Apple to expand its independent repair program to India, other countries

Tech giant Apple has been heavily criticised over the years for its restrictions on who can repair its devices, which end up costing customers a lot even with several warranty programs in place. If you live somewhere with limited choices, Apple's recently-announced expansion of its Independent Repair Provider program might change that.

As per The Verge, the company plans to expand its repair program to "nearly every country where Apple products are sold."

The Cupertino-based tech giant confirmed that it will open its independent repair program to service providers across more than 200 countries. This means the program will be accessible in nearly every country where its products are available to purchase.

Currently, the program is only available in the US, Canada and Europe, but according to the tech giant's announcement, repair providers from countries including Australia, Japan, and Korea will be able to join this week, with providers from even more countries including China joining the program later this year.

Like its participating third-party repair providers, the additional repair centres will have access to genuine Apple parts and tools as well as manuals and diagnostics. These are the same resources available to Apple's authorised service providers.

The repair providers will also go through training sessions for free. In order to qualify, they must also agree to allow an Apple-certified technician to do the repairs.

Application for the program will commence this week in the following countries: Afghstan, Australia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Cook Islands, Fiji, Guam, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Laos, Macao, Malaysia, Maldives, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, New Zealand, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, Tonga, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, Vanuatu, and Vietnam.

Providers have to apply to participate, but once approved, they can only buy a limited variety of first-party materials like batteries, screens, and diagnostic tools.

So while your local repair person will be able to fix the most common issues with official parts, anything more exotic will have to go through Apple, one of its authorised service providers, or risk voiding a warranty or becoming unsupported down the line.

( With inputs from ANI )