Gallery: iPhone 4S Teardown Shows Siri's Guts
01iphone-4s-parts
You knew it'd be coming soon, and here it is: [iFixit's iPhone 4S teardown](http://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/iPhone-4S-Teardown/6610/1). All its glorious parts, laid out for your eyes to behold. Thanks to iFixit's director of technical communication Miroslav Djuric, we were given permission to repost their entire teardown, so here it is. Unsurprisingly, taking it apart is a similar process to disassembling the iPhone 4, but the 4S features an improved battery, the same vibrator motor as in the Verizon iPhone 4 and an upgraded chipset. Thanks Miroslav!
02the-box
The new iPhone 4S steps up to the grandest stage of them all, and iFixit is here to expose it. The tech specs: Apple's A5 System-on-a-Chip: 1 GHz Dual-Core Processor, 8 MP Rear-Facing (1080p Video Capture) and VGA Front-Facing Cameras, 802.11 b/g/n + Bluetooth 4.0 (oo-la-la!), LED Backlit IPS TFT LCD Retina Display with a resolution of 960 x 640 pixels and Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE + Dual-band CDMA/EV-DO Rev support (World-phone).
03the-phone
We finally have the much-anticipated iPhone 4S in our hands, and it sure is looking mighty fine! Sticking with last year's rectangular design, the 4S looks very much like the iPhone 4 and sports the same stainless steel bezels around its perimeter. Apple has supposedly fixed the antenna issue that emerged immediately following the release of the iPhone 4. Does this mean we won't be receiving a free case this year? Bummer! The SIM slot is back! Since the iPhone 4S is a world phone, it will support both GSM and CDMA networks. Regardless of your carrier, you can be sure that the micro-SIM slot will be there to accept your GSM micro-SIM cards, as well as any CDMA "roaming SIM."
04unscrewing
Pentalobe Screws, again? We were somewhat hoping there would be something new to keep us out this year, but it seems like our familiar friends have not moved far from their home at the bottom of the iPhone 4S. A couple quick turns with our 5-Point Pentalobe Screwdriver and out they come! It's like we've done this before. Sorry, Siri. Despite your self-destruction threat, we will not be deterred. Let's see what you're hiding.
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We continue to tread largely familiar waters as we remove the back cover, the same way we did with the iPhone 4, and reveal the battery along with a mess of padded EMI shields. "I must implore you not to go any further, iFixit. You do not have proper authorization," Siri firmly asserts. Unfortunately, we have to stop here since the tag says "Authorized Service Provider Only." Sike! That silly tag hasn't stopped us before, and today is no different.
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We finally get our first good look at the 4S's highly-acclaimed battery. Look closely... closer... there it is: an extra .05 WHrs in the battery over the iPhone 4! You probably want to know if you can use this battery in your iPhone 4. Sadly, it appears that the connectors are different shapes, so we'd have to say that it's not likely. The iPhone 4S boasts a continuous talk time of 8 hrs on 3G, up to 14 hrs on 2G (GSM network) and up to 200 hrs on standby. Comparing these times to those of the iPhone 4, the iPhone 4S offers an extra hour of talk time on the 3G network, the same amount of talk time on the 2G network, and 100 hours less standby time. Taking into account the upgrade in hardware that comes with the 4S, though, the power consumption seems rather efficient.
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With the help of our iPhone opening tool, we pop out the logic board. The iPhone 4S logic board bears a close resemblance to its stateside CDMA counterpart. Once those EMI shields are off, though, we'll have a better idea of where the similarities stop. Until then, what else can we do with an L-shaped block? "Please don't," Siri responds upon hearing our intentions. Apparently she can still talk with her battery removed. Could she be running on pixie dust, perhaps? Notice the white triangular sticker located on the right EMI shield? We did too... it's our dreaded enemy, the liquid indicator.
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We had to use our teeth, but we finally managed to rip the EMI shields off. The logic board now bares its soul: Apple A5 Dual-core Processor (more on this later), Qualcomm RTR8605 Multi-band/mode RF Transceiver, Skyworks 77464-20 Load-Insensitive Power Amplifier (LIPA®) module developed for WCDMA applications, Avago ACPM-7181 Power Amplifier, TriQuint TQM9M9030 Multi-Mode Quad-Band Power Amplifier Module and TriQuint TQM66052 (possibly a PA-Duplexer Module).
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How 'bout a close-up of that Apple A5 chip? 1 GHz Dual-core processor with 512 MB of DDR2 RAM... Yowza. How do we know it's 512 MB? Check out the marking, specifically E4E4, denoting two 2 Gb LPDDR2 die—for a total of 4 Gb—or 512 MB. Thanks, Anandtech! If Siri has an address, this is it. Though iCloud integration can be used with any iOS 5 device, Siri only works with the dual-core-equipped iPhone 4S. Come on out, Siri. We don't wanna hurt ya. We just wanna talk.
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Let's see what's on the other side. Siri, roll over... Thank you. Qualcomm MDM6610 chipset (an upgrade from the iPhone 4's MDM6600) and Apple 338S0973, which appears to be a power management IC, according to Chipworks. One more EMI shield comes off and we find another goody: Toshiba THGVX1G7D2GLA08 16 GB 24 nm MLC NAND flash memory.
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We find the same 960 x 640 pixel Retina display that debuted in the iPhone 4 last year. The hardware might not be new, but the iPhone's display is still impressive. Graphics performance is also likely to be improved with the A5 powering it. We noted that the Verizon and AT&T iPhone 4s' display assemblies had different mounting tab locations. While most of the 4S has resembled the CDMA iPhone 4, the display assembly appears to be the same as the one found in the GSM version. Crikey! We've provoked the flex ribbon cable connectors! Stand back! They seem to be guarding the markings C1113070A32DJGHT-A1MOXF... possibly the code for unlocking the pixie dust vault? What appears to be the ambient light sensor and status LED comes off the display assembly.
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Out comes the vibrator motor. It appears that Apple elected to go with the linear oscillating vibrator that we found in the Verizon iPhone 4 as opposed to the rotational electric motor with counterweight in the AT&T version. This vibrator motor is quieter, softer, and all-around less annoying than its counter-weighted predecessor.
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The iPhone 4S turns up the heat with its new 8 megapixel camera. Whether you want pictures of your friends, some awesome hot air balloons, a gardening workshop or a close up of a squirrel, the new iPhone 4S is ready to deliver. 8 MP is great and all, but as we all know, it's not just about the tools; it's about how you use them. The iPhone 4S knows how to use every last one of those pixels. Apple boasts 73% more light with "next-generation backside illumination" for better low-light performance. Want pictures fast? This camera is roughly 33% faster and can snap multiple photos less than a second apart. Still pictures not your thing? How about HD video at 1080p and 30 fps?
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A peek at the underside of the home button. Legend has it that if you press the home button from this side, your iPhone will actually be sent to the moon (we refrained from testing this theory). Again, notice the white and red liquid indicator strips.
