iPhone 15 Rear Cameras Replacement

Written By: Clay Eickemeyer

Comments: 20

Difficulty

Moderate

Steps

Time Required

1 - 2 hours

Introduction

Use this guide to replace the rear cameras in your iPhone 15.

If your pictures and video come out fuzzy, noisy, or your cameras have trouble focusing, they might need to be replaced.

You'll need replacement back glass adhesive to complete this repair.

Note: Due to Apple's parts pairing restrictions, on iOS 17.6 and earlier, you may receive warnings regarding replacement rear cameras, although they'll still function normally. On iOS 18 and newer, calibrate genuine camera modules using Apple's Repair Assistant.

Tools

Parts

iPhone 15 Rear Camera Assembly

Step 1

Allow your phone's battery to drain below 25%, as a charged lithium-ion battery is a potential safety hazard.
Unplug any cables from your phone.
Hold the power and either volume buttons and slide to power off your phone.

Step 2

If your screen or back glass is badly cracked, lay overlapping strips of packing tape over the glass to protect yourself and make disassembly easier.
Make sure there's a smooth area near the bottom edge that's big enough for a suction cup to stick to.

Step 3

If inserted too far, an opening pick can damage your device. Follow this step to mark your pick and prevent damage.
Measure 3 mm from the tip and mark the opening pick with a permanent marker.
You can also mark the other corners of the pick with different measurements.
Alternatively, tape a coin to a pick 3 mm from the tip.

Got to step 2 and realized the fix kit doesn't include an opening pick! Looks like a guitar pick, and I have those lying around. Is that expected? Looks like the pick is used in many steps below. There's a little blue crowbar that isn't mentioned in the instructions. Perhaps that replaces the opening pick?

Sloan Looney -

Hi! I can't see which guide you were using when writing this comment. Can you reply here with which guide and fix kit you used?

Clay Eickemeyer -

I see you posted this in Meta. I hope it's resolved soon! In the meantime, a guitar pick may work well enough for your repair.

Clay Eickemeyer -

what fix kit?

Meow Purr -

My fix kit didn't include an opening pick either

WILLIAM HARRIS -

Make sure you check inside the black boxes after emptying them. My pick was stuck inside one of the boxes.

AndyF -

My AliExpress refurbished screen came with a pick that has a coin-like circle that pops out, so no modification was necessary

Gijs Leegwater -

the picture shows 3 cm but the description says 3 mm's. Which one is it?

John Pena -

That is a misunderstanding. It is a ruler with a scale for cm, it shows 0.3 cm, i.e. 3 mm.

VauWeh -

Oh, come ON!

Big Ed -

It will ALWAYS be millimeters on a phone, but this step is ridiculous, skip it!

Leif DeWolf -

It's not an Ifixit KIT if it doesn't include everything. You'll need to order the opening pic separately. Or head to Walmart like myself and look for guitar pics. Hopefully, this will work just as well.

Jaleeljb97@icloud.com -

No pick in mine as well. It’s really not clear that you have to order this separately when ordering an IPhone SE 202/2022 screen repair kit. Is this the case?

Jackson Castiglione -

Frustrated, I ordered a compact package where everything was encapsulated. Useless suction tools could not separate the screen. If it is unable to decouple the screen, then why sucking suction tools you have provided.

Shourob Datta -

For my kit the triangle pick was stuck inside the box with the screen not with the other tools maybe it's also there for you

Henry Scheibehenne -

Y’all are getting far, FAR too detailed with some of this stuff…. Measuring and marking the pick that you won’t actually use to open the device?!? lol that’s kinda funny. Just heat it up, grab a spudger, and the back just pops right off! The iFixit tech need to stick to the KISS method more often, you know KEEP IT SIMPLE STUPID!!! Like l, for reals, I’ve been doing this stuff for YEARS and using iFixit guides regularly and this is just ridiculous at this point!

Leif DeWolf -

Step 4

Use a P2 pentalobe driver to remove the two 7.7 mm-long screws on either side of the charging port.

