disassembly
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Apple is making it easier to recycle iPhones in the US
With Earth Day just around the corner, Apple announced it's quadrupling the number of locations US customers can send their iPhones for recycling. The company's recycling robot, Daisy, will now disassemble select iPhones returned to Best Buy stores in the US, KPN retailers in the Netherlands, as well as those recycled at any Apple Store or online through the Apple Trade In program.
iFixit tears down the new MacBook Pro's Retina display, finds a minor marvel of engineering
We've already seen them go to town on the body of the MacBook Pro with Retina display, but the staffers at iFixit have seen fit to disassemble the 2880 x 1800 panel at the heart of the new beast. As they've since found out, it takes no less than a rethink of LCD construction to make that kind of resolution work in a laptop screen that's thinner than its ancestor. The unibody aluminum casing acts as the frame for the display, and the LCD becomes its own front glass; even the wireless antennas are threaded through the hinges to eke out that last drop of space. Combined, Apple's part layouts do make repair near-impossible -- the teardown gurus at iFixit ended up cracking the glass despite their knowledge. The team is nonetheless a little more forgiving on the lack of repairability here than with the computer underneath, noting that something had to give for Apple to have its high-resolution cake and eat it too. That just won't be much of a consolation if your MacBook Pro faceplants and requires a whole LCD swap.
HP TouchPad torn asunder, no palms found hiding within
When we reviewed the HP TouchPad we found it to feel a little hollow, as if it were rather more cavernous inside than the immediate competition. Now we're getting to peek beneath the screen and, look at that, it's "built more like a PC than an iPad" according to the screwdriver-meisters at TechRepublic. This means you can easily take the thing apart with just a Phillips screwdriver (and a little prying) should you wish. Or, you know, you can just look at the pictures on the other end of the source link and keep yours in one piece. They tend to work better that way.
The under-appreciated hard drive gets torn apart and explained (video)
We don't know about you, but we generally don't give much thought to our hard drives or how they work. And that's a shame because, as you'll find out in the video after the break, they're veritable miracles of modern science. Bill Hammack, also known as Engineer Guy, takes us on a detailed tour of the inner workings of the ubiquitous hard disk drive -- from the Lorentz Force driven arm, to the head that floats a mere 10nm above the layered cobalt platters thanks to the wonders of aerodynamics. Maybe after this lesson in modern magnetic storage from Mr. Hammack you'll appreciate how much more there is to storing your collection of Mission of Burma b-sides than simply printing ones and zeros on a shiny, spinning thing.
HP Veer gets bricked, disassembled after checking 'Organ Donor' box
There's a saying 'round the webOS world... something to the effect of "it's impossible to brick a webOS device." Turns out, that's hardly the case these days -- the newfangled Touch to Share technology that's tucked into the latest round of HP devices is mighty fickle, and one Rob Whitby has somehow managed to turn his Veer 4G into a bantam paperweight. Rather than using it as a projectile with a mind to make his security deposit vanish, he did the only remaining intelligent thing to do: rip it open, while taking pleasure in refusing it an epidural. There's no video of the presumably gut-wrenching procedure, but there's a shockingly detailed account of the teardown linked below. Eye candy's just a click away, and yes, donations for a replacement are being accepted. The funeral date, however, remains undetermined.
Apple's 2011 iMac undergoes teardown, shows off fancy new upgrades
Yesterday, you saw the new 21.5-inch iMac fully specced out and up for sale on Apple's online store, and you were even treated to the sight of its 27-inch sibling pushing three displays and 11 megapixels of resolution. Today, you get to witness Apple's latest all-in-one computer fully disassembled. iFixit is doing the honors, as usual, and the investigation starts with the detachment of that familiar LG-produced IPS display and a Sony Optiarc optical drive, followed by the discovery of an Intel controller for the solitary Thunderbolt port on board (there are two on the larger model). Other notables include an AMD Radeon HD 6750M graphics chip and a 2.5GHz Intel Core i5 CPU, but you'll have to punch the source link to see them up close and personal.
