Design Article
Teardown: Apple iPad Mini
Allan Yogasingam
11/2/2012 5:10 PM EDT
Inside the iPad Mini
Within moments of UBM TechInsights receiving the device, the most noticeable quality of it was its thickness and weight. Weighing in at 0.68 pounds and with a relative thickness of 7.2 millimeters, the iPad Mini is the lightest and thinnest 7-ish inch tablet that we've had a chance to analyze. Another noticeable quality of the iPad Mini was the resolution of the 7.9-inch screen. The iPad Mini features a 1,024 x 768 pixel LCD panel—similar to that of the iPad and the iPad 2—that correlates to 163 dpi, a far cry from the clarity of the retina display (and the 264 dpi resolution) found in the newer generation iPhones and the iPad 3.
Featuring a top-to-bottom build reminiscent of other iPads, the deconstruction of the iPad Mini begins with the removal of the touchscreen glass that covers the LCD display. Once the metal housing plate of the display is removed, the main battery and main board of the iPad Mini becomes visible. The iPad's battery claims 10 hours of life and features specs such as 16.3 WHrs. Apple also claims it is its thinnest lithium-ion battery to date. However, size-wise, it closely resembles that of the iPad 3.
Once the main board is revealed, Apple's continued need to mark devices with their own Apple-branding (so as to hide design wins from analysis firms such as ourselves) is apparent. Noticeable socket wins are the memory components, the main processor and the some of the sensors. The main CPU is the 32-nm Apple A5 applications processor, manufactured by Samsung. This device was first seen as a single-core device in the third-generation Apple TV; however, a look at the die indicated two-cores. The dual-core version of the A5 at the 32-nm node was then incorporated into the iPad 2. Manufactured using a gate-first high-k/metal gate (HKMG) process, this version of the A5 has a die with an area of 69.7 mm2 and a die thickness of 110 μm.
Die photo of the Apple A5--32-nm version.
Next: Broadcom scores
Within moments of UBM TechInsights receiving the device, the most noticeable quality of it was its thickness and weight. Weighing in at 0.68 pounds and with a relative thickness of 7.2 millimeters, the iPad Mini is the lightest and thinnest 7-ish inch tablet that we've had a chance to analyze. Another noticeable quality of the iPad Mini was the resolution of the 7.9-inch screen. The iPad Mini features a 1,024 x 768 pixel LCD panel—similar to that of the iPad and the iPad 2—that correlates to 163 dpi, a far cry from the clarity of the retina display (and the 264 dpi resolution) found in the newer generation iPhones and the iPad 3.
Featuring a top-to-bottom build reminiscent of other iPads, the deconstruction of the iPad Mini begins with the removal of the touchscreen glass that covers the LCD display. Once the metal housing plate of the display is removed, the main battery and main board of the iPad Mini becomes visible. The iPad's battery claims 10 hours of life and features specs such as 16.3 WHrs. Apple also claims it is its thinnest lithium-ion battery to date. However, size-wise, it closely resembles that of the iPad 3.
Once the main board is revealed, Apple's continued need to mark devices with their own Apple-branding (so as to hide design wins from analysis firms such as ourselves) is apparent. Noticeable socket wins are the memory components, the main processor and the some of the sensors. The main CPU is the 32-nm Apple A5 applications processor, manufactured by Samsung. This device was first seen as a single-core device in the third-generation Apple TV; however, a look at the die indicated two-cores. The dual-core version of the A5 at the 32-nm node was then incorporated into the iPad 2. Manufactured using a gate-first high-k/metal gate (HKMG) process, this version of the A5 has a die with an area of 69.7 mm2 and a die thickness of 110 μm.
Die photo of the Apple A5--32-nm version.
Next: Broadcom scores
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kjdsfkjdshfkdshfvc
11/3/2012 4:06 PM EDT
The iPad Mini is simply terrible. Anyone that buys one is just giving Apple a few bucks before their demise. Take your money and buy 2 better tablets with Android.
http://bit.ly/IC4m9t
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Frank Eory
11/4/2012 11:47 AM EST
With sales of somewhere between 1 and 1.5 million units on opening weekend, it's not the smashing success of the iPad 3, but how many electronics products achieve these kinds of numbers in the first 48 hours after launch?
