Battery replacement - not "allowed" if Face ID is not working

Question

Battery replacement - not "allowed" if Face ID is not working

Hi,

the battery on my iPhone XR has been ridiculously low in performance (~57% of the max capacity at the moment), which is very disappointing since I have the phone for less than 2 years.

I think it started swelling as well, as my display split a bit at the top left corner.

I wanted to change the battery, so I made an appointment and went to an official Apple service.

There, they told me that Apple's diagnostic software detects that the Face ID sensor does not work and that they cannot change the battery without changing the FaceID sensor, which would cost around 419 CHF (455 USD) + 89 CHF (100 USD) for the battery.

Honestly, I find this ridiculous, since:

for that money, I can get a new iPhone 11.
I don't use Face ID: I use only the password to unlock the phone, so I definitely don't need it "fixed".
Face ID is probably broken due to battery swelling (which is completely apple's fault in my view).

My question is:

Were the people in the official Apple service telling the truth when they said they can't replace battery without replacing the Face ID?

Overall, the whole situation is truly disappointing, as the phone is less than 2 years old.

Thanks,

Aleksandar

iPhone XR, iOS 14

Posted on Jun 28, 2021 5:54 PM

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Answer 1

KiltedTim

Level 10

196,041 points

Jun 29, 2021 5:21 AM in response to aleksandar198

There are basically 2 things Apple can replace in an iPhone, the display and the battery. Any other failure requires a complete replacement of the device. Apple will not do a 'partial' repair. If anything other than the display or battery has failed or is damaged, they will not replace the display or battery.

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Answer 2

Jun 29, 2021 6:56 AM in response to aleksandar198

aleksandar198 wrote:

Yeah, I understood that.

But it still doesn't answer my question as to _why_ Apple will not do a 'partial' repair?

Best guess is that, in order to replace the battery, the screen/screen component has to be removed. Removing a damaged part is highly likely to break it further, rendering it unusable. Apple is not willing to take on that responsibility.

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