Yes, we’ve seen something similar in the past. Scotty from the Strange Parts channel assembled an iPhone 6S by purchasing individual parts, but now it’s Hugh Jeffreys’ turn, who decided to start a similar project, albeit with an important difference: His goal is an iPhone 12 Mini, using parts from AliExpress. Beyond the natural limits of the assembly process and the volatility of some online sellers, the real question is how Apple will respond to this iPhone Frankenstein…
Despite the dark desires of some OEMs, it’s still possible to assemble a desktop computer and choose its individual parts. On the laptop side, the best option is in Framework laptops, though we must enter their sandbox to maintain some compatibility. However, the smartphone world has rejected any possibility of customizing specifications. While projects like Fairphone exist, their focus is on repairability. So how complicated is it to assemble a smartphone from scratch? Hugh Jeffreys decided to find out, buying parts for an iPhone 12 Mini on AliExpress:
An iPhone 12 Mini assembled with AliExpress parts
The first step is surviving the nightmare of navigating AliExpress’s interface, but in the end Hugh got good results, with a case that includes several pre-installed parts, duplicate screws, a motherboard with its camera, and an LCD screen (not OLED) with the earpiece unit repaired. Obviously, Hugh was forced to measure each screw (Apple loves to use multiple variants to make technicians’ lives difficult), and the struggle continued with some manufacturing details. As if that weren’t enough, the battery never arrived, and he had to acquire one through other means.
When turning on the smartphone for the first time, Hugh discovered that its language was in Chinese, and a serial number check confirmed that the hardware comes from Russia. Everything seemed to go well until here... but the real problems began when Apple refused to pair the parts. First it demanded an update to the latest compatible version of iOS for the phone (18.2), and then... said no anyway. The battery, camera, and screen are registered as «Unknown», affecting different functions (brightness, Face ID).
Finally, Hugh invested just over 353 Australian dollars (219 US dollars), when a ready-to-use iPhone 12 Mini costs 300 Australian dollars (185 US dollars) on eBay. In summary, it was more than an interesting project, and the smartphone turned out better than expected, but Apple’s whims and the final cost don’t justify the effort.
