hiYa! My name is Kay-Kay.
I know you’re probably wondering if that’s my real name, but that’s what my mama calls me—which is about as real as it gets.
I’ve worked at iFixit for 4 years, and my job still changes a little every day. I mostly oversee content creation—which means I sneak in in as much Harry Potter, Star Wars, and Pokemon into my work as I can. Here are a couple of my favorite pieces:
Live iPhone XS Teardown - The Beer Edition
Kelsea and I thought it would be a good idea to take apart the iPhone XS live on 0 sleep. And since Apple said they’d tested the XS in beer, we also thought it was a good idea to build a beer-tube and test that IP rating ourselves.
I’m a Genius
Apple and other tech manufacturers use words like “genius” and “geek” to intimidate you from repairing your stuff. But everyone is capable of fixing their things, so I ran a campaign to help inspire others to stop fearing and start fixing by sharing their repair stories with the hashtag #ImAGenius.
- We Are All Geniuses - A recap of how manufacturers and marketers made us fearful of fixing.
- We Put Our Genius Theory to the Test - I’m proof that anyone can learn how to fix their eThings—so I ran an experiment with four first-time fixers to prove it.
- Rebellions Are Built on Hope - Star Wars taught me that rebellions are built on hope. So I collected #ImAGenius repair story submissions to let every repair rebel out there know they’re not alone,
Rey (Rey) Landspeeder Teardown
That one time I convinced my boss to buy a toy Landspeeder so I could put on a costume and tear it down. Spoiler: I journeyed to Jakku and beyond to bring you this video.
Kay-Kay in the wild
I also spend a lot of time talking to people who write for the internet about repair.
- I’ve told The New York Times what to do when you spill on your laptop.
- I was quoted in Gizmodo about my stance on Apple’s repair policy. But more importantly, they said I was “excellently-named.”
- I debunked a myth with Refinery 29 about using cat litter to dry out a water-damaged phone.
- Inc Magazine visited and snapped a picture of me working at my infamous underdesk.
MOAR things
When people asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I said “taller”. I’m fluent in parseltongue, an amateur adventurer, and I eat everything with a side of rice. I have an unhealthy obsession with McDonalds hashbrowns. In my spare time, I enjoy singing covers in cosplay, tap dancing in my garage, and frolicking in Middle Earth and the Forest of Endor.
If you want to follow my adventures, you can do that here:
- Twitter: @kaykayclapp
- Instagram: @kaykayclapp
This is amazeballs. Solid work!
Hi Mary,
I’m sorry to hear that you didn't feel like your project produced quality results. The goal of our EDU program is to teach technical writing in universities in addition to creating lasting repair resources. We hear from folks all the time about how our guides, and student guides, have helped them save something that would otherwise be trash. We know that not every guide is perfect, but it's a start—a chance that something won’t get thrown out. One of the great things about iFixit is that it’s a WIKI, so our community can update your guides and make them better over time. Thankfully, you’ve done the disassembly and have taken some great pictures, so a lot of the hard work is already done :)
We appreciate your concern and I know our EDU team would be happy to chat with you directly about your experience and how we can improve it. Please feel free to reach out to them at education@ifixit.com. We want our students to have a good experience and your feedback makes that possible. Thanks!