14 DAY TRIAL // Today, South Korean mobile phone maker Samsung Electronics has started selling its latest flagship smartphone, namely the Galaxy S5, through various wireless carriers and retailers in over 120 countries out there.
The new mobile phone was made official in February during the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, and arrives on shelves with various appealing features, including dust- and water-resistance certification.
Before sales of the handset officially kicked off all around the world, however, the guys over at iFixit took their time to tear the phone to pieces, in order to have a closer look at the hardware inside it.
One thing that is certain, however, is the fact that they indeed had a lot to admire, starting with the 5.1-inch Super AMOLED display that can deliver a full HD resolution.
According to iFixit, however, those who are considering a teardown of their Galaxy S5 units will find out that this screen is what will make life a bit difficult for them when getting started.
They will need to remove the screen before being able to access the phone’s internals, and that will take a bit of patience and a lot of heat and careful prying, it seems.
Once this problem has been surmounted, however, the phone’s internal circuitry will start coming to light, such as the 2.5 GHz quad-core Snapdragon 801 processor that the device was announced with, and 2GB of RAM paired with it.
Moreover, the Samsung KLMAG2GEAC-B0 chip (16 GB on-board memory) becomes accessible too, along with Avago ACPM-7617 multi-mode, multi-band RF front end, the Wi-Fi module, SWEP GRG28 antenna switch module, Qualcomm WTR1625L RF transceiver, and other chips as well.
Samsung's 16MP 1/2.6” rear-facing camera can also be admired, with its fast auto-focus capabilities and support for recording videos in 4K resolution. Galaxy S5 also comes with a 2MP front camera, which will allow users to snap selfies and make video calls while on the go.
The phone’s sensors, Qualcomm WCD9320 audio codec, and other components can also be taken out of the main body and examined separately. There is also a smaller board inside the device, packing the charging port as well as cables for the bottom buttons.
According to iFixit, Galaxy S5 has received a repairability score of 5 out of 10, mainly due to the fact that one would need to remove the display first in other to replace anything inside it, other than the battery. You can also have a look at the video below to learn more on the teardown.