Step 5

The next four steps demonstrate the Anti-Clamp, a tool we designed to make the opening procedure easier. If you aren't using the Anti-Clamp, skip down four steps for an alternate method.
For complete instructions on how to use the Anti-Clamp, check out this guide.
The Anti-Clamp applies suction to both the screen and the back glass. To open only the back glass, you need to secure the screen with tape. You can also check out the full instructions on how to use this tape.
Cut two strips of tape, apply them along the long edges of the phone, and fold them over the screen to secure it.

Step 6

Pull the Anti-Clamp's blue handle backward to unlock the arms.
With the back glass facing up, slide the arms over the right edge of your phone, with one suction cup on the back glass and the other on the screen. Center the suction cups near the bottom edge.
Support your phone so it rests level while between the Anti-Clamp's arms—a small box works well.
Squeeze the cups together to create suction.
If you find that the surface of your phone is too slippery for the Anti-Clamp to hold onto, use tape to create a grippier surface.

Step 7

Pull the blue handle forward to lock the arms.
Turn the handle one full turn (360 degrees) or until the cups start to stretch.
As the cups stretch, make sure they stay vertically aligned with each other. If they keep slipping, remove the Anti-Clamp and apply tape for the cups to stick to.
If you don't have tape, you may warm up the suction cups to help them stick.

Step 8

Use a hair dryer or heat gun to heat the bottom edge of the back glass until it's hot to the touch.
Be careful not to heat the phone hotter than this—the battery is susceptible to heat damage.
Wait up to a minute for the adhesive to separate and a gap to form between the back glass and the frame.
If a gap doesn't appear after one minute, apply more heat and rotate the handle a quarter turn. Let the Anti-Clamp and time do the work for you.
Insert an opening pick into the gap.
Remove the Anti-Clamp using the pull tabs on the suction cups.
Skip the next two steps.

Step 9

Use a hair dryer or heat gun to heat the bottom edge of the back glass until it's hot to the touch.
Be careful not to heat the phone hotter than this—the battery is susceptible to heat damage.

Step 10

Apply a suction handle to the bottom edge of the back glass.
Pull up on the handle with a strong, steady force to create a gap between the back glass and the frame.
Insert the tip of an opening pick into the gap.

Step 11

As you slice the adhesive securing the back glass in the next steps, be careful of the following areas:
There's a delicate cable connecting the back glass to the phone, right next to the volume down button. Don't insert your pick here to avoid slicing the cable.
There are multiple spring contacts around the perimeter of the phone. Be extra careful not to insert your pick deeper than suggested in each step to avoid bending these contacts.

If you heat the device up PROPERLY there is absolutely ZERO NEED to have to “cut the adhesive”….

Leif DeWolf -

Step 12

Don't insert your opening pick deeper than 5 mm along the bottom edge.
Slide your pick back and forth along the bottom edge to separate the adhesive.
Leave your pick inserted in the bottom right corner to prevent the adhesive from re-sealing.

Step 13

Heat the right edge of the back glass until it's hot to the touch.

This is how you melt your plastic tools and make them totally useless

Leif DeWolf -

Step 14

Don't insert your pick deeper than 7 mm along the right edge.
Rotate your pick around the bottom right corner and slide it to the volume down button or until you feel a hard stop at a large clip securing the back glass.
Don't slice past the volume buttons to avoid damaging the wireless charging cable.
Leave this pick inserted to prevent the adhesive from resealing.

How about we teach people how to do this without such a risk and start opening it on the side opposite of the volume buttons, and again, if heat is used properly there is zero risk as you can pry up from left and totally avoid sliding the puck around the edge.

Leif DeWolf -

Step 15

Heat the left edge of the back glass until it's hot to the touch.

Step 16

Along the left edge, don't insert your pick deeper than 5 mm.
Insert a second opening pick at the bottom edge.
Rotate the second pick around the bottom left corner.
Slide this pick up to the top left corner to separate the adhesive.
Leave this pick inserted to prevent the adhesive from resealing.

Step 17

Heat the top edge of the back glass until it's hot to the touch.

Stop making people melt their tools!!!!

