iOS 11

[TheForce]

Hall one was fine but the second one was in tight and, yes, the pentalobe top was a bit sloppy when I put it back. The threads were fine.

The $20 battery by itself did come with two sets of double stick tape. But I have a roll in the shop anyway. No big deal.

 

[Hall]

After my Wife gets her Christmas present, I'll get some money back in-trade at the Apple Store, along with mine, on the iPhone 8. If Apple will only take one, I'll just trade in the one that knocks the most price off of the new phone and Gazelle the other for an Amazon Gift Card.

If you don't have Verizon, this is of no help, but VZW will take multiple phones on trade-in towards a new phone purchase. I have already 'tested' this with my 6+, our son's Droid 2 Turbo, and my HTC M9. As long as they have batteries installed and the screens aren't broken, they'll take them. I could trade in 1-2 more - don't remember now - but I don't have anymore to trade !

I've been told that corporate stores, if you walk in, will give you more $$ than VZW online offers too.

 

[Hall]

the pentalobe top was a bit sloppy when I put it back. The threads were fine.

Yeah, I meant the screw head would probably strip, not the threads.

 

[Frank Jr.]

When a Phillips Is Not a Phillips!

 

[harshness]

Lithium Ion cells are fairly well known, and Apple supposedly engineers their own cells (maybe they don't anymore) but they should know how the cell will age and what the capabilities are at various numbers of discharge cycles.

They know very well yet they chose to:

1. Use lithium ion cells that have a notoriously short life expectancy versus lithium polymer batteries
   
2. Make the batteries relatively difficult for users to replace

Many of the other brands make their batteries replaceable simply because it makes shipping them a whole lot safer (=cheaper) when the battery is disconnected or not in the phone.

 

[navychop]

When a Phillips Is Not a Phillips!

I almost fell asleep reading that. But I learned a lot.

 

[navychop]

Removable batteries require a stronger, heavier case. I think that’s Apple’s position on the matter

 

[Foxbat]

I know it's popular to rag on Apple for making it a feat of technical prowess to replace the battery in an iPhone, but when you compare the recent iPhones to the recent Galaxy S phones, I'll take pentalobe screws and pull-to-release adhesive any day.

One item I may disagree with in the iFixit Battery Replacement procedures is I have had success in the past not disconnecting the display from the main case. But you cannot put any strain on the connecting cables. I think there could be a market for a holder that the iPhone base fits into and the display can be secured to the "L" coming up at a right angle. While disconnect the display is not all that difficult, they are very small screws, and they are different sizes and lengths. They have to go back exactly where they were came from. Plus, as the iFixit guide warns, you can damage the cable connector if it isn't precisely aligned when reattaching the connector. You may experience black or white lines in the display if the connector gets warped.

 

[klang]

Just replace the phone every year or two and no battery issue.

 

[navychop]

Let’s see. I passed on a nice SS 9mm auto because I said “$1,000 for a gun I’ll rarely shoot, or $1,000 on the mortgage.” You get within five years of paying that sucker off, and maybe can cut that to three, and you start getting a little sharper in your monetary trade offs.

That’s kinda what I see on the phone, too. A hundred every year or two for a new battery is nothing. The thou, more or less, that my next iPhone will cost me will force me to consider Android. But last time I looked, there wasn’t much savings. At a $200 difference, I’ll stick with Apple. I even looked at a 7+. Not that much savings over an 8+. Maybe next fall the price will drop further after the next iPhone release. But I suspect the 7s will no longer be available.

And I don’t see the SE available at Apple or T-Mobile. Not that my eyes would allow that.

 

[Frank Jr.]

Let’s see. I passed on a nice SS 9mm auto because I said “$1,000 for a gun I’ll rarely shoot, or $1,000 on the mortgage.” You get within five years of paying that sucker off, and maybe can cut that to three, and you start getting a little sharper in your monetary trade offs.

That’s kinda what I see on the phone, too. A hundred every year or two for a new battery is nothing. The thou, more or less, that my next iPhone will cost me will force me to consider Android. But last time I looked, there wasn’t much savings. At a $200 difference, I’ll stick with Apple. I even looked at a 7+. Not that much savings over an 8+. Maybe next fall the price will drop further after the next iPhone release. But I suspect the 7s will no longer be available.

And I don’t see the SE available at Apple or T-Mobile. Not that my eyes would allow that.

iPhone SE

 

[navychop]

Ok, my friend, edumacate me. You dug deeper than I, for the SE. but I see these links are for an employee purchase program.

