Samsung just launched the Galaxy S21 last week, and now, the first disassembly video is now available for you to see. It is courtesy of the YouTube channel PBKreviews and features a complete disassembly and reassembly of the normal S21, with the first repair capability assessment. Spoiler alert: it appears that many parts can be easily replaced, except for the battery.
In contrast to its predecessor, the Galaxy S21 has a plastic back that divides the fans – some love it, while others hate it. But there is no denying that it makes the phone easier to open. The presenter was able to remove the back plate with a simple pry tool. Underneath it, a graphite plate with the wireless charging coil and 22 screws are the only things left between full access to the bowels of the S21 that look a lot like those of the S20. After removing the graphite plate, you will see two mmWave 5G antennas, which should help a little in reception – the S20 has only one. The disassembly also reveals that the S21 has switched to graphite to cool the processor like many other recent phones.
All parts are easily removed, which is refreshing to see. It is a pity that Samsung used a lot of adhesive on the battery and the screen, two components that are very prone to failure. But with a little heat, a lot of patience and a prone tool, it is possible to remove and replace these two. PBKreviews concludes the video by giving the S21 a repair score of 7.5 out of 10. Although you cannot compare this result to the standardized and rigorously developed score from iFixit, I want to hope that Samsung has improved the repair capacity with the S21 . But we will have to wait until we know if he gets a better score than his predecessors, who couldn’t go beyond 3 out of 10.
