Fixing phones worth it?

[GTP]

I spoke to my outsource guy about this recently. He has 4 employees ( + him) so they fix about 30~40 iphones/android phones per week and about the same in ipads and android tablets.
They also do about 20~50 laptop/mac screens per week.
They also repair power jacks, microphones, USB ports, Motherboard repairs and replacements, keyboard replacements and a whole lot of other services like Xbox and Playstation repairs.
They do a lot of Mac repairs.
I've even sent things like an electric guitar, a mixer, amps, TV's etc that they repaired.
He makes very good money, but it's volume related and diversifying into other electronics helps.

 

[lan101]

I spoke to my outsource guy about this recently. He has 4 employees ( + him) so they fix about 30~40 iphones/android phones per week and about the same in ipads and android tablets.
They also do about 20~50 laptop/mac screens per week.
They also repair power jacks, microphones, USB ports, Motherboard repairs and replacements, keyboard replacements and a whole lot of other services like Xbox and Playstation repairs.
They do a lot of Mac repairs.
I've even sent things like an electric guitar, a mixer, amps, TV's etc that they repaired.
He makes very good money, but it's volume related and diversifying into other electronics helps.

Seems like there's still good money in mac repair because the cost of macs is still generally much higher than the average pc off the street people have. I wish the electronics industry was more like the automotive industry where getting parts are a lot more readily available to the dealers. Seems like it's such a crap shoot with electronics.

That's just like in some of Louis's videos when he pulls up those schematics for macs...not sure if he's ever said where he gets them, but those should be able to be had freely or even purchased from Apple but they don't provide them. I think he said he found them in the deep dark web or what not so I'm sure he spent tons of time trying to locate them.

 

[Mytechid]

We discussed a bit previously here -

https://www.technibble.com/forums/t...e-repair-with-investing-in.69813/#post-570434

...and no, I won't touch phones. One scratch when prying the case and most owners go ballistic. After all, they fondle the thing all day long......

This
Plus the profit margin is a joke.

I would do what others have recommended. Find someone that does this as their full-time gig. They will have a HUGE competitive edge over you here. Work a partnership for referrals, and move on.

In order to make this work, you have to buy parts in bulk, carry the right insurance to protect your client's investment, provide some kind of guarantee for your work, and have a large client list buying this service regularly to turn a profit. Most people can do this from their home with a kit bought online, and a youtube walkthrough. This diminishes your ability to sell in a big big way.

I find in the end the time spent on gig's like this isn't even close to the reward. You can invest your time in other, higher-yielding, activities that in the end become easier to deal with.

 

[zacc]

Check on indeed how many cell phone repair technician needed nationwide! Nearly,everybody can do Mc Donald's job ! Cell phone repair job will prepare you to a lot of related jobs such like computer,soldering/micro-soldering,electronic assembly,electronics repair,medical devices assembly & or repair....

 

[PcTek9]

so true. also cell phones devalue so quickly about the only use for old ones is to download a network intrusion app that monitors for new unauthorized connections to your wifi and sounds an alarm...

 

[John Ashleigh]

Being selective with your time and clientele is also important. Most repairs to iPhones are worth doing, because I don't think I have ever met anyone with Apple care and they are always happy with a much cheaper price at a much quicker time frame. On the other hand, spending time and money resourcing a replacement LCD for a brand new Samsung is something I would personally decline on doing. I'd just advise the customer to go through Samsung Repairs.

I try not to bite off more than I can chew. I think fixing phones is a worthwhile thing, you just need to spend a whole lot of time researching and practicing on any model you can get your hands on whilst being completely honest with yourself and any paying customer.

 

[overburnz]

Being selective with your time and clientele is also important. Most repairs to iPhones are worth doing, because I don't think I have ever met anyone with Apple care and they are always happy with a much cheaper price at a much quicker time frame. On the other hand, spending time and money resourcing a replacement LCD for a brand new Samsung is something I would personally decline on doing. I'd just advise the customer to go through Samsung Repairs.

I try not to bite off more than I can chew. I think fixing phones is a worthwhile thing, you just need to spend a whole lot of time researching and practicing on any model you can get your hands on whilst being completely honest with yourself and any paying customer.

AppleCare+ is the one that does the repair for free or for a small fee, and the turnaround time for the repair is 1h or less, for replacing a display is around 1 hour in any model (if you have experience with it) and the battery is close to 15min, and i am talking CAAA not "fake" parts, but you are right, some customers tend to try the cheapest repair possible first...

 

[John Ashleigh]

AppleCare+ is the one that does the repair for free or for a small fee, and the turnaround time for the repair is 1h or less, for replacing a display is around 1 hour in any model (if you have experience with it) and the battery is close to 15min, and i am talking CAAA not "fake" parts, but you are right, some customers tend to try the cheapest repair possible first...

Of course, AppleCare is generally free. But last time I checked it is also £25 a month - in and around. And if you've done iPhones for a good while and are confident in taking it apart, a screen replacement would take the same amount of time as any other technician.

As I say - knowing what jobs to take and which to turn down is an important part of the mobile side of my business.