Apple is working on a way to do away with the adhesive strips that hold the iPhone battery in place, as the company must comply with EU regulations requiring all phone batteries to be user-replaceable by 2025.
The battery is currently covered in foil and held to the phone by adhesive strips that are pulled to remove the battery. Apple is said to be working on switching to a metal casing that will release the battery after receiving a small jolt of electricity. The technology is reportedly called electrically induced adhesive separation. Whether this is any easier than pulling the adhesive strips is debatable.
It is worth noting that accessing the battery will be as difficult as it is now. Users will first have to get past the adhesive that secures the glass pieces to the phone’s frame, then a few screws and a ribbon cable.
Apple May Test New Battery Housing with iPhone 16
Apple may test the new battery housing on at least one iPhone 16 model later this year. It seems likely that this technology will be used in all models in the iPhone 17 series next year.
Many other manufacturers use similar adhesive pull rings; This means they need to find a way to make battery replacement easier by next year.