BlackBerry PlayBook pried open, gyroscope and other goodies discovered
What's in a PlayBook? No, literally, what is in that thing? Well, most of the specs were known ahead of today's release, but there was a bit of confusion about whether RIM's 7-inch tablet did or didn't have a gyroscope, which has now been set straight (it does!) by the crew at iFixit. They did their usual study of what it'll take to repair your own PlayBook should the need ever arise, and gave it a repairability score of 7 out of 10. Replacing the front glass would be a bit of a pain to do, but then that's the case with most portable devices. The motherboard also got a thorough examination, with all the power management, wireless connectivity, and memory chips getting identified and recorded for posterity. If you want to check iFixit's work, feel free to visit UBM Tech Insights as well, who have their own component list and closeup photography of that dual-core TI OMAP4430 system-on-chip. Yes, closeup photography.
iCade hits FCC, gets torn asunder
The Ion iCade, our favorite April Fools' joke turned actual product, has just passed through the FCC and moved one step closer to retail reality. The arcade cabinet for your iPad had all its Bluetoothy bits laid bare and even brought along its user manual, in case you're the type who bothers to read those sordid things. There aren't too many surprises here except, perhaps, the inclusion of an Ikea-esque hex key -- some assembly required. With the green light from the feds, though, that means the iCade is right on schedule for its May 31st release. If you want to ensure you nab one of the first batch, you can pre-order it now for $99 from either GameStop or ThinkGeek. And, while you wait for the blissful marriage of Atari's Greatest Hits and Bluetooth joystick, you can peep the pics in the gallery after the break.
Dungeon Fighter Online Act VIII coming April 13th
The world of Arad is coming under fire beginning on April 13th as monsters from across the realm will unite to lay waste to various cities and towns in Dungeon Fighter Online's Act VIII: Under Siege update. Every Thursday and Saturday from 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. PDT, Dungeon Fighter Online players will need to team up to repel the hordes bent on wreaking havoc and destroying all in their path. DFO heroes will be handsomely rewarded for successfully driving off the beasties, while failure in the city defense initiative means that NPCs will deny trade and repair opportunities for a time. Additionally, Act VIII brings the ability for max-level players to choose professions (which in turn grants access to skills such as alchemy, enchanting, disassembly, and animation). Players will also be able to increase reputation and status via a new system that involves gifting NPCs with various items to build friendship and trust. Check out the DFO website for further details.
LCD technology torn down and explained in the most lucid and accessible terms yet (video)
Look, we know you know all about LED backlights, light diffusion, subpixels, and the things that turn them on, but not everybody does. The humble LCD you're most likely reading this on still retains a level of mystery about the nitty gritty details of how it works for the vast majority of its users, so here's a terrific video breakdown of both its component parts and method of operation. Bill Hammack, a self-appointed Engineer Guy, takes us from the LED arrays that provide the light for most current LCDs, through all the filters and diffusers designed to make that light uniform, and into the ways thin film transistors make it possible for us to show moving color images of cats diving into boxes on such displays. It's exciting, deeply nerdy stuff, and it awaits your audience after the break.
