iFixit Tears Down the iPhone 17e, Discovers MagSafe Upgrade Path for iPhone 16e Owners

Repair tract iFixit today took apart the iPhone 17e, which is the caller low-cost iPhone that Apple launched past Wednesday. The ‌iPhone 17e‌ is astir identical to the iPhone 16e successful design, but it does see a MagSafe backmost sheet that supports ‌MagSafe‌ and faster Qi charging than the iPhone 16e.


When disassembling the ‌iPhone 17e‌, iFixit recovered that the ‌MagSafe‌ sheet for the instrumentality is the aforesaid size arsenic the sheet for the 16e, and the 2 are interchangeable. You tin instrumentality a backmost sheet from an ‌iPhone 17e‌ and enactment it connected an iPhone 16e, adding ‌MagSafe‌ to an iPhone 16e.

That could beryllium bully quality for iPhone users who bought an iPhone 16e and don't privation to upgrade conscionable to get ‌MagSafe‌. iPhone 16e customers whitethorn beryllium capable to get their hands connected an ‌iPhone 17e‌ backmost sheet to marque a ‌MagSafe‌ swap, which iFixit says is simply a large triumph for repairability. There was a downside with the ‌MagSafe‌ swap due to the fact that the iPhone 16e doesn't person the built-in bundle that recognizes ‌MagSafe‌ accessories to supply animations, and it's not yet wide if it charges astatine the afloat 15W.

"Cross-compatibility matters," said iFixit. "It makes repairs easier, parts easier to source, and upgrades cheaper."

Apple made time 1 manuals disposable for the ‌iPhone 17e‌, truthful iFixit knew the beforehand and backmost panels some travel off. The artillery tin beryllium swapped without having to spell done the display, though there's inactive adhesive to woody with. The ‌iPhone 17e‌ continues to usage adhesive for the artillery that tin beryllium removed with an electrical pulse, which makes artillery replacements simpler.


Aside from the ‌MagSafe‌ update, the different notable alteration successful the ‌iPhone 17e‌ is the A19 System connected Chip that replaces the A18. Apple besides swapped retired the C1 modem for the new, faster C1X modem, and there's much starting interior retention astatine 256 GB.

iFixit recovered that similar the ‌MagSafe‌ module, astir each components wrong the ‌iPhone 17e‌ and iPhone 16e were interchangeable. It's imaginable to instrumentality an iPhone 16e logic committee and enactment it into an ‌iPhone 17e‌ chassis, with astir nary issues registering parts. The TrueDepth camera for Face ID didn't enactment erstwhile swapped from iPhone to iPhone.

While iFixit was blessed with the dual introduction plan and the artillery adhesive that releases electrically, the tract recovered the USB-C larboard was excessively buried down components, which volition marque DIY repairs daunting for people. Apple fixed the USB-C accessibility contented successful its main flagship models, but has not made the larboard easier to get to successful the "e" models.

Despite these issues, iFixit awarded points for the parts interchangeability due to the fact that there's much salvage worth and much refurbishment potential. iFixit gave the ‌iPhone 17e‌ a provisional repairability people of 7 retired of 10. That's the aforesaid people the iPhone 16e got past year, and the aforesaid people the iPhone 17 earned.
This article, "iFixit Tears Down the iPhone 17e, Discovers MagSafe Upgrade Path for iPhone 16e Owners" archetypal appeared connected MacRumors.com

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