Apple releases updates to improve iPhone 16 repairability, including changes to the battery, TrueDepth Camera, and Face ID, and launches a Repair Assistant
here's how X: Joe Rossignol / @rsgnl : Apple says iPhone 16 + iPhone 16 Plus batteries use a type of adhesive that can be loosened with low-voltage electrical current, such as from a 9V battery. This confirms the batteries have metal enclosures. Apple says this change doesn't extend to the iPhone 16 Pro or Pro Max. Forums: MacRumors Forums : Apple Says iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus Batteries Can Be Removed With Low-Voltage Electrical Current
Context & Ripple Effects
Apple’s move follows a June report that it was preparing electrically induced battery-adhesive removal for an iPhone 16 model. It also extends a repairability arc in which the iPhone 15 Pro Max gained a frame redesign for back-glass work while software constraints still complicated some repairs.
The model-by-model distinction matters: later teardown coverage found modularity and battery-enclosure improvements in the iPhone 16 Pro line, even though the low-voltage adhesive method described here is limited to the standard and Plus models.
First-order effects
- iPhone 16 and 16 Plus repairers can remove batteries using low-voltage current to loosen the adhesive; that specific process is unavailable on the 16 Pro and Pro Max.
- Changes affecting TrueDepth Camera and Face ID, alongside Repair Assistant, expand Apple’s supported repair workflow beyond battery access on iPhone 16 models.
Second-order effects
- Repair documentation and technician workflows will need to distinguish between standard/Plus and Pro models rather than treat the iPhone 16 range as one repair design.
- Combining physical access changes with a repair-assistance tool makes both hardware design and post-repair software support part of Apple’s repairability proposition.
Third-order effects
- If Apple applies these approaches more broadly, smartphone repairability will increasingly depend on coordinated mechanical design, component handling, and manufacturer software tools—not teardown-friendly hardware alone.
- The Pro-model exception shows that progress is likely to remain uneven across product tiers, leaving repairability as a differentiator that must be assessed model by model.
The trend: Apple is moving toward more serviceable phone designs while retaining software-assisted control over how repairs are completed and validated.