Anyone who wants to repair the iPhone 15 Pro Max themselves will face difficulties. The design makes parts accessible, but software issues arise when parts are replaced.
Since 2021, Apple has offered the option to repair your iPhone yourself if something is broken: you can buy iPhone parts via self-service (also in Belgium since the end of 2022). Apple highlighted this sustainable aspect very prominently when announcing the new iPhone 15 models: none other than Mother Nature came to personally bless it in a commercial that was as original as it was cringe-worthy. However, there are limitations to the repairs you can perform yourself.
iFixit Unlock iPhone 15 Pro Max. All iPhone 15 models, like their predecessors, feature a fine dividing line between the front and back, making it easier to open the device. Some caution required: The parts are placed behind the front screen, so you need to be careful not to damage the screen during repairs.
It’s easy to remove one part from the other, as we can see in the video. It’s very easy to remove the cameras from the device, but the battery requires a little more tinkering. The battery “pull bars” are hidden beneath the sound and vibration motors.
Parts unknown
So far there are no insurmountable problems. This can happen when parts are removed from the device and new parts are put in. For example, in the iFixit video we see that replacing the Lidar sensor causes the camera app to crash. Also with other fixes, error messages will appear stating that the new parts are not recognized, which may cause applications to not work.
Apple doesn’t give you complete freedom to repair your iPhone. For security reasons, Apple only wants you to purchase repair parts or perform repairs through recognized channels, such as self-service. In addition, you must notify the iPhone manufacturer’s technical department in advance of the repair you want to perform, so that they can also give approval for this in the program.
This policy makes repairing the iPhone 15 and other models much less easy than Apple claims. The European Union wants to tighten its policy on sustainable electronics and oblige manufacturers to communicate more transparently with consumers about how to repair their devices. Dutch smartphone brand Fairphone has been trying to be a leader in this field for years; Finnish company Swappie collects old iPhones for resale.
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Brittle titanium
Another much-discussed design change is the titanium frame on the iPhone 15 Pro models instead of aluminum. This material makes your iPhone lighter and reduces the environmental impact of iPhone production, but “crash tests” show that it makes the iPhone 15 Pro Max more sensitive to drop damage and scratches on the case. So it’s better to wear kid gloves when you hold the iPhone 15 Pro Max.
