iPhone 7 model A1778: Intel modem confirmed, 1,960 mAh battery, “incredibly thin” A10 Fusion chip

Following iFixit’s analysis of the components and internal layout changes in the 128GB iPhone 7 Plus model “A1778”, semiconductor experts over at Chipworks and TechInsights have now performed an in-depth analysis of the chips in the iPhone 7 to help identify the key integrated circuits at play.

The Apple-designed A10 Fusion chip is “incredibly thin,” Chipworks discovered, due to TSMC’s InFO packaging technique resulting in a thinner package. Perhaps more interesting than that, the AT&T and T-Mobile version of the iPhone 7 indeed has Intel’s modem inside versus that of Qualcomm powering cellular connectivity in other hardware versions of the device.

What this means is that because iPhone 7 models “A1778” and “A1784“ have Intel’s baseband modem inside which does not support CDMA networks, meaning their owners cannot use the handset on the Verizon and Sprint networks.

That’s in stark contrast to the iPhone 6s, which has a universal modem that supports most cellular networks. Qualcomm’s MDM9645M LTE Cat. 12 modem is present in other models of the device in place of the Intel chip.

Intel in the iPhone 7 A1778 supplied a pair of RF transceivers (SMARTI 5 series built on TSMC’S 28-nanometer process), the baseband modem itself and the power management circuitry (the X-PMU 736, part of Intel’s XMM 7360 platform).

“We see Intel’s baseband modem PMB9943 and suspect this is the rumored Intel XMM7360 modem,” says Chipworks. As for the battery, the 4.7-inch iPhone 7 that Chipworks pried open has a 1,960 mAh, 3.8 V (7.45 Wh) battery that gives it two additional hours of performance compared with the iPhone 6s battery rated at 1,810 mAh, 6.9 Wh.

In comparison, the exploding batteries in the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 are 15.4 Wh, twice the size, and the iPhone 7 Plus has a 2,900 mAh battery which lasts one hour longer than that in the iPhone 6s Plus and is a slight upgrade over the 2,750 mAh cell inside the iPhone 6s Plus and a step down from a 2,915 mAh (11.1 Wh) battery in the iPhone 6 Plus.

Supplier Murata is another notable absentee, being replaced by Skyworks for the diversity receive modules. “They do have the Wi-Fi win, though,” states Chipworks.

The TDK-EPC filter banks may still help Qualcomm get in on the iPhone 7 action. In the past we have found Silanna Semiconductors, now Qualcomm, in the TDK-EPC modules. Our labs will help confirm this soon.

A10 Fusion in X-ray vision.

The firms have also confirmed that Apple’s A10 Fusion chip (part number APL1W24) in their unit was built by TSMC, confirming rumors that the chip is being single sourced from TSMC. MegaChips (formerly SiTime) supplied one of their MEMS clock circuitries which are commonly used in wearable gadgets and some game controllers.

The A10 Fusion package has a die size is of about 125 square millimeter and is “incredibly thin”, giving credibility to the reports that TSMC’s InFO packaging technique is being used. Similar to the low-power mobile DRAM in the iPhone 6s, the iPhone 7 uses a package-on-package assembly which puts the A10 chip below 2GB of Samsung-built LPDDR4 RAM (the iPhone 7 Plus has 3 GB of RAM).

“Looking at the X-rays we see the four dies are not stacked, but are spread out across the package,” which helps keep the overall package height to a minimum. Assembled in a package-on-package assembly with the A10 InFO packaging technique reduces the total height of PoP significantly.

They also found 128 GB of NAND flash (a 16-die stack of 128-Gb parts) with EMI shielding, fabricated in 15-nanometer process technology. Both SK Hynix and Toshiba have been identified as the suppliers of NAND flash chips for the new iPhones.

A10 Fusion die shot.

Broadcom provided Broadcom-built GPS module which possibly contains Sensor Hub functionality that Broadcom says combines the GPS and sensors such as gyroscopes, barometers, accelerometers and others.

“Apple did announce the A10 has its own sensor hub, so if the BCM47734 does have a sensor hub it may not be utilized here in the iPhone 7,” cautions Chipworks.

There are also three audio amplifiers in the iPhone 7 (two in the iPhone 6s), two of which could drive each of the two speakers while the third could be for the headphone via the Lightning port.

On a somewhat related note, Tech Insights, Inc. and Chipwroks have now combined their respective businesses to become a global leader in advanced semiconductor technology intelligence.

Source: Chipworks

Source link: http://www.idownloadblog.com/2016/09/16/iphone-7-chipworks-analysis/