Could I do this? Pricing is appealing, for 7s and 8s. I did not push on to check pluses.

 

[Frank Jr.]

Ok, my friend, edumacate me. You dug deeper than I, for the SE. but I see these links are for an employee purchase program.

Could I do this? Pricing is appealing, for 7s and 8s. I did not push on to check pluses.

Get help buying
iPhone SE

 

[TheForce]

When a Phillips Is Not a Phillips!

I thought I had every type of driver bit ever made. I was wrong by a big number.

They know very well yet they chose to:

1. Use lithium ion cells that have a notoriously short life expectancy versus lithium polymer batteries
   
2. Make the batteries relatively difficult for users to replace

Many of the other brands make their batteries replaceable simply because it makes shipping them a whole lot safer (=cheaper) when the battery is disconnected or not in the phone.

Actually, both have about good life span and that is measured on number of deep recharge cycles, being about 700-1000 for the Li-ION before depleted. Li-ION-Polymer is a bit less at 500 charge cycles. If you recharge your phone each day, figure 2-2.5 years of battery use. I make a habit of not recharging my phone until it hits 10%. Sometimes this means it runs out mid day, but I keep a small auxiliary battery in my belt holster that I can plug in and get about 70% in an hour with it.

The catch is the Li-Po battery can be made thinner because it uses a non-liquid electrolyte. Another decision is that the Li-PO battery can be designed with different shape case, the Li-ION is limited on thickness . Li-PO batteries are also safer from ballooning and leakage. Li-ION are also lower cost to make.

I could never understand the idea that a battery not plugged in was more dangerous than one plugged in. Most of these batteries have the connections really well protected against accidental shorting. The Li-PO batteries also have protection circuits built in. The most common Li-ION battery is the 18650 and is often stacked in a plastic case for laptops. These cells are cylindrical and do not have any protection circuitry. The plastic case may have protection.

 

[TheForce]

Success!

The new battery kit arrived at noon and I was eager to get started.
Getting the iphone open was the easy part. A little more difficulty getting the tiny micro screws out was tedious, especially for my 70 year old hands. Just have to be slow and careful. A good trick I learned long ago is to put some double stick carpet tape down and drop the screws on it so they don't roll around and get lost on my desk. I was planning to keep the screen connected while removing the battery but once into it I decided that was a very bad idea so I removed the metal cover from the connections and saw there were more connections with 3 layers of fragile ribbon cables easily pried up with a small plastic tool. Once that was removed and put aside I could manhandle the battery removal with less care. It was really stuck in there with the mfg, glue. I used my LSI soldering heat gun on low temp to warm up from the iphone back which softened the glue enough but it still was very sticky and difficult but began to give way. Took 20 minutes of careful prying. About half way through I was beginning to get nervous that I was not going to be successful. As I continued to pry the battery out it was getting permanently ruined. I was glad I let the battery run down to well below 10% before doing this because at one point the battery sparked and smoke shot out from between the battery and the case. It quickly went out and never got real hot. By the time I got the Li PO battery out I had bent it up quite a bit to almost L shape! Pretty scary. So be forewarned if you try this, be sure to have the existing battery completely discharged before doing the swap.

Putting the new one back is just a matter of taking time to properly seat off the tiny ribbon cables and be sure to mark the tiny screws as they are different length ones for the same cover. While it may be just the kit I ordered, the small ribbon cable on the batter needs to be bent unto a small u bend like your original to fit. This was a little tricky not to tear it.

When I did the final assembly, I turned the phone on with a long push of the power button and the apple symbol came right up. In a couple seconds I entered my finger print and it showed the home screen. The replacement battery was 53% charged.

$25 and 45 minutes to finish.

 

[navychop]

Thanks.

I’ll pay someone else.

 

[TheForce]

When I checked the repair time was 4-5 days so that was the reason I decided to do it myself. $79 was not the reason.

 

[navychop]

Hmmm. Both times mine was replaced, it was in store, about an hour.

 

[TheForce]

How often do you have to change your battery? This is the first time for me. Almost 3 years old iphone. I normally upgrade every 2 years.

 

[Hall]

the repair time was 4-5 days

Two day delivery to Apple, one day to repair, 2 days to send back ?

Apple stores - not everyone has one nearby - can do them while you wait. Independent shops can as well.