A Student Modified the AirPods With a 3D-Printed Case and USB-C Port That Enhanced Its Repairability
The AirPods are very hard to repair given the design. In his new video, Ken Pillonel shares that no hardware component of the wearable can be accessed without damaging it the earbuds. Henceforth, if your AirPods are faulty, it is as good as a disposable item. In iFixit’s teardown, the original AirPods and AirPods 2 received a repairability score of zero out of ten for the same reason. With that said, Pillonel investigated to seek a solution to the problem. The engineer created a 3D-printed replacement casing for the AirPods and you can download it if you have a 3D printer. It will allow technicians to make repairs to the AirPods after the original casing is damaged. However, this is only half the modification that the engineer planned for the wearable. Pillonel also ended up switching the Lightning port on the AirPod’s case with a USB-C port. You can check out the video below for more details.
The reason why Pillonel switched the Lightning port with a USB-C port is that you can not purchase a Lightning port individually and have to replace it with another AirPods charging case. This further increases the chances of the AirPods’ repairability. This is not the first time that the engineer and robotics student modified an Apple product. We have previously covered how he switched the Lightning port on the iPhone with a USB-C port. In addition, he also modified Samsung’s Galaxy A51 with a Lightning port. We will share more details on the subject, so be sure to stick around for more details. This is all there is to it, folks. How did you like the modified AirPods? Share your views with us in the comments.
