In 2016, we took apart everything from the iPhone 7 to the now recalled Note7.
After every teardown, we assign the phones a repairability score based on a number of
factors including ease-of-disassembly, the types of fasteners on the insides, and the
complexity involved in replacing major components.
Here’s how some of this year’s more notable phones did on our teardown table:
Coming in with a repairability score of 8 out of 10 The LG G5 was the most repairable
phone we took apart this year.
The LGG5 was one of the few phones we saw this year that still had a user replaceable
battery, but it also favored standard phillips screws and used no adhesive.
Making it one easy phone to repair.
But the Google Pixel xl and the iPhone 7 line were right on LG’s tail, all earning 7/10.
The iphone 7 and 7 Plus both had a battery that was fairly straightforward to access
and with the addition of the solid state home button a common point of failure was eliminated
making it more durable.
The Google Pixel XL also garnered a score of 7 out of 10 and had an opening procedure
much like iphones of old.
The Pixel XL’s score was thanks to it use of modular easy to replace components, the
inclusion of a battery removal tab and using only standard t5 torxscrews
The iPhone SE, Apple’s affordable-ish alternative, didn’t do too badly either, grabbing a mid-pack
6 out of 10.
Part of that score is due to the similarities to the 5s.
So repairs on the SE are already excellently documented, in addition the SE’s display
can be removed first and the battery is fairly easy to access.
Samsung’s flagship phones, on the other hand, tanked this year.
The Note7 only mustered a 4—though exploding batteries forced Samsung to recall those phones
before they had a chance to break.
At the rear of the pack: the Samsung Galaxy S7/Edge.
They were the least repairable phones we took apart in 2016.
This is mostly due to the display glass.
Replacing the glass without destroying the display is nearly impossible.
In years past, Galaxy phones have been very modular, so it’s a little sad for us to
see Samsung go down the path of glued-together phones.
Of course, thousands of models of phones were released this year.
We can’t take them all apart, so it’s likely some very repairable and very not repairable
phones also deserve a mention on this list.
If you know of one, tell us about it in the comments.
And be sure to check out all our other teardowns on iFixit.com/teardowns. and If you can’t
wait to see what makes it on our teardown table in 2017 be sure to subscribe to our
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