The folks over at iFixit make it their business to take the shiniest new phones and gadgets and do exactly what you hope you won'thave to do with them: take them apart and poke around to see just how hard it is to put them back together.
Next up: the Galaxy S8. The latest flagship from Samsung has no small amount of expectations riding on it, especially given its status as the first major release following the explosive Galaxy Note 7, made with the company's super-strict new eight-point battery safety check in place.
So how does the S8 measure up to the teardown? It all depends on what goes bad.
SEE ALSO:Samsung really doesn't want you to mess with the Galaxy S8's Bixby buttonBefore jumping into the carnage, the iFixit team notes that the 5.8-inch S8 and the 6.2-inch S8+ are "fairly identical," other than the larger dimensions of the S8+. What's more, the new phones aren't too far removed from last year's Galaxy S7, calling the S8 "a safe evolution on the S7 Edge -- proportions." Other than the new display, the back-located touch sensor, and the flash assembly, the phones are very similar.
If you don't have to pull open the phone, you really probably shouldn't.
Opening up the S8 takes quite a bit of heat to soften up the adhesive holding the panels together, and the iFixitteam warns that the glass panels are a major risk for cracking. The glass-backed design cuts a corner to make it easier to integrate antennas into the back of the device as opposed to a metal rear, according to the team, but it comes at a major cost to repairability. If you don't have to pull open the phone, you really probably shouldn't.
The newly positioned fingerprint sensor is modular and easily replaceable -- but iFixit is quick to note that it's not clear if Samsung could pull an Apple and make the units impossible to replace without a company-approved recalibration.
The biggest news here is the battery. It's the biggest concern Samsung faces after the Galaxy Note 7 -- and to the iFixitteam, it looks... just about identical. The S8+ battery has the same capacity as the Note 7's, 13.48 Wh (3,500 mAh at 3.85 V), and it's firmly glued into the device so there's no quick shortcut to pop it out for replacement, which is another knock against repairability.
Last up: the home button, which is now housed in the screen. The iFixitteam couldn't find any type of pressure sensor in the display.
Overall, the S8 and S8+ were given the same overall repairability score: a four out of 10. The iFixit team notes that while much of the internal components are modular and look to be easily replaced, the battery's rigid glue-job and the curved glass display make the phones a bear to handle on your own. If you're going to opt for the latest from Samsung, you should probably avoid running it through any stress tests.
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It sure looks like the Galaxy S8's battery won't explode even if you stab it with a knife
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