Apple to Transition to Longer Serial Numbers for Repair Parts in October

Apple will begin to use a new and longer serial number format for iPhone, Mac, Apple Watch, and other product repair parts starting October 1, a few weeks following the expected launch of the new ‌iPhone‌ 14, Apple Watch Series 8, and other new products.

apple self service repair iphone
In a memo obtained by MacRumors, Apple is informing authorized service providers that their machines and equipment will need to be updated to support a new, longer 18-digit serial number for repair parts starting October 1. The current serial number for repair parts is 17-digits. The new 18-digit serial number will likely apply only to future repair parts, such as those for new iPhones, iPads, Apple Watches, and Macs.

Before the launch of the ‌iPhone‌ 12 in 2020, Apple informed authorized service providers of its plans to move to use a randomized serial number for its products rather than the previous format, which has for years allowed customers and service providers to determine the date and location that a product was manufactured. Apple did not implement the randomized format until the purple iPhone 12 in May 2021.

Popular Stories

Apple Watch Ultra Night Mode Screen

Apple Watch Ultra 3 Launching Later This Year With Two Key Upgrades

Wednesday July 2, 2025 1:13 pm PDT by
The long wait for an Apple Watch Ultra 3 appears to be nearly over, and it is rumored to feature both satellite connectivity and 5G support. Apple Watch Ultra's existing Night Mode In his latest Power On newsletter, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said that the Apple Watch Ultra 3 is on track to launch this year with "significant" new features, including satellite connectivity, which would let you...
iPhone 17 Pro in Hand Feature Lowgo

iPhone 17 Pro Max Battery Capacity Leaked

Thursday July 3, 2025 5:40 am PDT by
The iPhone 17 Pro Max will feature the biggest ever battery in an iPhone, according to the Weibo leaker known as "Instant Digital." In a new post, the leaker listed the battery capacities of the iPhone 11 Pro Max through to the iPhone 16 Pro Max, and added that the iPhone 17 Pro Max will feature a battery capacity of 5,000mAh: iPhone 11 Pro Max: 3,969mAh iPhone 12 Pro Max: 3,687mAh...
iPhone 17 Pro in Hand Feature Lowgo

iPhone 17 Pro Coming Soon With These 14 New Features

Friday July 4, 2025 1:05 pm PDT by
Apple's next-generation iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are just over two months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models. Latest Rumors These rumors surfaced in June and July:Apple logo repositioned: Apple's logo may have a lower position on the back of the iPhone 17 Pro models, compared to previous...
iPhone 17 Pro Lower Logo Magsafe

iPhone 17 Pro's New MagSafe Design Revealed in Leaked Photo

Wednesday July 2, 2025 8:37 am PDT by
The upcoming iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are rumored to have a slightly different MagSafe magnet layout compared to existing iPhone models, and a leaked photo has offered a closer look at the supposed new design. The leaker Majin Bu today shared a photo of alleged MagSafe magnet arrays for third-party iPhone 17 Pro cases. On existing iPhone models with MagSafe, the magnets form a...
airpods pro 2

AirPods Pro 3 to Help Maintain Apple's Place in Earbud Market Amid Increasing Low-Cost Competition

Thursday July 3, 2025 7:25 am PDT by
Apple's position as the dominant force in the global true wireless stereo (TWS) earbud market is expected to continue through 2025, according to Counterpoint Research. The forecast outlines a 3% year-over-year increase in global TWS unit shipments for 2025, signaling a transition from rapid growth to a more mature phase for the category. While Apple is set to remain the leading brand by...
Wi Fi WiFi General Feature

iOS 26 Adds a Useful New Wi-Fi Feature to Your iPhone

Wednesday July 2, 2025 6:36 am PDT by
iOS 26 and iPadOS 26 add a smaller yet useful Wi-Fi feature to iPhones and iPads. As spotted by Creative Strategies analyst Max Weinbach, sign-in details for captive Wi-Fi networks are now synced across iPhones and iPads running iOS 26 and iPadOS 26. For example, while Weinbach was staying at a Hilton hotel, his iPhone prompted him to fill in Wi-Fi details from his iPad that was already...
iOS 18

Apple Releases Second iOS 18.6 Public Beta

Tuesday July 1, 2025 10:19 am PDT by
Apple today seeded the second betas of upcoming iOS 18.6 and iPadOS 18.6 updates to public beta testers, with the betas coming just a day after Apple provided the betas to developers. Apple has also released a second beta of macOS Sequoia 15.6. Testers who have signed up for beta updates through Apple's beta site can download iOS 18.6 and iPadOS 18.6 from the Settings app on a compatible...

Top Rated Comments

flofixer Avatar
38 months ago
So I guess they should be called random numbers instead of serial numbers.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
NoelWalker Avatar
38 months ago
Should have moved to 20-digit serial numbers instead. Maybe include emojis as well. Even 18-digit ones will run out very quickly in the foreseeable future considering how frequent their devices are being replaced every single year.

/s
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
bookofxero Avatar
38 months ago

So is the point to make it more difficult to figure out if a certain phone should be avoided, or disrupt people determining other resale values on a potentially problem run of products? For example, the IPhone 12 has potential speaker issues on phones manufactured over a 3-month period.
Basically the latter. I remember massive returns of some Apple products because a certain plant was using, for example, one type of LCD panel and they wanted a specific one. The costs of that add up, as does the down-the-line customer dissatisfaction (ie, the ones who do not care about specific panels but have to wait longer to get a device because someone burned one because of SN).
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
svish Avatar
38 months ago
Wonder what the benefit will be for Apple with this change.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Porco Avatar
38 months ago
Tim Cook might have allegedly said Apple are quadruple-decatetra-hexaconta-tripling down on randomised numbers.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
WWPD Avatar
38 months ago
This changes EVERYTHING. Balls in your court Samsung/Google.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)