iPhone 14 ushers in a new era for repairability

The iPhone 14 looks a lot like the iPhone 13 – so much so that most people didn’t see the latest iPhone as true update. But the team at iFixIt, in their latest tear down, has discovered that there’s more to the iPhone 14 than meets the eye and that we ought not judge a book purely by its cover.

While the iPhone 14 looks like a copy of its predecessor, iFixIt has discovered that the latest entry level has undergone a significant redesign. One of the big criticisms Apple has faced over recent years has been that its phones have become harder and harder to repair.

But iFixIt’s teardown has revealed changes that make the iPhone 14 far easier for third-party (and courageous owners) to carry out repairs. For example, the front and back of the iPhone 14 can now be completely separated easily, giving access to almost all the internal components.

This is the most substantial iPhone redesign since the X. It’s hard to understate how big a change this is.

iFixit

Apple, and almost every other smartphone and electronic device maker on the planet, have been under increasing pressure to make their devices more repairable. “Right to repair” laws all over the world, as well as increased pressure to make products that are more sustainable, are forcing companies to rethink design.

It seems that Apple has changed its stance and is making the next generations of their hardware more repairable. This will put pressure on others to follow suit.