IFixit tablet repair index: Dell at top; iPad, Surface at bottom

IFixit, the California company known for its tech tear-ups and how-to-fix guides, has posted a helpful “tablet repairability list” that ranks tablets based on how easily they can be fixed.

The list includes many of the most popular tablets and is a helpful guide for users looking to buy tablets that can be quickly fixed or upgraded with better parts.

“Some may care that their tablets are easy to repair and upgrade; others may not,” IFixit said in a statement. “For those that do, we’ve aggregated our repairability scores for the best-selling tablets into one convenient page.”

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So who ranks best and who ranks last?

Well, at the bottom of the list is the Microsoft Surface Pro. On a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being easiest to repair, the Surface Pro got a 1. IFixit said opening the Microsoft device can shear its display cables and it uses a lot of adhesive instead of screws to hold parts in place.

The next four products up from the bottom are Apple iPads, each of which got scores of 2. The iPad mini and the second, third and fourth generations of the iPad got the low score for a variety of reasons, which include a high chance of cracking the screens’ glass when taking the tablets apart.

No tablet got a perfect score, but the Dell XPS 10 got the top spot with a score of 9. IFixit liked how easy it is to open the Dell tablet and remove its battery. The XPS 10 also got a high grade for its color-coded screws and labeled cables.

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