Broken iPhone

Broken iPhone

Apparent there is either a sensitive aspect to iPhone software, or an integrated kill mechanism. I have a friends iPhone that simply cannot be restored. There is an error 9 that cannot be avoided. I have placed the phone in DFU mode, which is apparently the ultimate restore mode, from which even the most damaged iPhone should be able to restore; but not in this case. I have tried restoring the phone from three different computer including a MAC. The error 9 is on all 3 computers. There are no other options, no other ways of doing a restore. I think a recurring error 9 means the phone is done for; dead, not recoverable. Maybe someone has an idea?