PURE audio - response to request for parts availability

Right to repair: policy & activism
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At the Repair Cafe a customer brought in a PURE radio with a broken on/off/volume switch. Having taken it apart (by trial and error since there is no service manual available) we diagnosed the exact part that needed replacing. A request to PURE was made as below:-

I volunteer at a local Repair Cafe and have a Pop Midi to repair. The rotary encoder centre shaft has broken, and the on/off/volume button has therefore become detached. Can you supply a replacement so I can remove the broken one and solder in the new one?

Their reply:-

Thank you for your email! We are sorry that the rotary encoder of the Pop Midi has broken. We understand how unpleasant this may be.

We are afraid to inform you we can no longer offer any repair services or spare parts as this would not be economical.

We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

However, if the device is within warranty, we suggest returning it to the place of purchase for a replacement or a refund.

If the device is out of warranty and you wish to replace it, we can offer you a 20% discount on products from our Pure Shop. Please note that the discount does not apply to refurbished or discounted products.

If you accept the offer, let us know and we will assist.

We hope this helps.

Best regards,

Customer Support

Pretty rubbish in my opinion, so I pursued them further:-

Thanks for your message.
Can you provide a parts diagram for the rotary encoder so I can ensure I buy the correct sized item? I believe it’s a 30 position detent version with an 11mm square base, but I don’t know the total shaft length.

Kind regards

Mark

Their reply:-

Hello Mark,

Thank you for your reply.

Unfortunately, it is Pure policy not to supply any user-serviceable parts, schematics, or repair diagrams for any of our models, inside or outside of warranty, due to confidentiality.

We apologize for any disappointment caused.

We thank you for your understanding.

Best regards,
Customer Support

I think it’s a very disappointing response. There’s no confidentiality issue in providing the spec for a rotary encoder and is just a way of obfuscating in the hope of selling another new item.

To put this in perspective, I recently repaired a Philips boom box from the 1980s. A full service manual was available online detailing the procedure for dismantling, cleaning, lubricating and reassembling. Every screw was listed and its dimensions stated.

PURE should feel embarrassed with their approach to sustainability. I sourced the part online and replaced it - a pretty easy job. I shall mention PURE’s policy to all who will listen.

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Hi Mark, and welcome! :slight_smile:

Their policy is precisely why we need a “universal” right to repair - for all products, and open to everyone. It’s remarkable that they’re so explicit about repair being anti-economical. And you weren’t even asking them to repair it for you…just to purchase a part.

Unfortunately we’re very far from achieving this - especially for small electricals such as radios. Regulations coming out of the EU (not yet matched by the UK) concentrate on larger, more expensive products. As part of the Right to Repair Europe campaign we co-lead, we’re advocating for “horizontal” measures - meaning applying to all small electrical/ICT products, including more openness on access to spare parts, but I’m not optimistic about achieving this in the near future. In the UK we’ll be pushing the new government to give us a real right to repair, in line with our Repair and Reuse Declaration but it’s going to take time.

It’s great that you were able to source the part elsewhere and complete the repair anyway, this is exactly the type of story that can help policymakers understand the importance of community-run repair initiatives, and the need to support them, as well as changing the system to make repair the norm for everyone.

Could you document what you needed to do to get the spare parts, and how much you ended up spending for the part, as well as how old you estimate the Pure radio to be? With well documented stories about repairs barriers set by manufacturers, we can challenge them!
Well done, and keep up the great work!

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I found what looked like an almost identical part on Aliexpress and bought a pack of 10 for about ÂŁ15. It appears that many of these parts are made to common dimensions. I think the radio was about 5 yrs old and should have decades of life left in it.

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We should tell Pure exactly this: they refuse to make available a part costing perhaps ÂŁ1.50, just so they hope to sell another radio starting at ÂŁ69.99. Makes sense (for them), right?!

Thanks, I think this can inspire us for some future communication campaign :wink:

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If you want some more inspiration, see my experience with Ecoair:

"Thank you for your order but unfortunately, we have to cancel this order as this item is not meant to be sold to the public

Sorry for the inconvenience caused"

After I challenged them they didn’t cancel the order but removed the part from their website!

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Pure, like many DAB sellers do not (in the old sense) ‘manufacturer’. They design the look, go to the factory and the rest is done by the factory in China.

They do not choose to carry parts, they could if they wanted to but they need to order them during production runs.

If it is an old model retrospective parts ordering for the manufacturer is very hard, or impossible. This is because MOQs will be 10k plus, if the part is still available.

They often do not have circuit diagrams or firmware as these belong to the factories.

I say this having been in the DAB factory that manufacturers for Pure (amongst other well known brands).

This is rife across consumer electronics, with a few exceptions of the really big brands (such as Sony etc) who actually do end-to-end design on most products.

Another example is Bluetooth speakers. Neary all the electronics is China designed, firmware is internal to China. A recent conversation I had with B and W (as I was repairing a Zeppelin speaker) revealed they did not design the electronics, they have never had a circuit diagram, they have no access to the source code and the factory that did no longer exists!

Sad but true, laws need to change.

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I just wanted to add my compliments to Mark, not only for the ingenious repair but also for sharing the exchanges with Pure.

I understand the commercial aspects for manufacturers and brand owners. The additional question is that if they don’t make the item repairable, why don’t they at least use more robust parts for the user interface?

I confess we have also had very little success with DAB radios at our own Repair Cafe.

Phil

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So Pure will not be able to sell any of their products in EU??? End of pure in EU ?

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I imagine any repairability laws will be focused on new products, probably not yet developed. They will find a way to phase over years. Otherwise 70% of all consumer electronics woukd have to be removed from the shelves.

It certainly will be a challenge for some companies but they will have caviats amd processes, its going to be interesting to watch.

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Hi, unfortunately no legislation approved to date would cover repairability of DAB radios. The “Right to Repair” directive approved in the EU will only be applicable from August 2026 to repairs of products within the warranty period for products not yet covered by ecodesign legislation (such as radios).

For new models released from 2027, manufacturers willing to sell their products in the EU will have to alter design to make batteries user-replaceable, and will have to supply batteries for at least 5 years after retiring a model from the market [this would not apply to DAB radios that are not battery-operated obviously]

All of this to say that we’re far from obtaining a real Right to Repair - not only in the UK, but also in the EU, sadly

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