iFixit stated in an article advocating repair rights today that it is impossible to replace the iPhone 13 display without damaging the Face ID, which may cause damage to the company that provides iPhone repair services.
iFixit first pointed out this repair problem in its iPhone 13 Pro disassembly, and it has been confirmed through multiple tests. Replacing the iPhone 13 display will make Face ID unavailable, and swapping the iPhone 13 display with the new iPhone 13 display will result in an error message saying Cannot activate Face ID on this iPhone.
iPhone display repairs that could be done with hand-held tools before now require microscopes and micro-welding tools or enter Apple’s independent repair supplier program, and repair shops criticize its strict contracts and requirements.
The focus of the controversy is a small microcontroller that pairs the iPhone 13 with the display. Apple does not provide a tool that allows iPhone users or repair shops unrelated to Apple to pair the new screen with the iPhone 13. Authorized technicians working with Apple need to use Apple Services Toolkit 2 to log repairs to Apple’s cloud services to synchronize the serial numbers of the iPhone and the display.
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Some repair shops have found a solution, but this is difficult and work-intensive. The soldered chips must be moved from the original screen to the replacement screen, which iFixit calls completely unprecedented because screen repairs are very common and account for a large portion of independent repair shops’ revenue.
iFixit said that Apple’s decision to disable Face ID during screen repairs may cause small repair shops to spend thousands of dollars on new equipment or lose Apple’s repair services. The website also does not believe that the Face ID repair problem is an accident because Apple has previously introduced similar repair restrictions on the Touch ID, True Tone function, and iPhone 12 camera.
Other independent repair shops that have talked with iFixit believe that Apple implemented this change to impede the ability of customers to repair and guide iPhone users to Apple retail stores or Apple-authorized service providers for help.