Technologies

I Replaced My iPhone Battery Myself at Home and You Can Too

You can DIY your own phone battery replacement and save a ton of money in the process. Here’s how.

If you’ve got an iPhone 17, a Google Pixel 10 Pro or a Galaxy S25 Ultra, you won’t need to worry about the age of your battery for at least a few years. But batteries do age over time so if you have a much older iPhone or an old Android phone, you may well find that your battery no longer gives you the same battery life it did when it was new. But having an old, worn-out battery doesn’t mean buying an altogether new phone; it’s surprisingly simple to just replace the battery.

Apple has its own do-it-yourself repair program, but even if you don’t use that, you can replace your iPhone’s battery yourself at home. With affordable third-party components and various tools available to buy, you can open up your iPhone and swap out that old, worn out battery — or replace a broken screen — often for less money than having a company do it for you.

I did exactly that, replacing the old battery of a well-used iPhone 6 to give it a new lease on life. I was pleased to find the phone on eBay for only £75 (about $100 or AU$140) back in 2020. That’s a lot less than a new iPhone 17 Pro, but unfortunately the battery had aged to the point where the software had to artificially throttle the performance to stop it from shutting down. Instead of casting off the phone and getting buyer’s remorse, I decided to purchase a replacement battery and tools from iFixit and have a go at changing out the battery myself.

It took a little over an hour, but I was able to safely swap out the battery and get the iPhone 6 running perfectly again. I’m not giving step-by-step instructions here — head to iFixit and grab a kit if that’s what you’re after — but I do want to describe my experience, including how easy the process was, and hopefully answer some of the questions you may have if you also need a new battery.

If you have a more recent model (an iPhone 12 or newer), then make sure to first check Apple’s new repair options and see if you’d be able to put in a replacement with parts directly from the company.

Note that any maintenance you do on your own devices is entirely at your own risk.

To get more about iPhones, check out everything Apple announced at WWDC 2025.

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1. Why would you need to replace an iPhone battery?

Batteries age over time, and considering that the iPhone 6 was released years ago, it’s no surprise that the one I bought wasn’t running in prime condition. One time, the phone unexpectedly restarted while in use, and it flashed a warning that read, «This iPhone has experienced an unexpected shutdown because the battery was unable to deliver the necessary peak power. Performance management has been applied to help prevent this from happening again.» Even the phone itself knew it had a bum battery.

In short, a phone’s performance can be throttled if it can no longer cope with power demands. There is the option to turn throttling off, but this will result in more frequent crashes. Neither situation is ideal, so a battery replacement seemed like a smart way forward for me, since it wasn’t my main phone and I was willing to take the risks.

2. How much does a replacement iPhone battery cost?

The problem with my situation specifically was that I bought the phone for so little in the first place that spending more money on a battery replacement service negated some of those initial savings. Apple’s replacement service costs £49 ($49), which is more than half what I paid for the iPhone 6 I bought. As I was in the middle of a coronavirus lockdown when I attempted this, I wasn’t able to get to an Apple store to take it in, and sending it in through the mail would bring the total cost to around £56 (about $75 or AU$105).

iFixit, however, sells a DIY replacement pack for £35 (including postage to my home in Scotland). It costs $30 in the US, and with shipping costs that comes to about $38. It’s not a huge saving over Apple’s replacement, but every little bit helps. It also means you will still have the tools you need should you want to do this again in the future. All you’d need to buy next time is the battery.

3. What comes in the iFixit battery fix kit?

iFixit’s kit comes with a third-party replacement battery that is not from Apple, since Apple does not sell its parts separately for phones older than the iPhone 12. It also has all the tools needed to open the phone and remove the old battery. The only additional thing I needed was a hair dryer to heat up and remove the glue.

4. Does replacing a battery void your phone warranty?

Opening up an iPhone will void the warranty, but if your battery is old enough to need replacing, odds are you’re already out of the 12-month warranty period.

