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iPhone 4S Teardown: New Qualcomm MDM6610 Baseband Chip, 512 MB RAM Confirmed

Thursday October 13, 2011 8:49 am PDT by Eric Slivka

iFixit has already begun a high-quality teardown of the iPhone 4S, and while a considerable number of the internal parts have already been seen in leaked parts prior to the device's launch, a more thorough look at the individual components should provide some interesting details on the device.

The teardown is still just getting underway, with iFixit's technicians having opened up the device, examined the battery and pulled out the logic board, but we'll update this post with additional information as the teardown progresses.

Items of interest:

- The baseband chip is a previously-undisclosed Qualcomm MDM6610, an apparent variation of the MDM6600 used in the CDMA iPhone 4 and other devices. It is unclear at this time what differentiates the MDM6610 from the MDM6600.

- As noted by AnandTech, the part number found on the A5 chip in iFixit's teardown confirms earlier claims that the iPhone 4S carries 512 MB of RAM.

- iFixit confirms that the iPhone 4S uses the linear oscillating vibrator motor as found in the CDMA iPhone 4 rather than the rotational motor found in the GSM iPhone 4. As seen in earlier parts images, the entire internal layout of the iPhone 4S is much more like the CDMA iPhone 4 than the GSM iPhone 4, although Apple obviously had to tweak the chip layout somewhat to squeeze the micro-SIM slot onto the logic board. One exception is the display assembly mounting tabs, which follow the GSM iPhone 4's layout rather than the CDMA version's.

- Chipworks is following along with iFixit's teardown and providing a closer look at the chips discovered inside the iPhone 4S. Many of the chips had already been found in other devices, and Chipworks publishing die photos and other details on them as the information is gathered.
[ 106 comments ]


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HarryKeogh
93 months ago
My God. It's full of clouds.
Rating: 35 Votes
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*LTD*
93 months ago
I'm surprised Siri allowed them to undress her like that.

Whore.
Rating: 33 Votes
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emvath
93 months ago
Where is Siri? I don't see her.
Rating: 31 Votes
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HarryKeogh
93 months ago

Live coverage, really? lol Is this really necessary?


There's a three-hour pre-show on Fox.
Rating: 19 Votes
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Chupa Chupa
93 months ago

Apple stagnates development, Google ramps up. We'll see what happens.

Feels like the hardware team took a vacation while the iOS devs made Siri. Lame strategy.



That is absurd and unfounded.

1) The reality is iOS was a few more years advanced when Android was announced so Google had a lot of catch up to do. So maybe it appears Google is out engineering Apple b/c they push out updates faster, but it's only an illusion. iOS is still superior to Android even if Android had a few better features. Google also isn't that involved in actual hardware development. It's up to the hardware makers to tweak Android for many of the specs it employs in a given model.

2) Android hardware is very uneven because of its openness. Some phones can't even be upgraded at all to the latest and greatest -- even as Android proponents carp that Siri isn't included in iOS 5 for phones other than the 4S. Other phones are not compatible with many apps in the Android App store.

3) Hardware is only half of a phone. Their are plenty of beautiful Android phones, especially some of the early models, that frankly were not practical because the guts were so half-baked.

4) "Lame strategy" as you call it doesn't yield 1m pre-orders and who knows how many snaked lines at tomorrow's launch. If Android were significantly more attractive (in usability and design) -- even just one model, then it seems at least a good chunk of 4S buyers would have gone that route. I doubt all the 4S buyers are just upgrading from previous iPhones b/c the way subsidized phone upgrades are staggered.

5) Google via the Motorola purchase may catch and surpass Apple at some point in the near future but it's crass to say Apple is taking a nap or that it's resting on its laurels. Sales to a wide array of consumers just do not bear that sentiment out.
Rating: 12 Votes
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*LTD*
93 months ago


Apple stagnates development, Google ramps up. We'll see what happens.


Apple perfects the User Experience, others just throw more specs into boxes.

What will happen is predictable: blockbuster sales and top marks in consumer satisfaction. The usual. Why? See above.

Apple does a helluva lot more with less. Again, we go right back to User Experience rules. Rule #1: never license your OS to everyone and their dog. The only truly optimized experience comes from vertical integration, the kind that Apple practices.

That is why a comparatively under-specced iPhone performs vastly better than the competition.
Rating: 11 Votes
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Rootus
93 months ago

Excellent. Let's see the difference between the 4S and the 4! 512MB RAM? With a good OS, it isn't a problem.

It isn't the OS that concerns me. I want as much memory as possible so Safari doesn't have to reload tabs every time you switch.
Rating: 10 Votes
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Patriot24
93 months ago

512mb ram confirmed:(


Time to cancel all the pre-orders. I doubt it will even run with that amount of RAM. :rolleyes:
Rating: 10 Votes
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cult hero
93 months ago

I am sorry the only really change is the camera and processor(oh yea the antenna and faster 3G???).


Yeah, that's pretty rough. The processor (which dictates the speed both in terms of general purpose instructions as well as graphics), the camera (which people who don't read spec sheets care about), and the antenna (which I use, you know, whenever I place a phone call). Just what has Apple been doing? I wish they would have upgraded the RAM instead since that affects my experience way more than the processor, camera and antenna.

Incidentally, that "faster 3G" is a lot faster. That's been my experience anyway seeing as the MyTouch 4G is really just HSPA+.

No RAM upgrade. No way Siri needs the A5 and will not work on A4.


No way? Really? So you're a Siri dev who knows exactly what it requires then? Please, do tell.

I use Dragon Medical for dictation and Ram is hugely important. So if Siri runs on the A5 with 512 it will run on the A4 slightly slower I bet.


Dictation (long streams of voice being converted to text) is not the same as natural language commands (algorithmically trying to determine the MEANING of what is being said). Just because your voice is involved doesn't mean that it's all the same.

Jeez Apple really screwed us. Well I have lost interest in whether it shows up tomorrow.


Yeah. They have. Those crooks. They must have sent goons to your door to break your current phone so you'd have to buy a new phone. That's how it went down, right?

Wonder if I can just return it. Siri will be on the iPhone4 after they JB, I bet.


So let me get this straight: you haven't even used the new phone yet, but you know it won't be much of an improvement because of the RAM? You also clearly don't even understand what Siri is, but you know what hardware is and is not capable of running it.

You sir, because of your amazing insight, should take up sports gambling or something. You'll make a ton of cash.

I doubt there will be any really speed changes that will be noticable.


Benchmarks thus far indicate otherwise. But hey, don't let that get in the way of your whining.
Rating: 9 Votes
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mgsarch
93 months ago

Excellent. Let's see the difference between the 4S and the 4! 512MB RAM? With a good OS, it isn't a problem.


Was this submitted from your MacBook Wheel?

:rolleyes:
Rating: 8 Votes

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