Motorola Atrix docks literally and figuratively torn apart, hack enables Webtop over HDMI port
Motorola's got a fine smartphone in the Atrix 4G, but a mildly unsatisfactory pair of modular docks. Good thing, then, that you can gain the most intriguing functionality they add without buying one! Fenny of xda-developers reportedly figured out a way to modify the phone's APK files to activate Webtop mode over a standard HDMI cable -- with no dock needed as a go-between -- allowing you to experience the Atrix's PC-like functionality when connected to any HDMI-ready computer monitor or TV. Of course, you'll need a rooted and deodexed phone to give it a try, but we hear those aren't monumentally difficult to come by. While Fenny's hack could potentially make the desktop dock obsolete -- assuming you've got a Bluetooth mouse and keyboard handy -- Motorola's LapDock is still something else. It's razor-thin, it doesn't require a separate monitor, and it charges your phone. So, before you write it off entirely, you might at least want to indulge your morbid curiosity about what's inside, and thus there's a complete teardown video after the break to show you what the guts look like. Enjoy! [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Motorola Xoom and Thunderbolt-equipped MacBook Pro get torn down
The Xoom's big attraction may be the ethereal Honeycomb that oozes within it, but it's still a gadget made of metal, silicon and plastic, so we're as keen as anyone to see what its insides look like. iFixit has dutifully performed the task of tearing one down to its constituent components and found an Atmel touchscreen controller capable of picking up 15 inputs at a time, a Qualcomm MDM6600 chip capable of 14.4Mbps HSPA+ speeds, some Toshiba NAND flash memory, and of course, NVIDIA's beloved Tegra 2 dual-core SOC. The conclusion reached was that the Xoom is relatively easy to repair, though you should be aware there are no less than 57 screws holding the thing together, so free up a nice long afternoon if you intend to disassemble one yourself. Aside from Moto's flagship tablet, iFixit has also gotten to grips with Apple's latest MacBook Pro, the one that can do Thunderbolt-fast transfers with as yet nonexistent peripherals, though discoveries there were predictably few and far between. The wireless card now has four antennas instead of three and there are some changes made to the cooling systems, but the real reason you'll want to see this is the quad-core Sandy Bridge CPU lurking within -- it's as big and imposing as the performance it promises to deliver.
Alleged Nintendo 3DS roams the wild, gets thoroughly dismantled
You had to expect that as the 3DS got closer to its global release, stray units would manage to break out of Nintendo's manufacturing fortress and dash out into the wild. We already saw one such escapee earlier this month and, if we're not terribly mistaken, that very same unit has now gone through the ritual of having its body disassembled for the sake of curious 3D gamers everywhere. There's little to thrill the superficial viewer -- we already knew about the 1300mAh battery, for example -- but maybe you'll care to scrutinize the silicon more closely. If so, the source link is your nearest and dearest friend. [Thanks, Adam]
Dell Streak 7 torn down on video, we still can't find the reason it's running Froyo
The Dell Streak 7 might, in many people's eyes, be seen as what the original Streak should have been -- a 4G-equipped tablet with a spicy dual-core filling and the dimensions of a legitimate handheld computer. Unfortunately, it's launching quite a bit later than its precursor and few will be happy to hear it's running Android version 2.2 (Froyo) when we've just been graced by the brilliant light of Android 3.0 (Honeycomb) on other machines launching within the same time frame. That said, it's still a gadget, it's got circuit boards and connectors and tiny, minuscule things, and it's been tenderly disassembled for you on video right after the break. Why not try to figure out what makes the screen look so bland?
Samsung Galaxy Tab undressed, reveals massive battery (video)
It's getting to be the norm when tearing down the latest piece of tech that the first thing to confront the inquiring disassembler is a big bad battery pack. The Galaxy Tab doesn't disappoint in that respect, with a chunky white slab of power storage dominating the majority of its subdermal real estate. There are also comparatively large speakers and other little curios to explore, but we're not going to spoil the show for you. Just head on past the break for the full video.
Nokia N8 teardown reveals easily replaceable battery, 'beefy' construction
Surprise, surprise. The iFixit team have cornered themselves a dark grey Nokia N8 and have proceeded to do the one thing that comes naturally to them: disassembled it. It's mostly good news all around with this teardown, which found the BL-4D battery cell was only two Torx screws away from being user-replaceable, while the overall N8 construction was praised as being the "beefiest" of any phone this year. There are plenty of bodacious highlights within, including the massive Xenon flash and the pair of camera modules -- which are regrettably not removable from the main board. The touchscreen controller in the N8 is the same as has previously been used on the Kin Two and BlackBerry Torch. Perhaps that's not the best pedigree in the world, but the (complete in one case, and relative in the other) lack of success of those phones was never really about the screen's responsiveness. Hit the source link for a full gallery of images and the complete deconstruction guide.
