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Last month, Apple introduced the fifth-generation iPad Air. The main innovations include an M1 chip, 5G support for cellular models, an improved front camera with Center Stage support and a USB-C connector. As it turns out, Apple also made an internal change to the device that should please repair fans.
Photocredit: Apple
Pull tabs for easier battery replacement
According to iFixit’s repair experts, the new iPad Air’s battery cells have pull tabs on the bottom that make them easy to pull out. In comparison, previous iPad Air models have fully glued-in battery cells that are more difficult to remove, so technicians typically had to use a solvent like isopropyl alcohol to loosen the large amount of adhesive.
The pull tabs are designed to make battery replacement easier for third-party repair shops and customers trying to repair the device themselves. The innovation is thus likely related to Apple’s new self-repair program, which provides repair parts for consumers who wish to do so. Loud MacRumors however, Apple and authorized service providers will continue to replace the entire device when a customer requires a new battery. Possibly this will change in the future.
The pull tabs might also have environmental benefits, as they make it easier for Apple’s recycling partners to remove the battery from the iPad’s aluminum body.
Apple has added battery pull tabs to other devices, including the sixth-generation iPad mini and the latest 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models. Despite the pull tabs, iFixit has already determined that the iPad mini’s battery still has tape around the top and bottom edges, so the design isn’t quite as repair-friendly as it first appears. iFixit has not yet revealed whether there is such “residual glue” in the new iPad Air.
We’re not doing a full teardown of the iPad Air 5, but we did take it apart to investigate—and we were pleasantly surprised to find pull stretch adhesives under the battery!
If only the battery connector were also updated. There’s always next year ???? pic.twitter.com/QaYs1YRhvZ
– iFixit (@iFixit) March 19, 2022
