OK, get the champagne flowing and the fireworks going: Apple has given us a reason to celebrate with the AirPods 5. The reason? The AirPods 5 are the least unrepairable earbuds made by Apple, as the iFixit team has found out.
Don't get carried away with that party, though: the AirPods 5 repairability score is… 2/10; yes, two out of ten. Until now, it was 0/10, so there's progress.
Moving in the right direction
But not quite fast. | Image by Apple
The curse has been broken. While the 2/10 score by the competent iFixit team doesn't mean you'll have a good time repairing these buds, it promises that skilled technicians will "probably be able to replace AirPod batteries with a decent success rate".
Who repairs your electronics?
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What the AirPods 5 are like
The AirPods 5 bring back a battery design previously seen in the AirPods 3: batteries with small pronged connectors instead of soldered leads. The difference is that the AirPods 5 are much easier to open around the driver, allowing the battery to be removed without destroying the earbud.
The AirPods 3 technically had a similar battery design, but reaching it reliably required cutting or deforming the plastic, making the repair impractical for most people.
What's next?
After opening the AirPods 5 and after removing the adhesive strips, the battery simply pops out. This could give professional repair technicians a realistic way to replace worn-out batteries and extend the life of the earbuds. More interestingly, the iFixit teardown found that a hair dryer and a clamp were enough to open the buds, although careful heating and patient prying are still required. This is not an easy kitchen-table repair, but it no longer looks completely out of reach for someone with basic tools and some patience.
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There's a catch
Here's the catch: the left and right batteries aren't interchangeable. Their polarity is reversed and the prongs are positioned slightly differently, so replacement batteries will need to be made specifically for each side. That's something buyers will need to keep in mind once replacement parts become available.
What about the case?
The charging case is a different story… and it's not a funny one. Its seams are extremely tight, and getting inside required significant force and specialized equipment. By the time the battery is reached, the case will most likely be destroyed; plastic welds are used where screws could have made future repairs much easier.
Sebastian is one of PhoneArena’s senior opinionators. A veteran news writer with almost 20 years of experience in media and technology, he not only covers all the hot news about Galaxies and iPhones, but often provides hot takes on industry trends. He’s fascinated with camera-focused flagships from the likes of Oppo and Vivo, as well as foldable phones.
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