5. Is it safe to replace your iPhone battery yourself?

This one isn’t so straightforward to answer. iFixit’s guide gives very detailed instructions on the steps involved, but there were a couple of points that made me nervous. One step involved heating up the back of the phone with a hair dryer in order to loosen the glue holding the old battery in place.

Specifically, it said to heat it to «slightly too warm to touch comfortably,» which I found a little vague. Especially since that section also warned that «overheating the iPhone may ignite the battery.» But how hot is too hot? What signs would I see if it was overheating? I couldn’t find this information, and as such wasn’t sure how close to overheating it I might be.

Shortly after, while trying to pry out the old battery, I accidentally ripped into what looked like the black wrapping around that battery. I was pretty sure that the battery itself wasn’t punctured — there was no smoke or hissing — but I’d have felt a lot more comfortable if I had «emergency» instructions on hand about what to look out for and what to do if the battery did ignite.

6. Can I replace my iPhone battery myself?

Up to a point I found I could, and I’m not the best at DIY. iFixit’s instructions were easy to follow, and there were only seven internal screws to remove, which were easy to then put back.

One thing I found confusing was that the instructions on iFixit’s website end at the point where you remove the old battery. The only instruction in the conclusion was to follow the previous steps in reverse order. Admittedly, that wasn’t particularly difficult, but I would have appreciated more guidance at that point.

I ran into one other issue in the process: When I removed the screen, I cracked the screen protector that was in place. I noticed the hairline cracks and was worried that I’d damaged the display itself, but thankfully that was unharmed.

7. Is it worth replacing an iPhone battery?

It depends on the age and value of your phone. If, like me, you bought a cheap used iPhone and just want to get it back up to speed, then it could be a great way to breathe new life into old tech without spending a fortune. Bear in mind, though, that this wasn’t going to be my main phone, nor did I buy it with my own money. For me, the risk was low. If I’d made a mistake and ruined the phone, it wouldn’t have been a big problem. You’ll need to consider whether you really can manage without the phone, and weigh your tolerance for other risks.

If you’re using a more recent device, like an iPhone 14 or 15, for example, I’d just take it directly to Apple. The savings you’ll get from doing it yourself aren’t so great as to justify the potential cost of damaging a more valuable phone.

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Technologies

Google races to put Gemini at the center of Android before Apple’s AI reboot

Google is using its latest Android rollout to position Gemini as the AI layer across phones, Chrome, laptops and cars.

Google is using its latest Android rollout to make Gemini less of a chatbot and more of an operating layer across the phone, browser, car and laptop, just weeks before Apple is expected to show its own Gemini-powered Apple Intelligence reboot at WWDC.
Ahead of its Google I/O developer conference next week, the company previewed a number of Android updates, including AI-powered app automation, a smarter version of Chrome on Android, new tools for creators, a redesigned Android Auto experience, and a sweeping set of new security features.
Alphabet is counting on Gemini to help Google compete directly with OpenAI and Anthropic in the market for artificial intelligence models and services, while also serving as the AI backbone across its expansive portfolio of products, including Android. Meanwhile, Gemini is powering part of Apple’s new AI strategy, giving Google a role in the iPhone maker’s reset even as it races to prove its own version of personal AI on the phone is further along.
Sameer Samat, who oversees Google’s Android ecosystem, told CNBC that Google is rebuilding parts of Android around Gemini Intelligence to help users complete everyday tasks more easily.
“We’re transitioning from an operating system to an intelligence system,” he said.
As part of Tuesday’s announcements. Google said Gemini Intelligence will be able to move across apps, understand what’s on the screen and complete tasks that would normally require a user to jump between multiple services. That means Android is moving beyond the traditional assistant model, where users ask a question and get an answer, and acting more like an agent.
For instance, Google says Gemini can pull relevant information from Gmail, build shopping carts and book reservations. Samat gave the example of asking Gemini to look at the guest list for a barbecue, build a menu, add ingredients to an Instacart list and return for approval before checkout.
A big concern surrounding agentic AI involves software taking action on a user’s behalf without permissions. Samat said Gemini will come back to the user before completing a transaction, adding, “the human is always in the loop.”
Four months after announcing its Gemini deal with Google, Apple is under pressure to show a more capable version of Apple Intelligence, which has been a relative laggard on the market. Apple has long framed privacy, hardware integration and control of the user experience as its advantages.
Google’s Android push is designed to show it can bring AI deeper into the device experience while still giving users control over what Gemini can see, where it can act and when it needs confirmation.
The app automation features will roll out in waves, starting with the latest Samsung Galaxy and Google Pixel phones this summer, before expanding across more Android devices, including watches, cars, glasses and laptops later this year.
The company is also redesigning Android Auto around Gemini, turning the car into another major surface for its assistant. Android Auto is in more than 250 million cars, and Google says the new release includes its biggest maps update in a decade and Gemini-powered help with tasks like ordering dinner while driving.
Alphabet’s AI strategy has been embraced by Wall Street, which has pushed the company’s stock price up more than 140% in the past year, compared to Apple’s roughly 40% gain. Investors now want to see how Gemini can become more central to the products people use every day.
WATCH: Alphabet briefly tops Nvidia after report of $200 billion Anthropic cloud deal

