iFixit has given the new MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display a repairability score of 5 out of 10 in its teardown published on 10 November. That is one point better than last year’s M5 MacBook Pro and one point below the MacBook Neo.
The glowing Apple logo is the headline find, and the hardest part to reach. iFixit destroyed the OLED panel getting to it and asked whether anyone had managed to remove it intact. Underneath, a strip of four LEDs works with a reflective layer and a diffuser to light the logo evenly, while a two-way mirror coating keeps it shiny when the LEDs are off. If you would rather not have it lit, the logo can be turned off with a Terminal command.
Lighter, with a better logic-board swap
iFixit says Apple shaved weight across the chassis, even though the machine adds a touchscreen and an illuminated logo. The trackpad is slightly smaller than on the standard model.
One genuine improvement is board swapping. Last year’s M5 MacBook Pro failed Touch ID calibration through Apple’s Repair Assistant after a logic-board swap. This time, iFixit reports that the battery, display and Touch ID sensor were all recognised, True Tone, brightness controls and the touchscreen worked, and a fingerprint could be enrolled with a donor board fitted from another PROLED model.
Under a microscope, iFixit also found that the tandem OLED’s blue subpixels are larger than the red and green ones, which it says should reduce strain on the materials and may extend the display’s life.
What it means for buyers
A 5/10 is a middling score: ports and fans are modular in principle, but soldered storage and memory, and the logic-board removal needed for simple jobs, remain. The model went on sale on 6 November; our on-sale guide has UK, EU and US prices. MacRumors also covered the teardown.