Paying a small fortune every time your smartphone acts up is starting to feel outdated. Between right-to-repair laws, rising service prices, and phones packed with glued-together parts, many people want to take repairs into their own hands but are afraid of breaking something. iFixit, the long-time champion of DIY gadget repair, is trying to remove that fear with a brand-new AI-powered app for iOS and Android.
The new iFixit app is more than a mobile-friendly wrapper for the company’s famous repair guides. 
It brings together several tools that used to live on the web and in scattered documents and turns your phone into a pocket repair workshop. Once installed from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store, the app gives you instant access to the full library of iFixit repair manuals, an interactive workbench to keep your repairs organized, a battery health and lifespan predictor, and a conversational AI assistant called FixBot.
All your repair knowledge in one place
At the heart of the app is the complete collection of iFixit repair guides. These step-by-step instructions cover everything from swapping a cracked iPhone screen to replacing a swollen Android battery or reviving an aging laptop. Inside the app, guides are formatted for small screens, with big photos, clear steps, and checklists that make it easier to follow along while you actually have the device open on your desk or kitchen table.
To stop your repair turning into a chaotic mess of screws and half-removed cables, the app includes a digital workbench. Think of it as a repair control panel: it tracks where you are in the process, lets you tick off completed steps, and helps you remember which tiny screw came from which corner of the device. For people who get anxious about reassembly, this kind of workflow tracking is almost as valuable as the guides themselves.
Battery health tracking and replacement timing
One of the most practical features in the new app is its deep integration with iPhone battery diagnostics. The software can monitor an iPhone’s battery capacity in real time and condense that data into an easy-to-read chart. Over days and weeks, you see the deterioration curve of your battery and, crucially, a realistic window for when it actually makes sense to replace it instead of guessing based on gut feeling or vague percentages hidden in system menus.
While the feature is especially helpful on iPhones, where battery wear can sneak up on users, the broader idea is simple: if you know precisely when your battery is aging out, you can order parts in advance and plan a repair before your phone suddenly dies halfway through the day. That alone can extend a device’s useful life and keep one more gadget out of the landfill.
FixBot: an AI mechanic in your pocket
iFixit’s most futuristic addition is FixBot, an AI assistant trained on millions of successful community repairs and troubleshooting threads. Instead of digging through forum posts or guessing what’s wrong based on a vague error message, you can describe the problem to FixBot in plain language or using voice input. The bot responds with likely diagnoses and a ranked list of repair options, often linking you directly to the relevant guide.
FixBot also understands photos. If you are staring at a mysterious connector, damaged component, or hairline crack on a circuit board, you can snap a picture and share it with the bot. Using that context, it can often identify the part, warn you about potential risks, and suggest the next steps – whether that means cleaning, reseating a cable, or replacing a failed module. It is not a replacement for expert technicians, but it can dramatically shrink the gap between “I have no idea what I’m looking at” and “I know my next move.”
Built-in parts store and compatibility checks
Because good advice is useless without the right tools, the app also hooks directly into iFixit’s parts and tools catalog. When FixBot or a repair guide recommends a replacement battery, display, or screwdriver set, you can jump straight to ordering the correct item inside the app. Behind the scenes, the software checks device compatibility so you are less likely to buy the wrong part for your exact model and generation.
For beginners, this compatibility layer is critical. Subtle differences between similar-looking iPhone or iPad models can mean the difference between a flawless repair and a part that simply does not fit. By building those checks into the purchase flow, iFixit lowers another barrier that kept many people from attempting DIY fixes.
A second life on the App Store
This is not iFixit’s first attempt at a mobile app. Back in 2015, Apple abruptly pulled the original iFixit app from the App Store and even banned the company’s developer account for breaching the platform’s rules. The move became a small but symbolic flashpoint in the larger fight over who gets to fix Apple hardware: the people who own it, or only Apple and its authorized partners.
Fast forward to today, and the climate looks very different. With regulators around the world probing Apple over antitrust issues and right-to-repair concerns, the company has adopted a somewhat more open stance. Its decision to allow iFixit back onto the App Store underlines how much the conversation has shifted. Users now have an officially sanctioned way to learn how to open their devices and perform repairs, instead of being nudged automatically toward expensive service centers.
How Apple’s latest devices score on repairability
Alongside the app launch, iFixit continues to do what made its name in the first place: tearing down new hardware and grading how repairable it really is. The new Apple M5 iPad Pro currently carries a provisional repairability score of 5 out of 10. On paper that sounds like a middling pass, but the details matter. The display sits flush against the internals, and swapping the battery still requires removing that huge, fragile screen.
Inside, Apple leans heavily on adhesives instead of simple screws to connect the display to the rest of the tablet. Anyone attempting a repair has to heat those adhesives to soften them and then use clamps and thin picks to gently pry the panel away. One slip, and you are looking at an expensive screen replacement you never planned for. Apple has started to soften its stance by publishing a self-repair manual for the M5 iPad Pro and promising genuine spare parts in the coming months, yet the design still clearly prioritizes sleekness over easy serviceability.
The story is even less flattering for laptops. The Apple M5 MacBook Pro earns a preliminary score of just 4 out of 10, a step down from the M4 MacBook Air’s 5 out of 10. That difference may not sound huge, but it highlights a familiar pattern: as devices become thinner, lighter, and more tightly integrated, user-friendly repairs often take a back seat. Batteries and key components are harder to access, and parts are more likely to be glued or soldered in place.
Against that backdrop, the new iFixit app feels like a necessary counterbalance. It does not magically change Apple’s hardware design choices, but it gives everyday users better tools to navigate them. With smarter diagnostics, clearer repair guidance, and safer access to compatible parts, the app nudges the industry one small step closer to a future where fixing your own tech is normal instead of intimidating.