Before you, the customer, arranges for any work to be performed on an electronic device -- ask the shop how they price their work. In South Africa, very few repair company websites publish their labour rates or quote rejection fee. The few that do publish a price for public consumpton, seem to charge R499.00 labour per hour and a R179.00 quote rejection fee. 

Micro Fix charges the following diagnostic fees upon booking in a device:
  • Standalone PCB; Small speakers; Other electronics diagnostic fee = R100.00
  • Standard Electronics (Phones; Tablets; Game Consoles) diagnostic fee = R200.00
  • Windows Laptops & Desktops diagnostic fee = R300.00
  • Apple MacBook & iMac diagnostic fee = R400.00
  • Amplifier; Large Speakers & TV diagnostic fee = R500.00
Our labour per hour starts @ R580.00 depending on which level of repair or device type is being serviced. The replacement part pricing varies. The TRC (Total Repair Cost) is listed in our final quotation for customer approval.

What should I know about the parts to be repaired or replaced?

Parts are classified as:

  • New — These parts generally are made to original manufacturer's specifications, either by the device manufacturer's nominated factory or an independent contracted company. In RSA, repair shops are not required to tell you if non-original parts will be used in the repair (unlike other territories). Prices and quality of these replacement parts vary.
  • Remanufactured, rebuilt and reconditioned — These terms generally mean the same thing: parts have been restored to a sound working condition usually by an independent refurbishing company. Many of these wholesale vendors offer a warranty covering replacement parts, but not the labour to install them.
  • Salvage — These are original used parts taken from another device without alteration. Salvage parts may be the only source for certain items, though their reliability is seldom guaranteed.
In general, Micro Fix installs and guarantees repairs with new, OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) replacement parts that have either been directly imported from overseas by us or sourced from local suppliers who themselves have imported from their overseas supply chain. In general, we offer customers a 100-day warranty on completed repairs. If a customer chooses to have generic (aftermarket) parts installed, we at this stage only offer a 45-day warranty on such repairs.

In regards to motherboard repairs, known in the industry as Level 3 repairs, we have the equipment and the experience to offer our customer base such services. 


However, Micro Fix in no shape or form guarantees we can fix each and every device that is booked in with us. Some devices have too many issues or has too much damage from liquid exposure or catastrophic damage from an inexperienced previous repairer. There are certain problems we do not service and Micro Fix will let you know before you bring / ship it in a device. We have a 90% success rate with untouched motherboards requiring repair!


Additionally, we have blanket policy of charging a bench fee for a device that does not turn on upon booking it in with us. Too many potential customers want to or bring in their DIY (Do-It-Yourself) projects or it was butchered by an unscrupulous repairer elsewhere (and NO, we are not going to mention a competitors name). The data in most modern devices is encrypted and tied to the motherboard of that device -- a poor prior repair attempt greatly lessons the chance of us completing a successful repair or access to the valuable data on the device. The average motherboard can only take so much abuse before it can no longer function normally (or not at all). We no longer offer a NO FIX / NO FEE for Level 3 repairs!


We have policies and procedures in place to ensure professional standards are maintained and that the vast majorty of our customers have a good experience because of our transparency and fair customer relations practices.


Below is a YouTube video of the typical process for a motherboard repair. It's an HDTV repair solution. Video courtesy of the Repair All TV channel:

As this video illustrates, to fix the motherboard of a device involves thorough testing and changing faulty components one by one to get it working again. The reality is that a motherboard repair quote is not based on a "best guess" but an accurate assessment of what is needed to fix a particular unit. A complete solution is what you, the customer, receive from us in any written quote that is drafted.

CONCLUSION: When you pay for a job, you are not only paying for a job, especially a custom job, or just the materials and the work to be completed on that invoice. You also pay for: knowledge; experience; custom skills; tools; time to plan; time to prepare; professionalism; etc -- Come & experience the Micro Fix difference!