What you need to know
- iFixit has posted its traditional teardown of the new Apple Watch Series 7.
- It has revealed a slightly larger battery and more internal changes.
- The report says Apple's new touch-integrated OLED panel might well have been the cause of delays to its release.
iFixit's teardown of the Apple Watch Series 7 has revealed a slightly larger battery inside the new wearable, and the possible cause of the product's delayed release.
iFixit broke open the Watch to examine its various internal components and measure its repairability. As noted previously the diagnostic port of the Watch is gone in favor of a rumored wireless interface instead. iFixit also says that despite being bigger and better the new display is less complex thanks to the new OLED display which has an integrated touch panel. As noted by Apple on its website:
The touch sensor has been integrated onto the OLED panel, creating one unified component and reducing display thickness and borders.'
This feature is also present in the iPhone 13, and iFixit says that this might be the culprit behind the Watch's "fall" release date and production delays:
The most likely culprit, by far, is manufacturing hiccups with this new display; screens have some of the most complex supply chains and assembly processes in the industry. The introduction of this new technology, combined with pushing the limits of the border design, likely caused delays in shipping the Series 7 to market.
The battery in the 41mm and 45mm Watch is larger than both of its predecessors, by 6.8% and 1.6% respectively. As the report notes, however, the more demanding display means Apple's battery promise remains simply "all-day battery life."
iFixit hailed that the Series 7 worked well with replacement swaps of both its Display and Taptic Engine, as well as the battery, scoring it a 6 out of 10 for reparability overall.
The new Apple Watch with all-new display is available now with these best Apple Watch Series 7 deals.
There's always Amazon
Bigger, brighter, slightly better
You can buy the Apple Watch from Amazon if you prefer. Just remember you may be limited to only certain band combinations and models on Amazon. Plus, it's possible they will have less stock than buying from Apple directly.
