AirPods 5 Teardown: Batteries Removable, Case Still Tough
Repair site iFixit today took apart Apple's AirPods 5 for one of its traditional teardown videos. It turns out the new AirPods are slightly more repairable than prior models, but it's still not a simple home fix.
The AirPods 5 use pronged batteries that Apple previously used in the AirPods 3, but not the AirPods 4. The battery can be removed with a "nifty pair of tongs," and iFixit says the component is "intuitive to unplug." When the AirPods 3 used the pronged battery, there was no easy way to get into the earbud, but the AirPods 5 are easier to pry open.
iFixit was able get into the AirPods 5 with a hair dryer to heat the adhesive and a clamp to hold the earbud in place. The left and right earbuds use different batteries with reversed polarity, so the battery from a left AirPod can't be swapped into a right AirPod, and vice versa.
While the earbuds have a better repair score, iFixit said the case is "still a disaster" and difficult to get into without destroying it.
iFixit gave the AirPods 5 a repairability score of 2/10, up from the 0/10 score all previous versions have earned. The site says "skilled technicians and even intrepid DIYers" should be able to replace the AirPods batteries "with a decent success rate."
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