Leif DeWolf -

Step 18

Don't insert your pick deeper than 3 mm along the top edge.
Rotate your second opening pick around the top left corner and slide it to the top right corner to separate the adhesive.
You might hear and feel clicks as the top two clips release.
Leave this pick in place to prevent the adhesive from resealing.

Step 19

Heat the top right corner of the back glass until it's hot to the touch.

Step 20

Don't insert your pick deeper than 4 mm along the right edge.
Rotate the second opening pick around the top right corner and slide it to the volume up button to separate the adhesive.

Step 21

Gently swing open the back glass to the right of the phone.
If the back glass feels stuck, go back around the perimeter to check for missed sections of adhesive or stuck clips.
Rest the back glass against a raised surface so it doesn't strain the cable.

Step 22

Throughout this repair, keep track of each screw and make sure it goes back exactly where it came from.
Use a tri-point Y000 driver to remove the two 1.3 mm-long screws securing the lower connector cover.

Step 23

Use tweezers to slide the cover toward the top of the phone to unlatch it from the logic board.
Remove the cover.
During reassembly, latch the top edge of the cover onto its slot on the logic board before securing it with its screw.

Step 24

Hold the back glass upright with one hand and rotate it just enough to reveal the battery press connector just below the volume buttons.
Use the tip of an opening pick to pry up and disconnect the battery press connector from the logic board.
A plus and minus sign is printed on the head of this connector.
To reconnect a press connector, align it over its socket and gently press down on one side until it clicks into place, then press down on the other side. Make sure it sits flat, as the insulating rubber around the sockets might prevent it from connecting fully.

Step 25

Use your tri-point Y000 driver to remove the 0.9 mm-long screw securing the middle connector cover.

Step 26

Use the flat end of a spudger or your finger to push the cover toward the bottom of the phone and unclip its top edge.
Remove the cover.
During reassembly, place the cover so its tab is just behind the clip on the logic board. Press down with one finger and slide the cover forward to engage the clip.

Step 27

Use an opening pick to pry up and disconnect the wireless charging coil and NFC connector.

Step 28

Remove the back glass.
During reassembly:
This is a good point to test your repair before sealing up your phone. Temporarily reconnect the battery and back glass, power on your phone, and make sure it works as expected. Power it back down and continue reassembly.
Use this guide to reapply adhesive and install your back glass.

Step 29

Use the tip of an opening pick to pry up and disconnect the two rear camera press connectors and the antenna press connector located to the top right of the battery.

Step 30

Use a Phillips #00 driver to remove the three 2.3 mm screws securing the rear cameras.

Step 31

The rear camera cables route underneath the antenna cable, making rear camera removal tricky. Follow the next two steps to free the camera cables.
Use your fingers to grab the upper camera and antenna press connectors and lift their cables out from their channels along the edge of the battery.
This leaves just the middle of the three press connectors in place.

Step 32

The cable for the middle press connector is adhered to an adjacent cable along the top edge of the battery. In this step, you'll separate this adhesive.
Hold the two cables you just freed out of the way of the middle press connector cable.
Insert the tip of an opening pick between the middle press connector cable and its adjacent cable to separate the adhesive.

Step 33

Use the flat end of your spudger to pry up the top edge of the rear cameras until you can grab them with your fingers.

Step 34

Pull the rear cameras toward the top of the phone and let their cables slide underneath the antenna cable.
Remove the rear cameras.
During reassembly, make sure the camera cables route underneath the antenna cable. Use this picture for reference to order the cables correctly.

Conclusion

To reassemble your phone, follow these instructions in reverse order.

After your repair, depending on the replacement part, you may be able to calibrate it using Apple's Repair Assistant, available as of iOS 18. Update your device, navigate to Settings → General →About → Parts & Service History, tap Restart & Finish Repair, and follow the onscreen prompts.

Take your e-waste to an R2 or e-Stewards certified recycler.

Repair didn’t go as planned? Try some basic troubleshooting, or ask our Answers community for help.

Author

Clay Eickemeyer

Member since: 19/09/22

77552 Reputation

iPhone 15 Rear Cameras Replacement

Introduction

Tools

Parts

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