Apple iPhone XS And XS Max Teardown Exposes Hidden Notched Feature, IP68 Prowess

Apple iPhone Xs combo gold 09122018
Apple has begun shipping the first wave of iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max smartphones to customers, and the former has already been disassembled (complete with video footage). Right off the bat, getting inside the new iPhone XS is a bit harder compared to last year's iPhone X.

If you recall, the iPhone X is IP67 rated for water/dust resistance, while the iPhone XS family bumps that up to IP68. As a result, the seals holding the display into place are stronger, making removing it more of a hassle (although not impossible). 

iphone xs teardown

The other thing of note is that the L-shaped battery from last year remains. However, while there were two separate cells on the iPhone X, the battery in the iPhone XS appears to be a large, single unit. Speaking of the battery, capacity has actually dropped slightly compared to last year (2,658 mAh versus 2,716 mAh). Despite the decrease in capacity, efficiencies made possible by the 7nm A12 Bionic SoC mean that the iPhone XS actually boasts 30 mins of additional runtime compared to its predecessor.

This confirms filings from China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (TENAA), which first revealed yesterday that the iPhone XS has a 2,658 mAh battery. Although the iPhone XS Max hasn't yet gone under the knife, its TENAA filing suggests that it will have a 3,174 mAh battery -- the largest ever installed in an iPhone. However, even that pales in comparison to the Galaxy Note 9, which packs in a massive 4,000 mAh lithium-ion battery. The iPhone XR reportedly has a 2,942 mAh battery.

Other details gleaned from the TENNA filings show that both the iPhone XS and iPhone XS include 4GB of RAM, while the entry-level iPhone XR has just 3GB of RAM (the same about found on the iPhone X and iPhone 8 Plus).

Brandon Hill

Brandon Hill

Brandon received his first PC, an IBM Aptiva 310, in 1994 and hasn’t looked back since. He cut his teeth on computer building/repair working at a mom and pop computer shop as a plucky teen in the mid 90s and went on to join AnandTech as the Senior News Editor in 1999. Brandon would later help to form DailyTech where he served as Editor-in-Chief from 2008 until 2014. Brandon is a tech geek at heart, and family members always know where to turn when they need free tech support. When he isn’t writing about the tech hardware or studying up on the latest in mobile gadgets, you’ll find him browsing forums that cater to his long-running passion: automobiles.

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