iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max teardown reveals battery-related secrets

A more expensive iPhone isn’t necessarily a better iPhone.

One of the things that users look for when buying a new phone is its battery life. Apple recently released its iPhone 16 lineup, and two of its models, the Pro and Pro Max, boast long-lasting battery life.

To find out more, the “Tech Teardown Community” performed a teardown to see what’s inside the most expensive Apple smartphones, providing insights into the workings of their batteries.

It showed that the latest iPhone can be opened from the back. This wasn’t the case with previous models, which had to be opened by taking the screen off first, which is much riskier if something happens to the phone’s OLED screen.

The insides of the iPhone 16 Pro Max revealed that its main components had the same layout as the Pro and they didn’t differ in size, even though the phones do.

However, a significant difference was noticed with the battery. Since both the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max are classified as high-end models, both of their batteries should be steel-cased.

The teardown showed that the Pro Max model had an aluminum-plastic casing, which is not as strong as steel, and thus won’t protect the battery as well as the metal one. A possible explanation for this could be the weight limit that Apple didn’t want to exceed by adding a metal casing.

Another inconsistency found while disassembling the iPhone 16 Pro Max was the way its battery is removed. iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus are equipped with power-sensitive battery adhesive, but its two other models are not.

Its batteries include stretchable adhesive strips that can be pulled out. If the strip breaks while repairing the iPhone 16 Pro, there’s no problem, as the battery can still be removed without damaging it. However, the same doesn’t apply to the Pro Max model as it could get damaged in the process due to it being soft-cased.

With the iPhone comparison trend still on the rise, with users trying to understand which one is worth investing in, details such as battery life could help save a couple of hundred dollars.