How to Upgrade Your iPhone 16e with MagSafe Technology: A Step-by-Step Teardown Guide

After the tech community dissected Apple’s latest MacBook Neo, the spotlight has now shifted to the iPhone 17e as iFixit delves into its internals.

iFixit’s recent teardown of the iPhone 17e revealed that not much has changed from its predecessor, the early 2025 iPhone. The external design remains largely unchanged, with both the iPhone 17e and iPhone 16e sporting the same 2022-era display and nearly identical body designs, except for a new soft pink color option introduced in the latest model. The main upgrades come in the form of new chips — the iPhone 17e now features the A19 and C1X modem chips, an improvement from the previous A18 and C1 chips, as well as MagSafe charging support.

During the teardown, iFixit discovered that most parts of the iPhone 17e are interchangeable with the iPhone 16e, with the exception of Face ID sensors due to Apple’s strict security protocols. The most significant upgrade in the iPhone 17e, the MagSafe coil, is integrated into the back panel, which is both physically and electronically compatible with the iPhone 16e.

Practically, this means that iPhone 16e users could potentially upgrade to MagSafe by simply replacing the back panel. While Apple has released a repair manual for the iPhone 17e, allowing users to replace the back glass, iFixit found that the MagSafe upgrade on an iPhone 16e using the iPhone 17e back panel did not provide the full functionality of the native MagSafe implementation.

Adding the MagSafe ring to an iPhone 16e enables magnetic docking with MagSafe adapters, but does not deliver the 15W charging speeds of the iPhone 17e. iFixit observed the iPhone 16e drawing up to 10W with the iPhone 17e back glass, suggesting a potential increase in charging speed with MagSafe alignment, although actual speeds depend on the iPhone’s charging circuits.

Apple typically charges $159 for back glass replacements for recent iPhone models, including the iPhone 16e, but third-party alternatives are available for around $20. While the MagSafe upgrade may not be worth it for most users, enthusiasts who enjoy DIY projects may find it a fun challenge.

This trend of interchangeable parts in iPhones is not new, with previous models like the iPhone SE and iPhone 8 sharing design similarities. Despite the incremental upgrades, Apple continues to surprise with its innovative approach to device components.