Samsung’s Galaxy S9 series is harder to repair than Apple’s iPhone X

Despite the folks over at iFixit welcoming the new design of the Galaxy S9 and S9+, it seems that Samsung has earned itself a low repairability score of just 4 for each handset. This is lower than Apple’s iPhone X, which scored a moderate 6 out of 10.

As usual for modern devices, iFixit struggled to access the internals to the devices due to excessive adhesive, particularly when paired with its all-glass design. This doubles the chance of the device cracking, according to the teardown experts.

Due to the curved screen, replacing the front glass could possibly destroy the display entirely if extra care isn’t taken. The battery can be replaced, but iFixit notes that getting to the battery to do this, not to mention reassembling the device afterwards is “unnecessarily difficult.”

Image Credit: iFixit

When comparing the camera of the Galaxy S8 range to the S9 series, iFixit notes that Samsung's iris scanner system is “pretty much exactly the same,” making any jump in quality likely software based rather than hardware.

The only redeeming quality, in the eyes of iFixit, was that components in both the Galaxy S9 and S9+ are modular, meaning each part of the device can be independently replaced if need be.

Luckily, for those with the Samsung Galaxy S9 or S9+ still on their radar, Samsung’s latest flagship handsets are similarly hard to break. JerryRigEverything pushed the limits of each handset, finding that the strengthened glass and reinforced frame help keep the device intact despite regular drops, bumps and knocks.

The glass shouldn’t pick up scratches easily as it took a level 6 pick to make a visible mark on the screen, with a level 7 finally denting the device. While not even flinching at the bend tests, Samsung have ensured that the Galaxy S9’s screen can withstand a certain amount of heat too, coming away from exposure to a flame with minimal permanent damage.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: I get it, why allow repairs for a device that isn’t built to break? But in the fickle world of technology, this is unfortunately not the case. Even if the Samsung Galaxy S9 manages to stand the test of time, making things harder to repair is a concerning practise that seems to be increasing in the tech industry. How do you feel about the current state of repairability? Does the Samsung Galaxy S9 series still appeal to you?

Become a Patron!