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This is why Apple's new iPhone 6s and 6s Plus are noticeably heavier than their predecessors

By Victor Hristov

Updated: Sep 15, 2015, 3:54 AM

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This is why Apple's new iPhone 6s and 6s Plus are noticeably heavier than their predecessors

The Apple iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus are already up for pre-order, but as much as Apple has innovated with brand new features like the 3D Touch display, the new Apple A9 system chip and the new, 12-megapixel camera that is now capable of recording 4K video, it has somewhat surprisingly made these two new iPhones slightly thicker and noticeably heavier than last year's models.

The new iPhones are - atypically for Apple - thicker and heavier

That is a strange development for Apple, a company known to strive for sleek design with minimal thickness and airy weight. Obviously, this wasn't a choice that the company opted for voluntarily, there must be some component or components that brings significant innovation, enough to convince Apple in making its new phones heavier and thicker.

So which one is it?

The breakdown makes one thing abundantly clear: there is one component that is the overwhelming contributor to the added weight in the iPhone 6s, and that is the new display with 3D Touch. The new feature requires an additional layer of capacitive sensors integrated into the backlight of the display, and this extra layer contributes to the weight gain in the iPhone 6s: its screen weighs 29 g, more than twice as much as the 12 g weight of the screen on the iPhone 6.

The overall weight of the iPhone 6s stands at 143 g (5.04 oz), while the iPhone 6 tips the scales at 129 g (4.55 oz). This goes to show that while the display is the main contributor of weight, Apple has actually managed to offset its weight by using lighter circuit boards, less plastic and practically cut the weight of most other components.

The same goes for the 5.5-inch iPhone 6s Plus: its display is the single factor that contributes the most to the added weight of the device. The new iPhone 6s Plus 3D Touch display weighs 40 g, a huge gain over the 19 g of weight of the screen of the iPhone 6 Plus. Just as with the iPhone 6s, Apple offsets that fairly huge gain in weight by reducing the weight of components such as circuit boards and plastics.

The overall weight of the iPhone 6s Plus stands at 192 g (6.77 oz), considerably more than the 172 g (6.07 oz) weight of the iPhone 6 Plus.

source: Apple iPhone Environmental Report (iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus)

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Victor, a seasoned mobile technology expert, has spent over a decade at PhoneArena, exploring the depths of mobile photography and reviewing hundreds of smartphones across Android and iOS ecosystems. His passion for technology, coupled with his extensive knowledge of smartphone cameras and battery life, has positioned him as a leading voice in the mobile tech industry.