iFixit's Kyle Wiens on How to Dismantle the War on DIY Electronics

Anyone planning on buying a new iPad should know what they're getting themselves into by now. In recent years, Apple and other hardware manufacturers have made it liquid-crystal clear that they're not fond of the idea that customers can tear open and fix products without the help of licensed repair specialists. Even if it's as easy as ordering a part online and following a few instructions gleaned from a Google search, hardware companies generally seem to prefer we keep the hood closed. It should not be surprising, then, that the latest version of Apple's much-desired tablet has one "killer" feature that's finally getting the attention it deserves: A design that stops you from getting inside of it.

DIY site iFixit has been keeping tabs on the tech world whilst providing handy self-repair guides for popular electronics. In a recent post, the site noted how the build specifications of Apple's newest touchscreen slate have made opening up the device considerably more difficult. The site has given the device a 2 out of 10 "repairability" score, mostly due to the significantly greater effort required to unseal its glass panel without damage. Rudimentary tasks such as replacing a faulty battery (which can bought for $50 online, half the cost of letting Apple's specialists do the work) have also become excruciating ordeals, according to the site's review. Despite all of this, a claim of record weekend sales from Apple suggests that this tendency to inconveniently seal up circuitry will only become more prevalent.

Of course, these practices have always been about reinstituting a form of centralized control. It all started with the advent of personal computers, which democratized the creation and execution of software programs. Author Cory Doctorow, among others, has described the resulting backlash as a glimpse of a future where, in the name of copyright, "black box" electronics replace personal computing outright.

More specifically, iFixit co-founder Kyle Wiens says the current trends in hardware highlight a discouraging attitude among manufacturers toward the idea of tech independence, and most importantly, an underlying desire to keep consumers in the dark about how their technology actually works — and ready and willing to shell out for the latest model.

"Consumers have to demand robust, reliable products," Wiens told me in a recent chat. Unfortunately, in the consumer tech industry, that rarely seems to be the case. Thus the cycle perpetuates, with manufacturers producing computers and gadgets that break down after several years and are quickly replaced with newer, similarly-specced machines.

Wiens said that if machines in other industries — for example, tractors used by farmers — were to break down over a handful of years and couldn't be easily repaired, consumers would openly revolt. "In industries where consumers really care about a quality, long-lasting product, there's no way companies can get away with it," he said.

In the electronics world, however, economics trump sustainability every time. In other words, the flow of product is kept speedy enough that even despite their short life cycles, the people who run into issues with devices are typically the second or third owners. And even when they are the first owners, as is the case with the ongoing epidemic of broken iPhone screens (which Apple seems content to perpetuate considering they now coat the entire device in glass), people become indoctrinated into an hyper-dependent warranty culture rather than told they can replace the screens themselves for $20.

Consumers aren't the only ones getting ripped off — human rights and the environment are also taking a hit, with non-renewable resources like coltan, sourced from embattled Congolese slave mines, being perhaps the most contentious and well-publicized issue surrounding the manufacture of mass-produced electronics rather than repairable, long-lasting ones. There's also far less potential for re-use where these devices eventually end up in the junkyards of the third world, Wiens noted, thanks to their "closed door" design and construction.

In some sense it also contributes to the ongoing myth that anyone who tinkers with electronics might be dangerous. A recent notice released by the FBI's Joint Regional Intelligence Center heavily implies this, suggesting that individuals engaged in certain technical activities should be regarded as "suspicious" and specifically mentioning people who "download or transfer files with 'how-to' content, such as […] information about timers, electronics, or remote transmitters/receivers." As ridiculous as its claims are, the notice perhaps reveals just how marginalized amateur engineering and electronics self-repair culture have become due to these increasingly closed-off devices.

"I think that is changing the culture in a way that makes it easier for the FBI to get away with things like this, because the technology is more magical and people are more and more distanced from it," Wiens said. "What we're trying to do is connect people with their things again." The way to do that, he said, is simply get more people tinkering, hacking, and understanding how electronics work in general. One the best points of entry is through self-repair: If we start seeing more stay-at-home moms out there replacing batteries in their kids' iPods, he suggested, attempts by the government or anyone else to cast hobbyists and amateur engineers in that kind of light will be universally dismissed as ludicrous.

It's not easy to convince everyone, though. According to Wiens, the message is getting out there, but it's going to be up to consumers to make a choice. And while concerns about the environment and globalization can sway some, he insists that sites like iFixit ultimately need to be showing people how they can save money in order to attract mass-appeal. The tradeoff of course is time, and Wiens hopes that with enough accurate, plain language tutorials and helpful tear-downs of popular devices, he and his crew will not only help consumers make more informed decisions, but reconnect with their tech in a way that's worthwhile.

• Can We Have Gadgets That Are Not Made of Blood
• Foxconn's Interns
• Something Something iPad

Follow Motherboard on Twitter and Facebook.