As always, as soon as a new Apple device is placed on the market, iFixit runs to get his hands on it and take it apart. Like iPhone SE, it was no different.
The big question is: what’s so different about the iPhone 6s (internally) and the iPhone 5s (externally)? You’ll know now!
- Although it is practically an iPhone 6s inside, iFixit found that the SE has exactly the same display and Touch ID used in the 5s – not to mention, of course, the very same dimensions.
- Apple continues to use screws Pentalobe, making it difficult for “ordinary” users to open the device.
- In the iPhone 6s, there is a whole reinforcement used in the display structure (initially they thought it was to give more resistance to water, but later they discovered that it has more to do with the 3D Touch itself). Since there is no 3D Touch on the iPhone SE, there is no reinforcement on the display for it.
- Although the display is exactly the same (including its connectors) and the internal layout of the components is also practically the same as that of the iPhone 5s, the SE battery has 3.82V, 6.21Whr and 1.624mAh (slightly larger than the 5s) – 3.8V, 5.92Whr and 1.560mAh). Taking into account that the A9 is much more efficient than the A7, the iPhone SE battery ends up being even better than the 6s, as we reported in this article.
- As expected, the iPhone SE’s iSight (rear) camera is exactly the same as the 6s (12 megapixel, with 1.22µ pixels). On the iPhone 5s the camera had 8 megapixels, however, 1.5 µ pixels).
- The speakers, the vibrating motor and the SIM card tray are exactly the same as those on the iPhone 5s.
- There is, however, a certain water seal (foamy silicone) that surrounds some components such as parts of the logic board, front camera, volume controls and rear camera connectors; others, such as LCD, digitizer, battery and Lightning connector, remain unprotected.
- The iPhone SE Lightning connector assembly is slightly different from the 5s.
- The power button is also a little different – it’s no longer a simple clip, potentially for grounding reasons.
- Moreover, despite being in the same location, the vast majority of iPhone SE chips, controllers and modules are even newer than those found on the iPhone 5s. See some examples: A9 (same as iPhone 6s / 6s Plus), Qualcomm LTE modem (same as iPhone 6/6 Plus), Qualcomm RF transceiver (same as iPhone 6/6 Plus), etc.
The final “repairability” score for the iPhone SE was 6/10, exactly the same as for the iPhone 5s. On a positive note, iFixit highlighted the display assembly and battery that are easy to remove / replace; negative, the Touch ID cable that can be easily torn and the use of screws Pentalobe.
