According to a report by The Information, Apple is working on a way to ditch the adhesive strips that hold the iPhone battery in place. Apple will need to comply with EU regulations that require all phone batteries to be user-replaceable by 2025.
Currently, the battery is encased in foil and is attached to the phone via adhesive strips, which you pull to dislodge the battery.
Apple is reportedly working to move to a metal enclosure that will pop the battery out after receiving a small electrical jolt. The technology is reportedly called electrically induced adhesive debonding. Whether that sounds easier than pulling adhesive tabs is up for debate.
Getting to that battery will be just as tough as it is now – you first need to get through the adhesive holding the glass parts to the frame of the phone, then several screws and ribbon cables.
Apple could test out the new battery enclosure on at least one iPhone 16 model later this year and is expected to bring it to the entire iPhone 17 series next year.
Many other manufacturers use similar adhesive pull tabs, meaning they’ll need to find a way to make battery replacement easier by next year too.
