Technician makes working iPhone 6s with parts from Shenzhen market

An engineer has managed to build an iPhone 6s using second-hand parts he bought in markets in Shenzhen, China. The phone is fully functional and works, partly because he purchased the pcb and Touch ID in its entirety.

A second-hand PCB and Touch ID in its entirety are necessary, because Apple connects both parts inextricably at the factory and therefore the fingerprint scanner does not work if it is connected to another PCB, says former engineer Scotty Allen on his blog. He bought the other parts and even the box together. He spent about $300 for the parts he used. He spent a total of $1,000 on the project due to tools and parts he didn’t need.

He chose to assemble an iPhone 6s, because there are few parts available for the iPhone 7 yet. This is probably because many of the parts come from broken phones. The iPhone 6s has been on the market for a year longer, which means there are probably more defective models.

Allen assembled the phone after participating in a conversation at a barbecue that raised the question of whether such a thing is possible. Allen not only bought the phone, but also a box with charger and manual. Not that he needs the phone himself, as he already had an iPhone 6s.