iFixit has published its traditional teardown of the iPhone 18 Pro, which shows the variable aperture mechanism up close and explores a potential issue involving display repairs. When it comes to the variable aperture mechanism, iFixit notes that its six tiny blades are controlled by electromagnets, though the two mechanisms operate independently. During the teardown, one of the tiny aperture blades flew out as iFixit dismantled the lens stack, underscoring how impractical a component-level repair would be.

The group says that if the aperture gets stuck, it would likely require replacing the entire main camera assembly. Another highlight of the new iPhone 18 Pro is its under-display Face ID infrared camera. For this year's Pro devices, Apple moved the infrared camera beneath the display, while keeping the selfie camera and IR dot projector within the smaller Dynamic Island.

Under a microscope, iFixit found that Apple hides the relocated infrared camera by removing every other row of pixels above the sensor. iFixit notes that the effect fades toward the edges, and that there is an IR-pass filter beneath the OLED layer to block visible light. Interestingly, the filter doesn't extend all the way to the edge of the opening, creating what iFixit describes as an "eclipse effect" under certain microscope settings. As for the iPhone 18 Pro's bigger vapor chamber, the teardown offers a closer look at Apple's redesigned cooling architecture.

Apple also said the new vapor chamber has three times the surface area of the one in the iPhone 17 Pro. iFixit's teardown lets us see that setup up close, including the thermal material that presses the A20 Pro directly against the vapor chamber and the chamber itself extending across much of the phone's body. Now for the concerning part: iFixit says the plastic frame around the display was damaged on three of the four iPhones its team opened. While the group notes that other iPhone 18 Pro teardowns haven't encountered the same issue, and that Apple has been using this same plastic frame since the iPhone 15 Pro, it says it's too early to tell whether this was an anomaly or a broader repairability concern. iFixit also suggests that the device's improved thermal system may be drawing heat away from the display as the heating pad tries to soften the adhesive.

In practice, as iFixit explains in the video, a cracked frame means the display may no longer sit perfectly flush after reassembly, and could compromise the phone's water resistance. Add to that the fact that some components remain difficult to reach, particularly the USB-C port, which iFixit says requires removing much of the phone's internals to replace, and DIY repairs of the iPhone 18 Pro may prove challenging depending on which component needs replacing. All in all, iFixit says the iPhone 18 Pro carries over many of the same repairability strengths and weaknesses as last year's model, including the glue-free battery tray and modular camera assemblies, but also the need to enter through the display for most major repairs.

For now, the group has given both the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max a provisional repairability score of 7 out of 10 as it waits for parts, conducts more tests, and watches whether the display frame issue proves widespread.