iFixit zooms in on reports of an iPhone 17 Pro scratch problem

Apple’s new, anodized aluminum iPhone 17 Pro phones have drawn attention for reportedly being easy to scratch around the camera “plateau,” and iFixit has investigated the issue in microscopic detail in its teardown video for the phones.

Here are some pictures showing just what those scratches look like under a digital microscope:

iFixit talked to David Niebuhr, an engineer and professor of mechanical engineering, who has an explanation for why scratches around the iPhone 17 Pro’s camera plateau stick out so much with spalling damage that didn’t appear in tests of other areas. According to Niebuhr, the problem is the sharp edge of the camera bump where the anodization process isn’t as even, as he says, “Apple could have prevented this by making a more gradual curve and avoiding a relatively sharp corner.”

iFixit adds that unless you put your iPhone 17 Pro in a case, the camera plateau is “probably going to see some damage” at some point during its lifetime. As for repairability, iFixit gives Apple credit for a screwed-in battery, but criticized requiring users to remove the screen for most repairs — something Apple avoided on the new iPhone Air.