iPhone 6 And iPhone 6 Plus Tear Downs, Oh What A Big Battery You Have!
You know what they say about dudes who carry around big phones, right? Indeed, they have big batteries, too! That's especially true of Apple's recently launched iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus models, both of which are bigger than any previous iPhone model. Our friends at iFixIt felt like ending the work week by slicing into these Apple devices, so we get to see just how big the batteries are in these handsets.
First things first -- these are Apple devices, after all, and that means it takes some skill and patience to get inside without ruining the hardware. Once again, Apple's preference for less common pentalobe screws is in full display, though once removed, you no longer have to work your way around the frame with a spudger or a guitar pick. Why is that? Meet the iSclack, a $25 tool that makes it easy to pop open iPhone models dating back to the iPhone 5.
Once removed, you get a clear view of the bigger size battery. In the iPhone 6 Plus, the battery is rated at 2.82V and 11.1Wh of energy, for a total of 2915mAh. That's almost double the capacity of the iPhone 5s battery, which checks in at 1560mAh, and it's also bigger than the 2800mAh unit found in Samsung's Galaxy S5.
The regular iPhone 6's battery isn't quite as large, though still sizable at 1810mAh, or thereabouts -- turning the battery over on its belly reveals a 7.01Wh rating compared to the 6.91Wh marking on the front. Either way, it's smaller than the iPhone 6 Plus and Galaxy S5, but bigger than the iPhone 5s.
Apple had to increase the size of the batteries to accommodate the display upgrades. The iPhone 6 wields a 4.7-inch display and the iPhone 6 Plus swings a 5.5-inch panel. It's the second time Apple's increased the size of the iPhone's display, the first time being a bump from 3.5 inches to 4 inches with the release of the iPhone 5.
While the batteries in the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus aren't intended to be removable, iFixIt says it's not difficult to do so, provided you have a proprietary pentalobe screwdriver and knowledge of the adhesive removal technique. The screws were the biggest knock against both devices, followed by the fact that Apple doesn't share repair information with independent repair shops or consumers. Overall, both scored a 7 out of 10 "Repairability Score," where higher scores are better.
You can read the full iPhone 6 teardown here and the iPhone 6 Plus teardown here.
First things first -- these are Apple devices, after all, and that means it takes some skill and patience to get inside without ruining the hardware. Once again, Apple's preference for less common pentalobe screws is in full display, though once removed, you no longer have to work your way around the frame with a spudger or a guitar pick. Why is that? Meet the iSclack, a $25 tool that makes it easy to pop open iPhone models dating back to the iPhone 5.
Once removed, you get a clear view of the bigger size battery. In the iPhone 6 Plus, the battery is rated at 2.82V and 11.1Wh of energy, for a total of 2915mAh. That's almost double the capacity of the iPhone 5s battery, which checks in at 1560mAh, and it's also bigger than the 2800mAh unit found in Samsung's Galaxy S5.
The regular iPhone 6's battery isn't quite as large, though still sizable at 1810mAh, or thereabouts -- turning the battery over on its belly reveals a 7.01Wh rating compared to the 6.91Wh marking on the front. Either way, it's smaller than the iPhone 6 Plus and Galaxy S5, but bigger than the iPhone 5s.
Apple had to increase the size of the batteries to accommodate the display upgrades. The iPhone 6 wields a 4.7-inch display and the iPhone 6 Plus swings a 5.5-inch panel. It's the second time Apple's increased the size of the iPhone's display, the first time being a bump from 3.5 inches to 4 inches with the release of the iPhone 5.
While the batteries in the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus aren't intended to be removable, iFixIt says it's not difficult to do so, provided you have a proprietary pentalobe screwdriver and knowledge of the adhesive removal technique. The screws were the biggest knock against both devices, followed by the fact that Apple doesn't share repair information with independent repair shops or consumers. Overall, both scored a 7 out of 10 "Repairability Score," where higher scores are better.
You can read the full iPhone 6 teardown here and the iPhone 6 Plus teardown here.
