The water tight seal is actually stuck to the glass underneath the display so the small gap you see is not a weak spot for water ingress. You can see this by looking at tare down videos. There is probably a gap on most either at the top or bottom some might be more noticeable than others but it’s also okay because if it was straight glass on metal if you drop the phone on the metal band it would shatter without any impact room. So the gap isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Probably more noticeable on the 13 models than the 12 because of the smaller notch and the fact that the speaker grill is now at the top edge.
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iPhone 13 Pro Max iPhone 13 Pro Max gap above earpiece…
- Thread starter WilliamG
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Yep. The waterproofing seal goes below the earpiece on the glass. This is totally normal.
I have the gap on my 12 Pro. Agreed that it’s more of a cosmetic issue since I didn’t have any other problems with my phone at all during my 11 months of ownership. The only downside is that lints would get in the gap and made it looked messy. The 13 Pro I got yesterday doesn’t have the gap.
I think it’s more of a slight QC issue as some have it and some don’t. My wife’s is very slight. Mine is more noticeable, and another couple I have here have no visible gap. As long as liquid can’t get in I’m not fussed.
Probably. Mine is actually not even a gap if you look at it under some normal room lighting. However, under the direct sunlight I can see through that frame edge.
"Le meglio è l'inimico del bene." -Italian proverb by Voltaire..... It roughly translates to: "Perfect is the enemy of that which is good." The gaps are normal enjoy your phone.
Hey, yall. I am just gonna leave this here from a very helpfull Reddit user.
The gap tolerance has to remain that way, that’s how they’re able to remove and replace your display if it gets cracked.
Also, glass/ceramic hybrid materials expand and contract with temperature fluctuations, so where the glass meets the chassis, it can’t be completely flush, otherwise the material will crack...much in the same way a skyscraper has to be able to sway in the wind...if it can’t, it will break.
Read more here:
The gap tolerance has to remain that way, that’s how they’re able to remove and replace your display if it gets cracked.
Also, glass/ceramic hybrid materials expand and contract with temperature fluctuations, so where the glass meets the chassis, it can’t be completely flush, otherwise the material will crack...much in the same way a skyscraper has to be able to sway in the wind...if it can’t, it will break.
Read more here:
I’m sure they all do at have one. Some may not be nit picky as others. Like the the post above. Im pretty sure the small gap is there for a reason.
Uh. Since I started this thread, I think I know what I’m talking about. 🤣
I hate MacRumours sometimes for people doing this kind of rediculous looking for a fault thats so tiny it needs enlarging to see thing. Basically I have this gap, I'm sure most will have a small gap its just harder to see on some phones, maybe a few dont but may have a gap elsewhere, for a small gap that I have to shine a torch at in a certain direction to see I dont think its an issue. My 11 Pro had a gap along the bottom you could slide piece of paper in on everyone I tried in the shop. Tolerances are never perfect on mass produced devices and they do need a gap to get your phone screen off, I'm not worried and I think Apple would think I'm barmy for looking at a phone so hard to even see that teeny tiny gap.
Just to show how hard it is to see I’ve had the phone for a week, now admittedly I haven’t gone over it with an electron microscope and yes there is a teeny tiny gap but if you take a picture in normal light without a torch shining with the power of four suns and without cropping and enlarging it, it looks perfect to me.
Also thinking about the new design of the phone, the earpiece is actually attached to the board with a rubber seal around it as is the camera, and the grass lifts up over it so the two prongs on the glass if went to the very top of the screen they could easily snap when the screen is lifted up hence why there’s probably a small gap, also I imagine that the tolerance of the little‘s speakers cover which is waterproof is remarkably tiny but does vary from phone to phone so like anything nothing is perfect but I’m pretty sure this is the way it’s meant to be.
Also thinking about the new design of the phone, the earpiece is actually attached to the board with a rubber seal around it as is the camera, and the grass lifts up over it so the two prongs on the glass if went to the very top of the screen they could easily snap when the screen is lifted up hence why there’s probably a small gap, also I imagine that the tolerance of the little‘s speakers cover which is waterproof is remarkably tiny but does vary from phone to phone so like anything nothing is perfect but I’m pretty sure this is the way it’s meant to be.
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Yes, there is a Gap on my iPhone 13 Pro Max earpiece and the metal frame up top. It is a tiny little gap, visible only at a certain angle. To all who are concerned about the water damage, my friends I don’t understand why Apple has kept the gap that way. BUT I have used my phone in the pool, washed it a number of times, rinsed it under the tap water. So through my experience, I can say that the gap doesn’t make any difference or it doesn’t compromise with water resistance as it is rated IP68 dust/water resistant. 😃I haven’t faced any problems as of yet. So feel free to take your iPhone 13 Pro Max in water. (👎Not sure about sea water👎)
Update:
I went to the apple store today to have a genius check out the gap… both he and apple support agreed that it was a defect in manufacturing and offered to replace it.
So I turned in my 1TB SB iPhone for a 512gb SB… it only took 5 hours (that’s a whole story!).. but I am happy since the replacement is PERFECT!!!!
I hit the Jackpot, 1 in 2 phone attempts!!
sooooooo if you dont give 2 ****s, then god bless you!!
BUT if you’re OCD like me , and the notch glares at you like the broad side of a barn, and are within your 14 day return window, don’t hesitate to try and replace it!!!
Now I can relax!!!
Old notch vs new notch:
I went to the apple store today to have a genius check out the gap… both he and apple support agreed that it was a defect in manufacturing and offered to replace it.
So I turned in my 1TB SB iPhone for a 512gb SB… it only took 5 hours (that’s a whole story!).. but I am happy since the replacement is PERFECT!!!!
I hit the Jackpot, 1 in 2 phone attempts!!
sooooooo if you dont give 2 ****s, then god bless you!!
BUT if you’re OCD like me , and the notch glares at you like the broad side of a barn, and are within your 14 day return window, don’t hesitate to try and replace it!!!
Now I can relax!!!
Old notch vs new notch:
Attachments
I DID go to the Apple Store with this and the Genius Bar guy couldn't see it. He said he didn't have replacements anyway and to call Apple Support which I did. Apple Support call couldn't accept my photos and asked for a "remote camera" view of the phone. Of course it doesn't show up on this. So my only options are to return and play the lottery or keep it and try to ignore it.
Guess I got lucky!!! it was kind of hard to see inside the store, so I showed the genius a pic I took outside, and then he was able to zero in on it… and offered to a) replace it or b) have me keep it since it was “minor” and he didnt have 1TB in stock at the moment, but he did acknowledge that it was a manufacturing error.
I still have a perfect graphite 256gb in my possession JUST in case, but I will be sending it back to apple.
I’d say return it, and play lotto!! The worst case is another gap, best case is it’s “normal”.
As I thought. However, if you shine a flashlight or look closely at a certain angle in the sunlight, you can see the metal piece above the speaker. It's a construction tolerance. Some units are more affected than others (0.1mm more could make the difference give how tiny the gap is), some units may also have the metal touch the glass and honestly I would be more scared about that, should the phone fall on the ground...
If you ask me, it's not a defect by any means, it's just how it is.
Accept it or exchange it until you find a unit that you can tolerate.
Personally I care more about the display uniformity.