iFixit’s Teardowns of the iPhone 16 Lineup Reveal Improved Battery Replaceability and More

iFixit has released the results of its teardowns of the iPhone 16 lineup. I love these posts because not only do they provide insights into the repairability of the new iPhones, but they also answer interesting questions like:

• Is the Cameral Control button a physical button?
• How has Apple changed the way it is managing the heat generated by the Neural Engine?
• How do the batteries differ between iPhone models?

However, this year, perhaps the most interesting discovery in all models of the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro lines is the use of a new battery adhesive:

The adhesive that secures the battery, in the vanilla and Plus models, is this fancy new sticky stuff that can debond when you pass an electrical current through it. That means no more reliance on finicky, brittle adhesive strips, just a consistent, easily repeatable process.

The post goes in-depth on just how simple it is to remove the battery using tools as simple as a 9-volt battery and alligator clips.

The ease with which the battery can be replaced in the iPhone 16 line went a long way in the repairability score iFixit bestowed on the devices this year. Whereas the iPhone 15 received a score of four out of ten, the iPhone 16 received a seven, a significant year-over-year increase.