iSuppli: Battery, Display Are iPad 2 Weight Loss Secrets

March 16, 2011

Why the iPad 2 is 30% thinner than the original iPad

Apple reduced the thickness and weight of the iPad 2 compared to the iPad 1 by trimming the dimensions of several key components, most notably the battery, IHS iSuppli teardown analysis has revealed.

The total thickness of the iPad 2 is 8.8 millimeters, down 34 percent from 13.4 millimeters in the iPad 1. The iPad 2 weighs about 600 grams, down 15 percent from 700 grams for the iPad 1.

“Apple has particularly focused on thickness as a point of differentiation for the iPad 2. Other new tablets coming to market, all of which are about as thick as the iPad 1, now look fat in comparison to the iPad 2. This is likely to cause a scramble as competitors rush to slim down to match Apple,” said Kevin Keller, principal analyst for the IHS iSuppli Teardown Analysis Service.

iPad 2 battery: twice thinner than original iPad

The biggest reduction in thickness came in the iPad 2’s battery subsystem. This section in the iPad 2 is 2.5 millimeters thick, a 59 percent reduction from 6.1 millimeters for the iPad 1.

“The iPad 2 battery design represents a major shift from the iPad 1,” Keller said. “Apple moved from two thicker cells to three thinner ones, flattening out the entire battery structure. The new design also allowed Apple to eliminate an injection-molded plastic support frame from the battery subsystem, further cutting down its thickness.”

This refinement to the iPad design spurred a 10 to 15 percent increase in its iPad 2 power density, which is a measure of battery life relative to the mass of the battery. It shrinks the iPad 2’s weight by 5 grams, while still delivering the same battery lifetime.

Thinner, more durable, flexible display

Another factor contributing to the thinner form factor was the elimination of a stamped sheet metal frame from the display. This slashed the size of the display subsystem to 2.5 millimeters, down 17 percent from 3 millimeters for the iPad 1.

On the touch screen overlay, Apple has adopted a new glass technology that allows it to reduce the thickness of the section while maintaining durability. The touch screen overlay on the iPad 2 is 0.6 millimeters thick, down 25 percent from 0.8 millimeters for the iPad 1.

“The concurrent release of the iPad 2 and the new Dragontrail Glass technology from Asahi Glass Co. of Japan has led to speculation that Asahi may be the supplier of this durable new glass,” Keller said.

Physical tests conducted by IHS reveal that the iPad 2 glass is more flexible than the glass used in the iPad 1, a characteristic of increased durability.

The iPad 2 also slightly trims the space between the rear of the display and the top of the batteries. This space now amounts to 1.3 millimeters in size, down 19 percent from 1.6 millimeters in the iPad 1.

Source: IHS iSuppli.

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Antennagate: Jobs Fires iPhone 4 Hardware Chief

August 9, 2010

What do you do after your product gets leaked to the media months before it’s ready, and after it launches, you realize it’s the buggiest iPhone ever and in a desperate move, you post bogus videos of competiting phones?

Well… you just hope your boss is not Steve Jobs!

Joke aside, this is exactly what happened to Mark Papermaster who joined Apple under  20 months ago and “resigned” over the weekend from his position as Senior Vice President of Devices Hardware Engineering a.k.a. iPhone 4 Hardware Chief.

And this, after a long struggle for Apple to get Papermaster from the clutches of IBM where he had given a good 25 years.

The empty spot will be now taken over by Bob Mansfield, the SVP of the Mac hardware team. Mansfield was also actively involved with the architecture of the iPhone 4, which makes him, for Jobs, the best choice Papermaster.

Hey Steve! Now that you’ve fired the half-culprit of the iPhone 4 fiasco (the other one is you, remember?), don’t you think it’s time to replace the cute iBrick 4 and give us something we can actually use? Just a thought.

Techpulse 360

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[Video] Death Grip Is Unique To Apple iPhone 4, UK Tests confirms

August 2, 2010

So there you have it.

As most of us knew, but only a few (like TechPulse 360) were brave enough to speak out, Apple screwed up in its iPhone 4 antenna design. And pointing to similar problems at competitors phone revealed to be… well pointless!

To the point that Apple was forced over the weekend to erase all its flawed claims from its website after a report from PA Consulting Group confirmed that the “death grip” or “antennagate” is indeed unique to the iPhone 4.

