

 

[Tomorrow]

Logitech needs to start making PBT keycaps and swappable switches. Paying 200+ for a keyboard with fixed Omron switches and regular ABS plastic may have been the norm five years ago, but not anymore. Also add the ability to change switches in a mouse if it starts double clicking.

I say this as a person who has used Logitech mice and keyboards almost exclusively for the past 10+ years. Partially because of their excellent warranty.

 

[sam_86314]

Cool,

But I wish they also sold replacement casing parts. While the battery in my MX Master did fail, the main thing that also failed was the rubber grip over the thumb button.

 

[Chrispy_]

I say this as a person who has used Logitech mice and keyboards almost exclusively for the past 10+ years. Partially because of their excellent warranty.

Yep. Warranty was top notch, but I'd rather not have mice start double-clicking every 12-15 months and then going through the hassle of sending off the mouse and being without it for 2 weeks every year.

If Logitech's warranty wasn't top notch they'd be infamous for making overpriced hardware that always wears out or breaks prematurely.

I wonder what switches they use in these things, because I've bought several hundred of them and they seem to last and last in click-tastic offices full of architects and engineers:

Logitech Support + Download

www.logitech.com

 

[Chaitanya]

I think so too. G502 X Lightspeed would be perfect for me if it used AA batteries and had alternative BT connection.

Funnily their own MX series of Products offer that BT + 2.4 for multi device compatibility. AA sized(Li, Li-Ion or Alkaline) or even pouch style user replaceble batteries would be so much convinient than their current config of glued in pouch batteries.

 

[L'Eliminateur]

Well, credit where due. Congrats to Logitech for this initiative, although, they could use their strong worldwide presence to make parts available for those who aren't in the United States. Another way to help with emissions would be to sell - at least their higher-end keyboards - in the customer's preferred layout in all of their major markets.

I want to purchase a Japanese JIS layout keyboard from them, but of course they are not available in Brazil (which totally doesn't have the largest community of Japanese descendants overseas, or filthy disgusting weebs like me, promise) and I'd need to purchase it from Amazon.co.jp and have it shipped all the way over here. Why?

i'm in a similar boat with almost all manufacturers, i'm not a keyboard enthusiast by a long shot(i love regular rubber dome keyboards and i've used them all my life, my keyboards last me 20+ years on average -i only recently stopped using my 1994 compaq pre-windows key rubber-dome keyboard because it's ps/2- and the replacement is a dell rubber-dome one and i'm also unwilling to spend much on a keyboard.

But what i want is full-sized ISO with LA-LATIN distribution, outside of pre-built brand-name computers the layout is almost impossible to get, even less for all the "gamer" mechanical keyboards i've seen, with any luck you'll find ISO layout, and maaaybe with SP distribution which is horrible

 

[Tomorrow]

Yep. Warranty was top notch, but I'd rather not have mice start double-clicking every 12-15 months and then going through the hassle of sending off the mouse and being without it for 2 weeks every year.

If Logitech's warranty wasn't top notch they'd be infamous for making overpriced hardware that always wears out or breaks prematurely.

I wonder what switches they use in these things, because I've bought several hundred of them and they seem to last and last in click-tastic offices full of architects and engineers:

Logitech Support + Download

www.logitech.com

That is why you always buy two

I know they used omron switches in some of their gaming mice but cheaper switches - probably why they exhibited the problem sooner.
I just wish they built them better and made them easier to self repair. Or maybe they hope that most people dont use warranty and thus they save money.

 

[Scircura]

Unfortunately iFixit doesn't seem to stock any of the spare parts. I checked two mice of mine that need parts, and iFixit only links to eBay (disorganized results) or Amazon (not available).

At least the disassembly instructions are excellent.

 

[WorringlyIndifferent]

Well that's something I never thought I'd see.

It'd be great if they added instructions and parts for replacing mouse main mount buttons and scroll wheel click counters (whatever that sensor is called) because those are the ones that always give out on me within months. I love Logitech mice and have used them almost exclusively for several years now, the functionality is damn near perfect every time, but the longevity is just abysmal. It'll be interesting to see where this goes.

 

[Chrispy_]

That is why you always buy two

I know they used omron switches in some of their gaming mice but cheaper switches - probably why they exhibited the problem sooner.
I just wish they built them better and made them easier to self repair. Or maybe they hope that most people dont use warranty and thus they save money.

