This only affects new smartphones that are released in the EU after June 2025, meaning the iPhone 16 doesn’t have to comply with this law. The regulation doesn’t just affect batteries, though. Manufacturers must sell critical spare parts for 7 years and offer at least 5 years of software updates. These laws often influence other regions, so it’s likely that Apple is testing this battery replacement process on its latest phone. It’s unclear whether the new adhesive would fully comply with EU regulations.
“The point of the legislation is that it probably won’t require (Apple) to completely change the design of the product,” says Ugo Vallauri, co-director of The reboot project and founding member of the Coalition for the Right to Repair Europe“As long as they can supply the spare part and the tools needed to carry out the repair and it can be carried out by a generalist with a certain level of competence, there will not be a need for many more changes, which can potentially be considered a weakness of the legislation. We will see what happens in that regard.”
Matching game
But the ease of battery replacement is only part of the story. Apple is known for its “part matching” policy, which involves using software to identify and approve parts. Apple will disable certain features if it finds that the part was not obtained from official Apple channels, even if the part came directly from another iPhone. For example, As the iFixit website saysIf you replace your iPhone’s display with a genuine but second-hand part, your device will lose access to Apple’s True Tone and auto-brightness features, though the display will function normally. You may also see warning messages about replaced parts that Apple can’t identify.
New laws in Oregon and Colorado Apple bans the practice of pairing parts to discriminate between otherwise compatible parts, and earlier this year said it would expand repair options to support used original parts starting this fall. That now applies to the TrueDepth selfie camera’s Face ID sensor — you can now swap this component from one unit to another without compromising security and privacy, according to Apple.
Apple also says that now if you use a third-party part that’s not available on its cloud-based calibration servers, the phone will attempt to activate the part and get it working at its full capacity. It will also display the device’s repair history within Settings, and list which parts have been replaced. Any used Apple parts will now be able to be calibrated after they’re installed, and these will appear as “used” parts in the device’s repair history. That means features like True Tone will finally be enabled for third-party displays, and you’ll be able to see health data for third-party batteries. The front-facing camera and lidar scanner will also remain operational if the module is replaced.
“I’ve always believed that the goal of Right to Repair is to create the incentive for these manufacturers, who are the ones doing things right, to prioritize or at least build repairability into their goals,” says Nathan Proctor, senior director of the Right to Repair Campaign at the Public Interest Research Group (PIRG)“And once they do, they come up with new ways to make things easier to fix, in ways I couldn’t have predicted or imagined. It’s exciting to see Apple engineers come up with solutions to make things easier to fix.”
Step by step
Photo: Apple
But there’s a new concern on the horizon with iOS 18 rolling out to Apple devices: Activation Lock. You might be familiar with this if you’ve erased an iPhone in the past but forgot to remove your Apple account details, which basically stops a new owner from being able to access the device unless they have your password. In iOS 18, this Activation Lock feature now extends to iPhone parts. The idea is that this will deter thieves from stealing iPhones to sell parts on. If the iPhone detects that a used part has been installed, it will ask for the Apple account password of the original part’s owner.
Proctor says the number one complaint he’s heard from device refurbishers has to do with activation lock: These companies have legally acquired devices from donations or recycling programs, but they can’t do anything to unlock the phone. (Apple has ways to bypass activation lock if you have proof of purchase documentation.)
“We need a way to verify that it’s not a stolen part,” Proctor says. “I really respect, appreciate and understand the value of how Activation Lock deters theft, but there needs to be a middle ground where a reputable recycler doesn’t have to shred working parts and phones. It’s ridiculous. It has the potential to undermine any environmental benefit of all the other things they’re doing.”