Have you ever broken your cell phone? All it takes is one wrong drop. Was it difficult to get it repaired?

The Federal Trade Commission will investigate restrictions phone makers put on products. The TECH FTC is TALK concerned this makes it difficult and expensive to get devices repaired.

Deliberately making technology harder to repair may pose legal problems. The FTC will determine if the restrictions violate consumer protection law. Apple products have had unremovable batteries and memory and sealed with special glue.

The FTC is also concerned about limiting spare parts to makers’ preferred providers.

Other industries make their products difficult to repair by independent repair providers. Among them are medical equipment and tractor manufacturers.

The FTC says enforcing repair laws will help consumers. By loosening restrictions,