Apple may be known for making easy-to-use products, but when it comes to the iPhone, it doesn’t make products that are easy to repair.

As iPhone owners learn, when their phone’s battery dies, it can be replaced; but unlike with a BlackBerry, it’s not a simple task. Apple will do it for $86 and a three-day turnaround. But there are less-expensive third-party providers as well.

Can devoted tinkerers do the replacement themselves? It depends on whom you ask. While researching Thursday’s article about ways to improve the battery life of portable devices, I got two different answers from two companies I interviewed that sell iPhone replacement parts and services.

According to ifixit.com, a company that provides parts for Mac computers, iPods and iPhones, the answer is yes. For about $32, it will sell you a new battery, plus the tools you need to crack the case and separate the various screws and connectors to get at the dead battery. The battery is guaranteed for six months.

http://gadgetwise.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/03/12/iphone-battery-replacement-diy-or-not/