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mr88cet
11/5/2012 11:13 AM EST
From what I saw of it over the weekend, the iPad Mini would be quite tempting IFF it had a retina display and considerably faster processor, for not a not-much-higher price.
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Brutus_II
11/5/2012 11:23 AM EST
I was all charged up about the mini and was about to pull the trigger and order one up, but the price of the version I need (most expensive one, of course) kept my finger off the Buy button and turned my excitement into dismay.
Missing from the article is a BOM analysis (too early to tell, I know, especially with the Apple brand hiding the true identities of the winners). Would be interesting to see what kind of margin estimates there is on the mini. With all the competition in the 7 inch tablet arena, I doubt Apple can maintain margins of the larger versions. That's why it has not been a smashing success and probably will not ever be.
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chanj
11/5/2012 12:10 PM EST
I am not so sure how well 7" tablet sell in the US market. It seems to me Americans are looking for laptop replacement that 10" tablet suits the demand. On the other hands, Asian markets are looking for portability and 1 for all device. 7" seems to be a better choice. I am very interested in learn your preference and the reason.
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Brian Fuller2
11/5/2012 5:08 PM EST
I'd be interested in seeing a usage study on tablets based on size (per @chanj's comments).
Right now I use a laptop (for industrial-strength work), an iPad for much but not all of that work PLUS as a reading platform and an iPhone for phone and information/gps functions.
Each has its strengths; each its drawbacks. I frankly don't want to lug around all three, but I know that some people do. On the other hand, it's hard for me to envision a single device that does everything I want/need.
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clematis
11/5/2012 8:52 PM EST
I have the smallest Kindle which weighs 6 oz. I LOVE the size and portability - great for reading, but terrible at surfing. Thus I was waiting for the IPAD mini. But it's disappointing for 3 reasons, price, mediocre resolution, and its too heavy. Maybe in a couple of years someone will make I tablet for me - 7", 6 oz, HIRES, fair price.
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Peter.Hansen
11/6/2012 11:48 AM EST
I have a MacBook Air, iPad (3rd Generation), and now an iPad Mini. While their functions overlap, each has specific jobs to do for me. I'd like to get down to two devices for travel, but while I'm sorting this out, the three together weigh significantly less than the Dell notebook my company issues. As an extra bonus, each is a whole lot more pleasurable to use.....
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sranje
11/6/2012 1:39 PM EST
Hi Allan,
iPad Mini looks like a beautiful product and just the right size - thank you for the analysis.
One item is missing, however. A phone modem (BB) is offered as an option. Who is the supplier for the phone BB and transceiver ICs? Is it Qualcomm - or somebody else - like Intel or ST-E?
Many thanks in advance
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Saturation
11/8/2012 6:53 AM EST
I found my iPad Mini, the Google Nexus 7.
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agk
11/9/2012 5:13 AM EST
It is interesting to see the slides.The main board is so small when compared with the battery and the display. About 5 slides could have been combined into two slides.
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James Walker
3/10/2013 2:55 PM EDT
By combining the vast library of online titles at its disposal, Amazon would be able to match the current industry leader, Apple, in the one area that Apple had a significant advantage over their other competitors—content. http://www.augustaranch-azsearchforhomes.com/
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James Walker
3/10/2013 2:57 PM EDT
Manufactured using a gate-first high-k/metal gate (HKMG) process, this version of the A5 has a die with an area of 69.7 mm2 and a die thickness of 110 μm http://www.peoria-azsearchforhomes.com/
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selinz
3/13/2013 1:50 PM EDT
With everyone having a smart phone that's 5 inches (or almost), it's a little redundant to have a tablet too, IMHO. In the case of Apple, the phones are so small that a 7 incher might make sense...
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IDontUseTheForumSoWhyAmIForcedToMakeANickname
4/11/2013 2:15 PM EDT
It still baffles my mind that all tablet makers still limit cellular usage to data only. To me, it only makes sense that you could use a bluetooth headset for phone functions and have one truly useful device instead of lugging around multiple products.
Alas, businesses seemed to be more focused on maintaining a quarterly revenue stream than providing products that make sense.
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ssharmin
5/1/2013 1:13 PM EDT
I am not so sure how well 7" tablet sell in the US market. It seems to me Americans are looking for laptop replacement that 10" tablet suits the demand. I have a friend working at http://www.123move.org who has got a Samsung note 2.
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