Your broken iPhone 14 can now be fixed in-house so no more swap-outs

(Image credit: iFixit)

Apple Stores and Authorized Service Providers can now repair your broken iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro handsets for the first time. Previously, a busted iPhone 14-series device would result in the entire handset being swapped out.

The move means that Apple Stores and repair shops authorized to repair iPhones have now been sent the spare parts required to do same-device repairs.

No swapsies

Apple released the iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Pro, iPhone 14 Plus, and iPhone 14 Pro Max weeks ago, but it's taken until last week for the parts to arrive in stores, MacRumors reports.

The iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus both feature new designs that allow their back panels to be removed, whereas the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max require access to all components via the front display. The easier access to the non-Pro models' innards should make it easier for technicians to replace things like batteries and whatnot. However, it isn't clear why Apple didn't give all four devices the same design.

The iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max are the best iPhones Apple has ever made, at least until the iPhone 15 rolls around next year. We're already expecting big things, possibly moving to USB-C in the cards. Faster processors and camera upgrades are also likely, with the iPhone 15 Pro Max rumored to get a new name — iPhone 15 Ultra.

If all goes according to plan, we expect Apple to announce its 2023 iPhone 15 lineup in or around September next year. We'll also likely see new Apple Watches, although it remains to be seen whether the Apple Watch Ultra will get annual refreshes.

Oliver Haslam has written about Apple and the wider technology business for more than a decade with bylines on How-To Geek, PC Mag, iDownloadBlog, and many more. He has also been published in print for Macworld, including cover stories. At iMore, Oliver is involved in daily news coverage and, not being short of opinions, has been known to 'explain' those thoughts in more detail, too. Having grown up using PCs and spending far too much money on graphics card and flashy RAM, Oliver switched to the Mac with a G5 iMac and hasn't looked back. Since then he's seen the growth of the smartphone world, backed by iPhone, and new product categories come and go. Current expertise includes iOS, macOS, streaming services, and pretty much anything that has a battery or plugs into a wall. Oliver also covers mobile gaming for iMore, with Apple Arcade a particular focus. He's been gaming since the Atari 2600 days and still struggles to comprehend the fact he can play console quality titles on his pocket computer.