The EU's "right to repair" is now in place! Will mobile phones and home appliances no longer have a "short lifespan"?

On July 31, 2026, a new regulation that is capable of reshaping the global consumer electronics and home appliance industry came into full effect in the 27 EU countries. The highly anticipated EU "Directive on the Right to Repair of Goods" (Directive (EU) 2024/1799) was officially implemented. This is no longer an environmental initiative or just an industry call, but a hard rule with compulsory legal effect, directly breaking the unspoken rule of "consumable consumption" that technology manufacturers have tacitly accepted for many years. From now on, mainstream appliances such as mobile phones, tablets, refrigerators, and washing machines for European consumers can no longer be forcibly phased out by manufacturers in disguised forms. This "anti-disposable product" revolution, which began in Europe, is rewriting the underlying logic of global product manufacturing, after-sales rights protection, and green consumption.

For a long time, consumers have faced a difficult dilemma: when electronic products break down, the official after-sales repair costs often approach half of the price of a new machine; niche accessories are discontinued, and third-party repairs have no parts available; after the equipment exceeds the warranty period, manufacturers close the repair channel, forcing users to replace it. The core of the repair right implemented by the EU this time is to return the repair right from manufacturers to consumers, and use legal constraints to prevent enterprises from engaging in "profit-driven obsolescence" behavior. The new regulations cover seven core categories, including smartphones, tablet computers, refrigerators, washing machines, washing and drying all-in-one machines, dishwashers, televisions, and computer displays, almost encompassing all electronic and household appliances products that are frequently used in daily household life.

According to the new regulations, manufacturers must continue to supply core repair parts to professional repair institutions and ordinary consumers after the product has been discontinued. The supply of parts for major household appliances will be guaranteed for more than seven years, and the supply of key parts for digital products such as mobile phones and tablets will be guaranteed for ten years, in order to eliminate the chaos of "discarded once discontinued". For faulty products that meet the repair standards, manufacturers must not refuse to repair without reason, and must complete the maintenance within a reasonable period of time. The charges must be transparent and the pricing must be reasonable. Unless the product is completely unrepairable, repair services must be provided. At the same time, the new regulations require the opening of repair permissions, allowing third-party repair businesses to legally obtain parts, repair parameters, and technical information, and simplifying the threshold for individual self-repair. Ordinary users can purchase suitable parts for repairs on their own, without being bundled by official after-sales services. The EU also plans to launch a unified public repair platform in 2027, where consumers can inquire about the feasibility of product repair, suitable parts, formal repair institutions, and reference prices with one click, solving the problem of asymmetric repair information. In simple terms, in the past, manufacturers could repair or discontinue products as they wished. In the future, if consumers want to repair, manufacturers must cooperate according to regulations.

For consumers, this is the most direct benefit. In the past, when a mobile phone screen was broken or the battery aged after three years of use, official repairs often cost hundreds of yuan, and it was difficult to find genuine parts from third parties. Most people had no choice but to replace it. After the new regulations come into effect, the product life cycle will be significantly extended. It is expected to become normal for a mobile phone or an appliance to be used normally for five to ten years. Consumers no longer have to pay high maintenance costs for minor faults, and can also reduce wasteful consumption patterns such as "replacing electronic products every year and淘汰ing home appliances every three years".

For brand manufacturers, this means that their old profit models are facing head-on challenges. For a long time, the short lifespan of products has been an invisible profit model for many technology and home appliance brands: by encrypting hardware, monopolizing accessories, charging premium prices for after-sales services, and discontinuing production and supply, they stimulate users to continuously replace their products and reap profits from repeat purchases. The mandatory enforcement of the EU's right to repair directly puts an end to this logic. All brands entering the EU market must adjust their product design, supply chain, and after-sales system, and can no longer deliberately design non-removable batteries, encrypt niche accessories, or block repair technologies. In the short term, manufacturers' profits from after-sales premiums will shrink, and the rate of product replacement will decrease; in the long term, this will force companies to shift from "making money through replacement" to "making money through quality, service, and reputation".

For both the industry and the environment, the deep core of the new regulations lies in anti-waste and promoting recycling. Tens of millions of tons of electronic waste are generated globally each year, and the vast majority of these products are not completely scrapped. They are merely discarded due to the lack of spare parts or the prohibitive cost of repair. By extending the lifespan of products, the EU aims to reduce the generation of electronic waste at its source, lower carbon emissions from manufacturing, and establish a sustainable green consumption system. This is also a crucial step in advancing the green economy.

This is not merely a change in regulations in the European market. Looking at the transformation of the global consumer industry, EU standards are often regarded as the global industry benchmark. From the unification of charging interfaces, upgrading of energy consumption standards, to the current legislation on repair rights, the EU has always been leading the global product compliance standards. Currently, multiple states in the United States, Canada, and Australia have initiated the legislative process for repair rights. In recent years, China has also been continuously rectifying issues such as "unfair after-sales terms" and "disguised forced replacement", with consumers' awareness of rights protection and demand for green consumption continuously rising. The trend of this transformation is clear: in the future, electronic products and home appliances will be equipped with "repairability, long lifespan, and low-cost maintenance" as standard features, while products with short lifespan, difficulty in repair, and monopolistic after-sales services will eventually be eliminated by the market. For overseas enterprises, this new regulation serves as a rigid compliance threshold. All cross-border brands hoping to deeply penetrate the European market must quickly adjust their supply chains, spare parts reserves, and after-sales systems; otherwise, they will face compliance penalties and the risk of being removed from the market.

We are living in an era of rapid iteration in consumption, where brands continuously release new products and marketing constantly stimulates consumption, making people habitually treat "disposing of old items" as the norm. However, the implementation of the EU's right to repair has sounded an alarm for the entire market: the progress of consumption is not about allowing consumers to endlessly purchase new things, but rather about maximizing the value of every product and giving consumers the right to make their own choices. No longer will they be forced to replace products due to minor faults, pay premiums for monopolistic after-sales services, or let perfectly good products become electronic waste. This is not only an innovation in after-sales rules, but also a comprehensive upgrade in consumption concepts, business logic, and environmental protection philosophy. In the future, it is hoped that not only in Europe but also globally, consumers will bid farewell to "disposable products" and make durability, ease of repair, and inclusivity the fundamental characteristics of all goods.