Malcolm Owen
While the iPhone XS shares the practically the same external appearance as the iPhone X, the first teardown of the latest Apple smartphone reveals a few changes were made to the inside, including the use of a new battery and some smaller alterations to other internal components.
The customary teardown of the iPhone XS, this time by FixjeiPhone, appears at first glance to be the same as the iPhone X's treatment last year. From the outset, however, the technician disassembling the device notes it is harder to gain access, with the screen a little tougher to remove than before because of its watertight seal, which helps the iPhone X have an improved IP68 water resistance rating.
Putting the iPhone XS and iPhone X side by side, the general appearance of the internals are quite similar to one another, with components residing in the newer iPhone in the same place as they were in the year-old model.
One obvious change to the design is the battery, switching out the two-cell L-shaped battery in the iPhone X for a single-cell version, one which retains the same shape but appears to be marginally smaller in size. It was previously revealed the iPhone XS has a 2,658mAh battery in a regulatory filing, smaller than the iPhone X's 2,716mAh version, but power efficiency savings offer a claimed extra 30 minutes of usage time in the new version.
A less obvious change is the camera module in the top right corner of the device, with the top section of the component appearing to be bigger than in the iPhone X. The upper wide-angle camera has been updated to have a bigger pixel pitch in the sensor by 20 percent, to aid with light sensitivity, causing the change in module size.
The camera change does not only affect the internal space, as it has also increased the size of the camera hump by a few millimeters, potentially causing issues with customers wanting to reuse their iPhone X case with the iPhone XS.
Ultimately, the internal construction of the iPhone XS reuses the majority of the design of the iPhone X, which is unsurprising considering the similarity between the two devices.
More teardowns and other disassembly reports anticipated in the coming days may provide more clues to the smaller changes in the new iPhone, including the sourcing of its components.
AppleInsider Staff
Chip Loder
Christine McKee
William Gallagher
Andrew Orr
5 Comments
"it has also increased the size of the camera hump by a few millimeters" 1.37 is not "a few"
The battery in the XS has an Apple logo on it. That typically means Apple designed the component, or some significant portion of it, and contracted out the manufacture of the battery. In the X, no Apple logos on the batteries.
The need to tear down the PCB and other components for other changes. There’s probably a new touchscreen driver chip, new speaker driver chip, modem, antennas, etc.