29 Sept 2025
The latest hardware news highlights significant durability concerns for the iPhone 15 Pro/Pro Max, with reports of widespread scratching and camera fogging, alongside improvements in its repairability and cooling system. The tech industry also sees major shifts, including NVIDIA's strategic $5 billion investment in Intel and fierce competition in AI infrastructure from Huawei, challenging established players.
The iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max are highly prone to scratches, observed on both personal devices and Apple Store display units, especially on darker colors and around the MagSafe stand area, with deep scratches that cannot be polished out despite new ceramic shield technology.
Some iPhone 15 Pro units experienced internal camera module fogging, especially when the device heats up, which is attributed to component clustering at the top.
The iPhone 15 Pro successfully passed JerryRigEverything's bend test, indicating it does not break when bent by hand, despite earlier structural integrity concerns.
It is strongly recommended to immediately purchase a case and screen protector for the iPhone 15 Pro/Pro Max due to their durability issues, despite the devices' high cost.
A teardown of the iPhone 15 Pro revealed improved repairability due to reduced use of glue and screws, facilitated by the unibody aluminum design.
The iPhone 15 Pro incorporates a vapor chamber, a significant cooling solution, to manage the powerful A19 Pro chip's heat, addressing Apple's historical temperature management issues.
NVIDIA invested $5 billion in Intel, acquiring a 5% stake, which caused Intel's stock to surge by 30% on the announcement day. This is seen as a strategic move to support domestic chip production in the US, despite Intel's recent struggles, with NVIDIA continuing its Arc graphics card production.
AMD introduced the Radeon RX 7700 XT and 7800 XT graphics cards, featuring 16GB of VRAM. This move targets the mid-range market, addressing user dissatisfaction with NVIDIA's 8GB VRAM offerings and providing better value for gaming at resolutions beyond Full HD.
Huawei introduced SuperPOD Interconnect, an AI infrastructure similar to NVIDIA's NVLink, capable of connecting up to 15,000 graphics cards for artificial intelligence processing. This initiative is part of China's broader effort to compete with US tech companies in AI and chip production, with Huawei also developing its own AI GPUs.
MediaTek is set to release its flagship Dimensity 9500 chip, expected in high-end Chinese phones (Oppo, Vivo), featuring a tri-cluster CPU design and achieving an AnTuTu 11 score exceeding four million, with a strong focus on GPU performance.
Qualcomm is introducing the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chip, which follows a confusing naming convention where 'Gen 5' signifies it as the fifth generation within the 'Snapdragon 8 Elite' series.
The OnePlus 15 is expected to feature a 7000mAh battery, 120W wired and 50W wireless charging, and the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chip. Its design is criticized for being 'iPhone-style ugly,' and its five-year partnership with Hasselblad for camera technology is ending, reflecting a shift from its initial competitive pricing strategy.
Xiaomi is releasing the '14 Pro Max,' skipping the '14' model number. The phone will incorporate iPhone-like features, including a Dynamic Island and an internal display plateau, to directly compete with Apple, leveraging Chinese engineering strategies.
The 'orange' iPhone 15 Pro, particularly the Pro Max model, is described as visually unappealing in person. Its two-tone color effect and the transition between glass and aluminum are inconsistent and less appealing than in promotional images, making the device feel less premium.
A poll on iPhone camera advancements from 14 Pro to 17 Pro revealed user dissatisfaction with Apple's slow, incremental upgrades. While the 14 Pro started with a 48MP main camera and two 12MP cameras, the 17 Pro finally moved to 48MP for all three, years after competitors offered higher megapixel counts and advanced sensors.
Apple markets the iPhone 15 Pro as having '8x optical zoom' and 'seven pro lenses,' which is a marketing ploy; the actual optical zoom is 4x, with digital processing used to achieve 8x magnification, despite the acknowledged good quality of the 8x zoom from the 48MP sensor.
How much they deceive us, how simple-minded we really are.
| Insight | Detail |
|---|---|
| iPhone 15 Pro/Pro Max Durability | Highly prone to deep scratches and color fading, especially on dark models and around the MagSafe area. |
| iPhone 15 Pro Repairability & Cooling | Improved repairability (less glue/screws) and includes a vapor chamber to manage powerful A19 Pro chip heat. |
| Intel's Strategic Investment | NVIDIA invested $5 billion (5% stake) in Intel, boosting its stock by 30%, seen as a US domestic production support move. |
| AMD Mid-Range GPU Offerings | Introduced RX 7700 XT and 7800 XT with 16GB VRAM, addressing NVIDIA's VRAM limitations and offering better value. |
| Huawei's AI Infrastructure Rivalry | Launched SuperPOD Interconnect, an AI infrastructure capable of connecting 15,000 GPUs, directly competing with NVIDIA. |
| OnePlus 15 Design & Partnership End | Features 7000mAh battery, fast charging, but criticized for 'iPhone-style' design; five-year Hasselblad camera partnership ends. |
| Xiaomi 14 Pro Max Competitive Strategy | Skipping '14', adopting iPhone's Dynamic Island and internal display plateau to directly challenge Apple. |
| Apple's Camera Marketing Deception | Markets '8x optical zoom' as 'seven pro lenses' which is actually 4x optical zoom with digital enhancement. |
