iFixit Tears Down M5 MacBook Pro

Repair site iFixit today did one of its device teardowns on Apple's new M5 MacBook Pro model, which Apple released on Wednesday.


Unsurprisingly, there are few changes to the device because the only new features are a new M5 chip and a faster SSD, but iFixit did find some subtle tweaks related to repairability.

The MacBook Pro's casing is still secured with P5 screws, and battery replacement is more difficult than it needs to be because Apple only sells the battery as part of the main chassis that also includes the keyboard. Getting to the fan, ports, and other components inside the ‌MacBook Pro‌ requires removing the logic board, and iFixit says that essentially every component in the ‌MacBook Pro‌ has to come out to perform a battery replacement following Apple's official repair steps.

On the plus side, iFixit found that the trackpad no longer needs to be removed to access the pull tabs on the central battery cells, a small but useful update. There is a new 72.6 Wh battery in the ‌MacBook Pro‌, which is a little bit higher capacity than the 72.4 Wh battery in the prior-generation M4 MacBook Pro. The battery finding is a bit odd, since Apple's own specifications page still lists a 72.4 Wh battery.

Since little has changed with ‌MacBook Pro‌ repair, iFixit gave the device a repairability score of 4 out of 10.

Tag: iFixit

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Top Rated Comments

hgfjhbvytjdnb Avatar
6 days ago at 01:24 pm

It is replaceable. Just not by morons.
That means you wouldn't be able to replace it, clearly.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jicon Avatar
6 days ago at 11:44 am
It wasn't that long ago a Macbook had a little latch would drop the battery out so a different one could be used. Elegant and convenient. I get it... the compromise is a thicker machine. But these are pro machines. Leave the non replaceable batteries to the Air.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
hagar Avatar
6 days ago at 12:11 pm
Still have a 20 year old PowerBook G4 that has a removable battery (with lights indicating how full it is) and user accessible ram. Apple could bring these features back if it wanted to.

At least it would lend some more credibility to their “Mother Nature” act.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Slo Pesci Avatar
6 days ago at 10:52 am
Yup, that's a Macbook alright.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Hajj.david Avatar
6 days ago at 12:19 pm

Still have a 20 year old PowerBook G4 that has a removable battery (with lights indicating how full it is) and user accessible ram. Apple could bring these features back if it wanted to.

At least it would lend some more credibility to their “Mother Nature” act.
You cannot have removable ram, and the power that comes with unified ram at the same time it’s a one or the other type of thing. There is a reason why Apple computers are being used for LLM’s. They’re the only ones that provide huge amounts of unified memory.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Rachid Vàzquez Avatar
6 days ago at 11:34 am
Where is the EU when it comes to enforcing repairability?
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)