Apple blocks iPhone XS battery status information when replaced by third parties
Apple blocks status information about the health of an iPhone battery if someone other than an Apple-certified repairer has replaced the battery. That only happens with the XS, XS Max and XR, claims iFixit.
The notification in iOS. Source: iFixit
As a result, the condition of the battery can no longer be seen, but iOS gives a message that it cannot verify that it is an original battery from Apple, reports iFixit. The condition of the battery is not the remaining battery percentage, but is about the wear of the battery. This makes it easy to determine whether an iPhone battery needs to be replaced. The report that iOS could not verify the battery also came up when the repair site exchanged two batteries in iPhones, so it was certainly Apple batteries. Older iPhones don’t show the notification. YouTube channel TheArtOfRepair was the first to report the problem.
The cause is a Texas Instruments bq27456-G1 microcontroller that is on the battery. That is the microcontroller that monitors the battery condition. It checks whether the battery is the same as the one installed at the factory. If not, iOS displays that notification. A certified Apple repair technician can presumably reprogram the microcontroller. According to iFixit, the notification can be prevented by removing the original microcontroller from the original battery and putting it on the new one, although that is a difficult procedure.
The phone will work properly after the repair, emphasizes iFixit. Also, iOS does not limit performance, as it does with batteries that no longer have the maximum capacity. As a result, there is no functional problem with battery replacement. Apple has not yet commented on the matter.
Apple has made repairs more difficult for uncertified people in recent years. For example, recent Macs have a chip that makes repairs more difficult, and Touch ID only works with the original motherboard on older iPhones. Apple is taking those measures to secure its devices, the company says.