Pixel 6 Pro Teardown Shows Screen Replacements Can Be Quite Easy

The Google Pixel 6 Pro last week passed through YouTuber Zack Nelson aka JerryRigEverything’s torturous durability test fairly unscathed. It revealed a weird all-plastic top edge. Now, Zack has performed a teardown of the phone and we have a few surprises this time as well.

Like most other Pixel phones in the past, Google has designed the Pixel 6 Pro in such a way that the screen comes off first. It’s an IP68-rated phone and has plenty of adhesive around the edges. But with the help of a knife and a suction cup, Zack could peel out the screen without damaging any pixels. “The Pixel 6 Pro display is definitely the easiest screen repair of 2021,” he concludes. Moreover, Google is also providing a free online tool to calibrate the in-display fingerprint scanner. So if you ever get your Pixel 6 Pro’s screen replaced, you don’t have to worry whether the fingerprint scanner will work properly.

For the uninitiated, components like the fingerprint scanner, face unlocking cameras, and others go through calibration during the device’s manufacturing process. So if any of these components are replaced, the new component needs to be calibrated again. Google is making this process easy by offering a free online tool.

If you remember, the Pixel 6 Pro show any “cracks, bends, or kinks” during Zack’s bend test. The teardown video reveals that Google has used some “hefty” metal plates inside to ensure the structural integrity of the device. These plates could also act as a heat sink for the processor.

Google is offering a storage plastic pull tape for removing the battery on this phone. But, unfortunately, it isn’t strong enough to pull out the 5003mAh unit. Zack needed to use isopropyl alcohol to dissolve the adhesive underneath the battery to pull it out.

Pixel 6 Pro teardown confirms the purpose of the all-plastic top edge

The massive camera bridge on the back of the Pixel 6 Pro is real and isn’t there just for an aesthetic purpose. The three rear-facing cameras do take up all that space inside the phone.

A few more screws, and we finally reach the top of the phone. And as speculated during the durability test, the weird plastic rail up top Pixel 6 Pro is indeed due to the 5G antenna location. Google seemingly doesn’t want a metal frame to affect the phone’s mmWave signal reception.

The rest of the stuff is fairly standard. Google has soldered the USB Type-C port to the board. So replacing it isn’t going to be as easy as the screen. Check out Zack’s full Pixel 6 Pro teardown below.