iFixit embodies the “no problem, I’ll do it myself” spirit that has always been a characteristic of some tech lovers. As one of the supporters of the Right to Repair movement, the company is now flexing its muscles with an electronics product of its own. The FixHub is a USB-C powered soldering iron designed to help you fix (and easily fix) whatever is on your workbench.
The iron features a 55Wh battery pack that acts as a stand and temperature control, ensuring you can fix things wherever you go.
Founder Kyle Wiens explained that FixHub was born out of frustration with soldering irons and their limitations. He was frustrated that he had to drag an extension cord out on the road to fix his car stereo.
So the team at iFixit set out to find a way to improve what was traditionally a crude tool. This includes making it smarter, more flexible and easily repairable. The 100-watt iron can reach your desired soldering temperature in just five seconds.
There’s an accelerometer inside the iron’s body that can detect if the iron is idle or in its holder. If so, it will automatically set it to cool down – hopefully getting extra life out of the iron’s tip.
And if the iron falls out of your hand it will cut the power to prevent any nasty accidents. There’s also an LED ring on the body that will let you know if the iron is cool enough to touch, heating up or ready for use.
You can use the iron with any USB-C power source that can output 20W, but it will remain set to the factory default temperature of 660f/350c. For more control (and portability), you’ll need to pick up the FixHub Power Station, the company’s new 55Wh battery pack.
It will output up to 100W at once, with enough power to run two irons simultaneously, or have one iron work while recharging another USB-C device. On the front, you’ll find a display and a turn dial that lets you control the temperature of the iron if you need to replace it.
This being iFixit, both products are modular and repairable, with the usual commitment to ensuring easy serviceability. The packaging also includes an iFixit screwdriver that will let you take both products apart if needed. Hopefully you’ll be fixing your electronics with one of these for decades to come.
iFixit will begin shipping its FixHub products in the US, Canada, Australia, and Europe on October 15. The Smart Soldering Iron will run you $80, while the Soldering Station, which includes the soldering iron and battery pack, costs $250. You can also pick up a soldering toolkit for $300, which will include the above plus a lot of accessories and materials.
Bang & Olufsen said the earbuds’ design “allows for battery replacement by service,” which, as iFixit notes, suggests this isn’t a repair you can do yourself at home.
In the end it was possible to take one of the earbuds apart without damaging any of the electronics inside, but the laborious teardown raises questions about how feasible — and sustainable — a battery replacement would be, even if done at a B&O service center.
After opening the case and finding “a plastic weld mark preventing access to the battery,” iFixit’s Shahram Mokhtari notes in the video that, “at the very least, any battery replacement service would have to dispose of the plastic casing completely.”
“I’d love to see B&O’s process for replacing these batteries,” Mokhtari wrote in the blog post. “I’m willing to bet it’s neither cheap nor wasteful, but I’d love to be proven wrong.”