Apple has made several changes beneath the surface of the iPhone 18 Pro, and a new teardown provides an early look at what has changed inside the company’s latest flagship.

A teardown video from REWA Technology shows the iPhone 18 Pro being dismantled piece by piece, revealing updates to the cooling system, battery and Dynamic Island. While the internal design remains familiar in many ways, Apple has made several notable adjustments to accommodate its new hardware.

The most significant change is the redesigned vapour chamber. Apple has repositioned the A20 Pro chip so it sits directly against the cooling system, which is also larger than the vapour chamber used in the iPhone 17 Pro.

The larger cooling solution appears to be part of Apple’s effort to manage heat from the more powerful A20 Pro. The company has previously highlighted improvements to the iPhone 18 Pro’s thermal design, and the teardown offers a clearer picture of how that system is laid out internally.

The teardown also reveals a slightly larger battery.

The iPhone 18 Pro model examined features a physical SIM card and has a battery that’s approximately 1.7% larger than the one found in the iPhone 17 Pro. It’s not a dramatic increase, but it could contribute to the modest gains in battery life seen in early testing.

The bigger story, however, may be the way Apple has used the available space elsewhere inside the phone.

Apple has also redesigned the components behind the Dynamic Island to make the cutout narrower.

The infrared camera has been moved to the corner of the display, freeing up space in the area occupied by the pill-shaped cutout. The result is a slimmer Dynamic Island without requiring Apple to remove the sensors and cameras needed for Face ID.

That redesign could come with a downside for repairs. REWA Technology notes that the relocated infrared camera could make it more difficult for aftermarket display manufacturers to produce compatible replacement screens.

Beyond the major components, the teardown reveals changes to internal cables and materials as well as other adjustments to Apple’s internal layout.

The video is primarily focused on taking the iPhone 18 Pro apart and examining its construction, so it doesn’t provide a complete picture of every change Apple has made. More detailed teardowns are likely to uncover additional differences between the new model and its predecessor.

Still, this first look provides an interesting glimpse at how Apple has reworked the iPhone 18 Pro internally. The larger vapour chamber, slightly bigger battery and redesigned Dynamic Island show that some of the biggest changes to the new iPhone aren’t immediately visible from the outside.

The iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are now available through Apple.