You Can't Open the Microsoft Surface Laptop Without Literally Destroying It

It's also important to note that iFixit is ONLY comlpainining about the Surface Laptop's upgradeability/repairability -- they otherwise describe the product in very well-deserved, glowing terms.

Repair specialists iFixit have dubbed the new laptop a ‘Russian nesting doll from hell.’

Microsoft's latest Surface Laptop may have earned glowing reviews from certain sections of the tech press, but don't tell that to iFixit.

The company, which provides repair tools and manuals for popular gadgets like the iPhone and PlayStation, has handed the Surface Laptop a score of 0 out of 10 in terms of user repairability, stating definitively that the laptop "is not meant to be opened or repaired; you can't get inside without inflicting a lot of damage."

iFixit's detailed teardown illustrates just how difficult it is to open the Surface. For starters, there are no screws, proprietary or otherwise, on the outside of the laptop. Instead, the laptop is literally welded together using a type of "plastic soldering" that is rare to see in consumer electronics.

Anyone hoping to get inside the "beautifully designed and crafted" computer will have to pry it open with a knife or dedicated pick in order to defeat Microsoft's plastic welding. Whether or not it's actually worth going through the trouble of defeating said welding is another matter, given that the "glue-filled monstrosity," as iFixit dubs the laptop, has none of the user-upgradeable parts you'd want to see in a PC, like memory or storage.

"It literally can't be opened without destroying it," the repair company concludes.

"If we could give it a -1 out of 10, we would," iFixit said in an emailed statement on Friday. "It's a Russian nesting doll from hell with everything hidden under adhesive and plastic spot welds. It is physically impossible to nondestructively open this device."

The Surface laptops, perhaps with the exception of 2012's Surface RT, have earned generally positive reviews, with critics variously commending Microsoft (Microsoft!) for designing attractive-looking hardware that doubles as a reference point for its vision of what a modern Windows-based laptop should look like. Unfortunately for consumers, this seductive vision is apparently incompatible with being able to extend the laptop's useful lifespan on your own.

I find it most interesting that, after years of complaints (from iFixit as well as anti-Apple sources) that MacBooks had become impossible to upgrade or repair, Microsoft has finally seen the wisdom of making thin laptops that are rendered mechanically stable by making them non-upgradeable/non-repairable -- that is, by soldering everything in place.

No question that it is a PITA for the customer who later decides they'd like more memory or more storage -- or worst, whose battery gives out and they can't replace it themselves.

But overall, I think Microsoft has Done The Right Thing with the Surface Laptop, and despite iFixit's complaints, I believe it will be a solid product.

This will really amplify the bloat ware automatic upgrades. Accelerated obsolescence for profit.

Micro$oft has always been an empire of graft and corruption. Wouldn’t it he nice if their R&D department was focused on inventing product instead of screwing the customer for every penny he has.

The only logical choice is third party laptops. I replaced the cooling fan twice on my Acer and wore out 3 keyboards before it was too slow to endure. But then I was on my laptop constantly.

If you buy a car that is too cool and too pretty that breaks down too early and can’t be repaired it’s called a lemon.

I have one laptop that I use for work. Have to have it for travel. (I also have a hand me down tablet that is rarely used.)

Every other computer that I own is a full sized tower with easy access to everything. I like being able to perform my own upgrades and repairs. I buy $400 to $600 systems and build from there.

A $2k diposable computer? I ain’t that stupid.

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