Technologies

Waymo recalls 3,800 robotaxis after glitch allowed some vehicles to ‘drive into standing water’

Waymo issued a voluntary recall of about 3,800 of its robotaxis to fix software issues that could allow them to drive into flooded roadways.

Waymo is recalling about 3,800 robotaxis in the U.S. to fix software issues that could allow them to “drive onto a flooded roadway,” according to a letter on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s website.
The voluntary recall is for Waymo vehicles that use the company’s fifth and sixth generation automated driving systems (or ADS), the U.S. auto safety regulator said in the letter posted Tuesday.
Waymo autonomous vehicles in Austin, Texas, were seen on camera driving onto a flooded street and stalling, requiring other drivers to navigate around them. It’s the latest example of a safety-related issue for the Alphabet-owned AV unit that’s rapidly bolstering its fleet of vehicles and entering new U.S. markets.
Waymo has drawn criticism for its vehicles failing to yield to school buses in Austin, and for the performance of its vehicles during widespread power outages in San Francisco in December, when robotaxis halted in traffic, causing gridlock.
The company said in a statement on Tuesday that it’s “identified an area of improvement regarding untraversable flooded lanes specific to higher-speed roadways,” and opted to file a “voluntary software recall” with the NHTSA.
“Waymo provides over half a million trips every week in some of the most challenging driving environments across the U.S., and safety is our primary priority,” the company said.
Waymo added that it’s working on “additional software safeguards” and has put “mitigations” in place, limiting where its robotaxis operate during extreme weather, so that they avoid “areas where flash flooding might occur” in periods of intense rain.
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Technologies

Qualcomm tumbles 13% as semiconductor stocks retreat from historic AI-fueled surge

Semiconductor equities reversed sharply after a broad AI-driven advance, with Qualcomm suffering its worst day since 2020 amid inflation concerns and rising oil prices.

Semiconductor stocks fell sharply on Tuesday, reversing course after an extensive rally that had expanded the artificial intelligence investment theme well past Nvidia and driven the industry to unprecedented levels.

Qualcomm plunged 13% and was on track for its steepest single-day decline since 2020. Intel shed 8%, while On Semiconductor and Skyworks Solutions each lost more than 6%. The iShares Semiconductor ETF, which benchmarks the overall sector, fell 5%.

The sell-off came after a key gauge of consumer prices came in above forecasts, and as conflict in Iran pushed crude oil higher—prompting investors to shift away from riskier assets.

The preceding advance had widened the AI opportunity set beyond longtime industry leader Nvidia, which for much of the past several years had largely carried the market to new peaks on its own.

Explosive appetite for central processing units, along with the graphics processing units that power large language models, has sent chipmakers to all-time highs.

Market participants are wagering that the shift from AI model training to autonomous agents will lift demand for additional AI hardware. Among the beneficiaries are memory chip producers, which are raising prices as supply remains tight.

Micron Technology slid 6%, and Sandisk cratered 8%. Sandisk’s stock has surged more than six times over since January.