iPad Mini Teardown : Samsung Display, Stereo Speakers And Low Repairability Score
The iPad mini isn’t even officially on sale yet, but iFixit managed to get its hands on one to tear apart.
Like many of Apple’s other gadgets, the iPad mini isn’t very easy to open up and repair yourself. iFixit gives it a 2 out of 10 repairability rating.
A lot of the parts are familiar, coming from either the iPhone 5 or MacBook Air, and Samsung makes a somewhat surprising appearance as an LCD panel supplier, something some early reports suggested Samsung would not be involved in supplying this component for this device.
[quote]”Though the markings on the back of the LCD (display) don’t turn up much information, the Samsung display driver IC (chip) reveals that Apple, once again, went with Samsung in its display manufacturing,” iFixit said, detailing the teardown on its website.[/quote]
The iPad mini is the first Apple tablet to come with stereo speakers, likely owed to the space saved from the new Lightning port. This makes it more-than-likey the fifth generation iPad will sport a similar design. Judging from early reviews, the lack of physical speaker separation renders the addition largely superfluous — there’s no real dynamic range — but it’s still a welcome find.
Image Courtesy : iFixit
Unlike with the iPhone 5, the mini’s LCD and glass are not fused together into a single unit, so these parts can be replaced individually if needed. Also, the battery is also not soldered to the logic board here. Still, the battery and other parts like the front- and rear-facing cameras, front glass, and logic board are held together with “copious amounts of adhesive,” according to iFixit.
