First Galaxy Z Fold 3 teardown video is out; take a look at the folding phone's insides
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The teardown video of the Galaxy Z Fold 3 starts with removing the back plate of the phone and disconnecting the outer display of the device. This reveals the hardware underneath, as well as one of the two batteries that power the phone. Removing the outer screen looks pretty straightforward and not that complicated, but the good news ends here. Below the battery is another board that is for the Z Fold 3’s S Pen support.
The Galaxy Z Fold 3 is a complicated phone to repair
It looks like the left side of the Z Fold 3, where the triple-camera system is, is even more complicated to disassemble. After removing the wireless charging pad you need to unscrew a total of 16 Phillips screws to get access to the two boards. The motherboard where the processor, RAM, and internal storage sit has a multi-layered design. This design decision was chosen so the motherboard can fit not only the brain of the Z Fold 3, but also its three back cameras, and the under-display 4MP selfie camera as well. Next to the board's left and right sides sit two mmWave 5G antennas, which are easily removable.
Below the motherboard is the second battery pack, bellow which is another board holding the USB-C charging port of the phone. To remove the folding display of Galaxy Z Fold 3, PBKreviews says you need to heat the plastic railing and then remove it, revealing the screen panel itself. After that to remove the folding screen you need to gently pry it off the phone's mid-frame.
The under-display camera of the Z Fold 3 sits on top of the motherboard
Hardware-wise there are no surprises, and everything that Samsung advertises the foldable phone has is there. Unfortunately, we don't see the Galaxy Z Fold 3's folding display removed in this teardown video. This could easily be explained by the fact that the chances of the screen braking during removal are very high.
Overall, PBKreviews concludes that this phone is really complicated to repair, and gives it a 2 out of 10 repairability rating, stating that the repairs on this phone will be very time consuming. Still, this is something to be expected from one of the most cutting-edge phones on the market.
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