Apple TV teardown reveals 8GB flash storage, 256MB RAM, leftover iPad parts
"Of course the new Apple TV gets a teardown, silly," is what we would tell you should you have the audacity to question its inevitability. But alas, we're too busy analyzing every photo of iFixit's gallery to even dignify your raised eyebrow with an unprovoked response. The site gives it 8 out of 10 in its metric of repairability, opining it might be "the most eco-friendly set-top box of all time." With that said, here are the big takeaways we're seeing so far: 8GB of storage provided care of a Samsung K9LCG08U1M NAND Flash chip, and the same one found in the iPad. Speaking of which, there's also the exact same markings on its Apple A4 processor as the iPad and new iPod touch, K4X2G643GE (not the same as the iPhone 4, as it turns out), the exact same Broadcom BCM4329XKUBG 802.11n WiFi / Bluetooth / FM chip as the iPad, and at 256MB, the same amount of RAM. Also interesting and of note are the solder pads near the side of the logic board, which look to be a perfect fit for an Apple dock connector. At any rate, with all that's under the hood, we expect the jailbreak community to have an absolute field day.
iPod nano (2010) splayed open in the name of miniature science
What, you didn't think iFixit would stop at just disassembling the new iPod touch, did you? The all-new nano has also been sat atop the workbench, handed a bottle of hard liquor, and told to close its eyes and count to 120 million. The 6th-gen device weighs in at 67 percent of the volume of its precursor, with a slightly thicker body and that integrated clip on its back. Its 240- x 240-pixel display offers a 220ppi density, which, within Apple's ranks, is bettered only by the Retina Display on the fourth generation iPhone and iPod touch devices. Regrettably, just as with those two machines, the 2010 nano has its front glass, LCD and touchscreen assembly fused together. One handy bit of news here is the battery size, which at 105mAh is what you might call paltry, but still doubles up the 2010 shuffle's 51mAh. All in all, the conclusion from this dissection is that the new device feels more like a shuffle with a screen than a miniaturized nano, which, when you look at the form factor, makes all sorts of sense. More at the source.
iPod touch (2010) torn down, found to contain an awful lot of battery
As predictable as the sun rising somewhere over east Japan, the iFixit crew have put their tools and wits to the task of deconstructing the latest generation of iPod touch. Their teardown is still ongoing (exciting, isn't it?), but here are their observations so far. The new touch is noted as being the easiest to crack open yet, and yes, its retina-busting 640 x 960 LCD is fused to the external glass, just like the iPhone 4. There's an 11-gram EMI shield between the front end and the battery, accounting for a lofty 10 percent of the portable media player's weight. Beyond it, you'll find a chunky 3.44Whr Li-Pol cell, which is soldered to the board as is usual Apple practice, but a novelty here is that the headphone jack isn't. Great, tie down the thing we might want to replace and untether the one we don't care about. We'll keep you updated with any other salient info as it arises, but for now, go check out the source link for more pictures of the undressed iPod touch. The front-facing camera has been found, as expected, to be the exact same module as built into the iPhone 4. The WiFi antenna is located just under the front glass panel, a position said to have allowed for the new all-aluminum back on the iPod touch. Another shock: the A4 chip that drives the iPad and iPhone 4 is also found on the 2010 touch, and its markings confirm a 256MB RAM allowance.
Earthrise reveals complex crafting screenshot
While the information flow from the Earthrise beta is a bit slower than we'd like, the team at Masthead is occasionally letting tidbits slip out into the wilds of the internet. In addition to last month's interview with studio head Atanas Atanasov and lead writer Momchil Dilov, Masthead has posted a beta screenshot showing off the sci-fi MMORPG's robust crafting interface. As ever, details are sketchy, but a thorough look at the shot reveals what seems to be a fairly complicated crafting system, with information on three separate processes (disassembling, recycling, and manufacturing) and a fourth, engineering, barely viewable at the bottom left of the main window. The screenshot also shows four variants of the item being crafted, in this case a Fasetech Rifle Chassis. While we don't yet have many details as to how the system works, we can say that the shot whets our appetite for the kind of in-depth crafting system that seems to have deserted the MMO scene in recent years, and we'll be keeping a close eye on the Earthrise beta. %Gallery-48760%
