iFixit’s iPad Pro and Apple Pencil teardown raises tantalizing possibility

“The new iPad Pro 11-inch sports narrower bezels, curvy LCD corners, and cutting edge silicon,” iFixit reports. “This is apparently the iPad Apple dreamed about building from the very beginning, but what we dream about is a device that is easy to repair. Will this iPad fulfill both dreams, or will ours be left in the pipe? There’s only one way to tell — with a teardown!”
“We loved the experience of cutting through all the glue to open our first iPad, and it has never gotten old. This statement is brought to you by the Coalition of Sarcastic Tinkerers and National Opposite Day,” iFixit reports. “It helps to be practiced at this, but these extra-thin bezels make it even a bit more harrowing than usual. Heat, carve, hold your breath, and hope nothing breaks. It turns out the case is a little thicker around the Pencil charging area—we started prying there and quickly regretted it.”
“One thing that immediately stands out is the iPad’s quartet of speakers,” iFixit reports. “Four woofers and four tweeters, for a total of eight speakers, make for a Netflix powerhouse—because even professionals need a break sometimes.”
“A huge patch of supergoop runs all the way down the left side. Sigh. Time to break out the pry tools,” iFixit reports. “We were left speechless. Why would Apple do this? We could only hypothesize that the adhesive is there for ‘rigidity reinforcement.'”
“We also picked up the new Apple Pencil… Bring out the ultrasonic blade!” iFixit reports. “A large black ribbon cable unfurls from around the Pencil body, revealing what looks like a capacitative grid! This is likely used to register tap inputs, but this grid ought to help the Pencil know where — not just when — you tap. Could more complex gestures be on the way?”
Apple’s 2nd gen. Apple Pencil contains a capacitative grid
 
Read more, and see all of the gory dissection photos, in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: With a repairability score of just 3 out of 10, Apple’s new iPad Pros, like the old iPad Pros, are not DIY devices.
Bring on the Apple Pencil gestures, Apple!