“In the majority of the tests PA’s wireless technologists found the iPhone 4’s performance was in the same range as the other smartphones tested (Blackberry 9700, HTC HD2), but it was consistently at the lower end of that range. And, as found by other testers, when used in the “death grip”, the iPhone4’s performance was significantly worse than other smartphones,” writes the UK-based firm.

Now what?

Steve, recall the damn thing and fix it once and for all, instead of inventing flaws at other phones that don’t exist! And if it’s not too much asking, don’t forget to apologize to your customers and fans too!

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Analyst: Apple Must Fix iPhone Faulty Antenna Design

July 21, 2010

In a report published today, MobileTrax principal analyst Gerry Purdy calls Apple to fix the iPhone 4 faulty antenna design.

Apple will need to fix the faulty design of the iPhone antenna. I can assure you that the iPhone 5 won’t have that problem. It might have another problem, but it won’t continue the antenna problems in the iPhone 4. I’m confident that Apple engineering will ensure the future iPhone (and iPad) products will have antennas that work properly.

Apple’s faulty design has consumers wonder if they should buy Apple’s smartphone or not

It has been a real nightmare for Apple, certainly a cause for consternation with millions of iPhone customers, and perhaps a “Wait a minute, should I buy one of these?’ hesitation for a number of prospective iPhone buyers.

And the real winner of Apple’s “Antennagate” ? Antenna engineers!

Simply holding a device should not interfere in any significant way with the network signal reception. And Antennagate will cause other firms such as HTC, Motorola, RIM and Samsung to increase antenna design capabilities to ensure that they won’t have a repeat of the same problem as Apple experienced. It should be a ‘field day’ for antenna design consultants to help all SmartPhone manufacturers fix antenna problems.

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[Video] Apple Must Recall Flawed iPhone 4

July 16, 2010

When this  happened to Toyota a few months ago, it was forced to spend billions of dollars to recall and repair the flawed cars. In addition, the Japanese car company had to pay a fine to the U.S. for putting unsafe vehicles on the road. The same applies for drugs, food, etc.

So why shouldn’t Apple be forced to recall its iPhone 4 and fix the hardware flaw the once and for all instead of giving away cheap cases? Consumers around the world should not pay “full price” for a flaw product. Apple’s or anyone else’s.

Steve Jobs, did you miss the call for the iPhone 4 recall?

I call it shameful, very shameful especially the lame excuse by Mr. Perfect, Steve Jobs that “we aren’t perfect” when it comes to the iPhone 4 and its antenna problem.

Wasn’t Apple known for its flawlessness? Isn’t this what made Apple addicts stand out from the crowd and point fingers to  the imperfect designs and functions of competitors?

“Between AT&T and the antenna problem, this “phone” can do everything but a phone call. Plus I am a lefty. It’s unusable,” commented a user.

Apple CEO came on stage at a press conference the company held this morning in its Cupertino, Calif. headquarters to address the gnawing antenna issue: the imperfect human being and an imperfect design. Need we say anything?

Why would Apple act so immaturely? I am surprised they didn’t know about the issue before they launched the device at the WWDC 2010. Actually, according to a Bloomberg News report, Apple antenna chief engineer Ruben Caballero told Steve Jobs that the iPhone 4 design will hurt wireless connectivity.

To make things worse, users voiced almost immediately on the release of the device the connectivity issue. After initially falling into Jobs depth ears, Apple is now forced to come clean, pointing fingers to competitors flaws!

But this time, Steve Jobs trick to take attention off the iPhone 4 problem by pointing similar handling issues with other mobile devices – the BlackBerry, Omnia, HTC, etc – wouldn’t do.

“Antenna technology can be tricky, but as far as I know, it’s not something that has plagued smartphones in the way Steve Jobs characterized. He has a way of making Apple problems everyone’s problems when it suits them,” confided an industry insider.

I am not sure when was the last time he loved calling out names of devices other than those from Apple, but he sure has taken the names this time to justify the flaw in the iPhone. It might just be one call that is dropped in a 100 or so a user makes, but given the reputation Apple and its products enjoy, this is an absolutely crazy approach to cover up your flaws.

So how should I hold my iPhone 4? Or should I bluff about the issue stating that my gadget is competing more directly with other devices? Funny but I congratulate Apple on becoming apart of imperfection.

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