iPhone 13 pro - gap between the display and frame

I have booked a slot at my local store, I will come back and tell you what they say. What I can promise you, is that you haven’t been lucky, you just haven’t noticed. Simply by searching about this gap, you’ll find swathes of news articles about it. It’s a common thing, some people will notice, some won’t. I can only see the gap when in certain lighting conditions at certain angles, that may explain why you haven’t ever noticed it.

It is hard to tell the gap difference because the top picture is zoomed in more than the bottom one but without a micrometer, one could guess there's maybe a 0.25-0.5mm difference which is quite good for a mass-produced phone.

The teardown videos on YouTube shows the iPhone 13's have really strong glue under the screen so it shouldn't affect the IP68 rating, but I would be 100% comfortable owning a phone like yours with a small gap difference like this.

Difficult to tell with that screen protector, I cant see any difference, and there would be no problem in use,.

However if you are not happy then take it to Apple Store.

You have 14 days to totally reject and re-order if they will not exchange it.

my 13 pro max has the same problem, with there being a gap between the display and chassis but from the top above the speaker grill going along both corners. basically the whole top side of the phone has this gap. the other three sides of the display don’t have this problem. reported it to apple today as the crevice/gap already houses dust and dirt after just 4 days of use. very disappointed.

apple sent a replacement, and as soon as i opened the package for it the gap and the dust inside it was clear to see even in this phone! the gap is horrendous and this replacement iphone 13 pro max is no better than the first model. after waiting for several weeks for the replacement to arrive, i am absolutely shocked at this development. as you can see in the pic, the gap is big enough to accommodate a paper edge through it. don’t know what to do now, as i fear this might be a universal defect.

I have a even worser case then yours. I have been givin a replacement phone but this is like the iPhone 11 Titanium bending it’s totally a product Recall —- good luck trying to convince Apple anyone that you didn’t drop the phone

Apple pride themselves on perfection rather than allowing for wide tolerances due to mass production. Just look at how they make the box. Unlike Sumsang they don't put out entry level stuff. The iphone 13 costs nearly 1000 beer tokens.

Not happy, reject it and wait a little longer. (another reason not to trade in the old phone)

I don't see any gap. I do see a screen protector and the small edge of the screen protector, which doesn't of course go all the way to the edge of the screen as would be expected to make the screen protector case friendly.

Hi!

I recently got the 13 Pro Max, and after standing in direct sunlight noticed a gap at the top of my phone. It’s not even 0.5mm, but was enough for me to be concerned. I have been to 3 phone stores and checked display models, and out of the 6 iPhone 13 Pros and Pro Max’s I saw, all 6 had a gap at the top, or on one side, or at the bottom. After speaking to Apple support, they told me this is a discrepancy within Apples tolerances. Replacements may have the same issue, or have it worse. It’s a lottery. It won’t affect water resistance, nor will it affect dust resistance. All technology will have imperfections, it’s a fact of mass production. Not to mention glass and metal shrink and expand in different temperatures, so if the screen were flush on all sides with the frame, it would cause damage and warping over time. Obviously the aim is to have the screen centred so the gap is equal on all sides but again, with mass production that simply isn’t possible.

Bottom line, it’s an expected discrepancy. Apple consider it cosmetic, and are unlikely to do anything about it. Even if they do, and they exchange your device, you could end up with a worse gap. Perfectionism is a problem, Apple I think need to drop their perfectionism because their technology is not without flaw and by pedalling it as this flawless item, people notice the imperfections so much more

"....Perfectionism is a problem, Apple I think need to drop their perfectionism because their technology is not without flaw and by pedalling it as this flawless item, people notice the imperfections so much more...."

Vast majority are pretty close to perfect. It is not a failing to aim for perfection, it is a differentiator. Apple don't claim perfection but we have come to expect it.

When iPhone 12 came out we had a similar tiny number of reports of this flaw but nothing after the first rush was over. My 12 is visibly perfect build.

You cannot possibly make the assumption that the issue was only on initial handsets, seeing as I saw the issue on phones bought closer to the 13’s release. If your phone doesn’t have the issue, good for you. But it’s not uncommon for iPhones to have these small discrepancies. I have a friend who works in an Apple store and he has told me many times about people coming in about gaps between their display and the body of the phone. Apple consider any gap under 0.5mm to be within their tolerances, and will not consider it an issue. Most of these gaps people report are scarcely large enough to slip the corner of a sheet of paper into. They are very common, and that’s the case with all technology. Look up World Class and Apple, you’ll see their tech is not 100%

"....Apple consider any gap under 0.5mm to be within their tolerances, and will not consider it an issue...."

I would like to see the kb article or a public Apple policy document that backs up your claim. Heresay and speculation are not welcome here.

There is no public Apple policy about this. There doesn’t need to be. Every tech company has a tolerance limit for discrepancies, Apple included. You talk as if every Apple iPhone must be 100% perfection, that is not possible in mass produced items.

[Edited by Moderator]

I was an engineer too, I understand tolerances, but you quoted a figure you cannot substantiate. I don't believe 0.5mm at that point is acceptable.

The point is all customers (except in India) can reject an iphone within 14 days without having to justify it. Your friend in the store has no choice. If he turns them away he is not following policy.

No, less than 0.5mm is considered within Apples tolerances. He turned them away if it was after their 14 day window, or if the gap was within their tolerances. If the gap was larger than their tolerances, they would replace the phone and guess what? The replacement would have the very same gap, sometimes worse, most often in the same place. It’s a product of design, and mass production. I have spoken to Apple support about this, and they have told me this gap is considered normal. People who claim to have no gap, are either incredibly lucky or aren’t looking hard enough. I have checked 7 iPhone 13 and 12 units, and ALL of them had the same gaps in the exact same place