Teardown shows iPhone 15 Pro could be Apple's most repairable phone in years

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We also got a look at the camera, battery and other internals of Apple's flagship handset

iPhone 15 Pro shown in hand
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Thinking of upgrading to an iPhone 15 Pro? Now you can take a peek inside before you buy. An unofficial teardown from the team at PBKreviews dives into the guts of Apple's new flagship handheld in its iPhone 15 series. The 10-minute video reveals a redesigned mid-frame chassis that should make it easier to pop out the back glass panel for repairs, which aligns with Apple's promise to make it easier for users to fix some of the best iPhones and MacBooks without a trip to the Apple Store. 

First, PBKreviews carefully removes the display using a screen disassembly device and a plastic pick before disconnecting the screen from the rest of the phone and removing several cables and screws. Then they set about taking out the camera assembly, which is held in place by three screws, to give us our best look yet at the iPhone 15 Pro’s 48MP main camera, 12MP telephoto lens, and 12MP ultrawide lens.  

To remove the phone's glass backing, PBKreviews uses a suction cup and a plastic pick, a methodology introduced with the iPhone 14. It's all thanks to a design tweak Apple made to make repairs less of a headache. 

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Overall, PBKreviews gave the iPhone 15 Pro a repairability score of 7 out of 10. The biggest thing hurting its score was Apple’s stacking of the inside components; disassembling and reassembling the handset requires some serious concentration and steady hands, especially when it comes to tackling all the little screws. And of course, in practice, repairing an iPhone isn't as straightforward as being able to take it apart and put it back together.

"And that's if even any of the parts are replaceable," said the reviewer. "When it comes to Apple most parts are locked down, and even if you replace them they're going to pop up some kind of error message or not work properly."

The teardown also confirms the iPhone 15 Pro packs a 3,274 mAh battery, as we saw in last week's regulatory database leak of the iPhone 15's battery sizes. That's a slight bump compared to the 3,200 mAh battery found on the iPhone 14 Pro. Apple has said both devices feature comparable battery life, with up to 23 hours of video playback on a single charge.

Other components highlighted during the video include the iPhone 15 Pro’s 12MP front-facing camera, TrueDepth Face ID camera, Taptic Engine, LiDAR sensor, and USB-C port.

The entire iPhone 15 series goes on sale today. Just make sure you're well informed by reading our iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max reviews before pulling the trigger on a new phone. 

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Alyse Stanley
Alyse Stanley
News Editor

Alyse Stanley is a news editor at Tom’s Guide, overseeing weekend coverage and writing about the latest in tech, gaming, and entertainment. Before Tom’s Guide, Alyse worked as an editor for the Washington Post’s sunsetted video game section, Launcher. She previously led Gizmodo’s weekend news desk and has written game reviews and features for outlets like Polygon, Unwinnable, and Rock, Paper, Shotgun. She’s a big fan of horror movies, cartoons, and roller skating. She's also a puzzle fan and can often be found contributing to the NYT Connections coverage on Tom's Guide