That works, but it's faulty logic; "Buy two so that when the failure-prone product fails, you have a spare." The real solution is obviously to buy a product that isn't guaranteed to fail in the first place!

Omron China's switches have around 1/5th the rated lifespan of Omron Japan. Logitech aren't the only company guilty of using them, but for the sake of $1, Logitech could eliminate this stupid issue and the wasteful RMA dance that we (as past and present Logitech customers) are all now accustomed to. How wasteful is it to send back a faulty mouse, have Logitech (probably) e-waste it and send out a brand new replacement with another complete set of retail packaging that goes straight to landfill. That's not cost-effective, and it's not environmentally-friendly.

 

[Dr. Dro]

Just out of curiousity, why do you keep buying them?

I have two mechanical keyboards on their original switches (Keychron opticals are unlikely to EVER wear out) and my CM Stealth TK was manufactured in 2013 so it's had almost a decade of me daily-driving it. Genuine Cherry MX switches seem to last a looonnnnnnnng time.

I stopped buying Logitech mice because the switches failed - Omron China is garbage.
After RMA'ing a G9X twice (each one got me a new warranty) I just ebayed the third replacement BNIB and switched to Roccat.
My MX Air is also suffering from switch failure and it's barely used (but a few years old at least).

IMO this iFixit partnership is good but your average joe isn't going to desolder an Omron switch, so it'd be nice if Logitech stopped using garbage switches in the first place, or socketed the switches for easy replacement. I suspect neither of those things will happen though....

It's Logitech or far worse Chinese crap here basically. If I give up on mechanical, then I suppose I could buy Microsoft keyboards, those have treated me the best so far. They have plenty of Cooler Master keyboards here too and I've owned a few in the past. I should give one of their mechanicals a shot.

One I really really wanted to have is the Unicomp Classic (model M clone), I really ought to email them and ask if they would ship it to me.

 

[Chrispy_]

It's Logitech or far worse Chinese crap here basically. If I give up on mechanical, then I suppose I could buy Microsoft keyboards, those have treated me the best so far. They have plenty of Cooler Master keyboards here too and I've owned a few in the past. I should give one of their mechanicals a shot.

One I really really wanted to have is the Unicomp Classic (model M clone), I really ought to email them and ask if they would ship it to me.

I'm not trying to shill for Coolermaster - my TK Stealth isn't a particularly expensive keyboard, doesn't have hot-swappable switches and needed me to dismantle it and soak the outer shell in petrol to strip off all the soft-touch finish that broke down into sticky tar after 5-6 years of exposure to the UV light in normal daylight.

All it has going for it is a layout I like (UK ISO TKL) and Cherry MX switches that still feel like new after a decade of daily use.

 

[Dr. Dro]

I'm not trying to shill for Coolermaster - my TK Stealth isn't a particularly expensive keyboard, doesn't have hot-swappable switches and needed me to dismantle it and soak the outer shell in petrol to strip off all the soft-touch finish that broke down into sticky tar after 5-6 years of exposure to the UV light in normal daylight.

All it has going for it is a layout I like (UK ISO TKL) and Cherry MX switches that still feel like new after a decade of daily use.

Yeah, don't worry, I know you're not. I must confess it's not entirely poor quality concerns, it's mostly that I'm not particularly nice to my gear as I use my computer some 90% of the time I'm awake, tend to eat while using it, etc., those habits are terrible for the hardware's longevity.

Rest assured though I do not like Cheetos, so that nightmare is the one that doesn't affect my gear

 

[Tomorrow]

That works, but it's faulty logic; "Buy two so that when the failure-prone product fails, you have a spare." The real solution is obviously to buy a product that isn't guaranteed to fail in the first place!

Omron China's switches have around 1/5th the rated lifespan of Omron Japan. Logitech aren't the only company guilty of using them, but for the sake of $1, Logitech could eliminate this stupid issue and the wasteful RMA dance that we (as past and present Logitech customers) are all now accustomed to. How wasteful is it to send back a faulty mouse, have Logitech (probably) e-waste it and send out a brand new replacement with another complete set of retail packaging that goes straight to landfill. That's not cost-effective, and it's not environmentally-friendly.

I Agree.