The most interesting -- though perhaps unsurprising -- discovery is that Apple has apparently reused cameras from prior products for both the front and rear cameras on the new iPad. The rear camera, pictured above, appears to be the same 5 megapixel CMOS Image Sensor that was used in the iPhone 4.
That unit was the Omnivision OV5650. The OV5650 is the second generation back illumination (BI) technology from OmniVision. This 5 Mp camera features 1.75 µm pixels, and is designed to deliver DSC quality in a mobile phone application. The sensor supports HD (1080p) video at 60 fps. Apple specifications for the new iPad also tout the same specification. So the analysis we have just completed… drum roll please... says that the 5 Mp back illuminated CMOS Image Sensor in the new iPad is the same, it is the Omnivision OV5650 (die mark OV290BF).
The front camera in the new iPad is the 0.3 megapixel Omnivision OV297AA unit seen previously in the iPad 2 and the old camera-equipped iPod Nano. Chipworks notes that this isn't the first time Apple has recycled parts into new products, and that the strategy keeps costs and technological risks low.
Chipworks has a few other notes from the teardown, as well, including the observation that Apple is dual-sourcing DRAM for the iPad 3. iFixit's unit utilized DRAM from Elpida, while Chipworks' unit has DRAM from Samsung.
Additionally, Samsung is the foundry for the A5X processor and Apple is again using the company's 45nm CMOS manufacturing process. The A5X's die is 36.5% larger than its predecessor, measuring 162.94 mm^2 versus 119.32mm^2 for the A5. Chipworks is continuing to examine the A5X and promises additional cross-section photos soon.
Monday December 16, 2024 8:55 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Apple released iOS 18.2 in the second week of December, bringing the second round of Apple Intelligence features to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models. This update brings several major advancements to Apple's AI integration, including completely new image generation tools and a range of Visual Intelligence-based enhancements. Apple has added a handful of new non-AI related feature controls as...
Wednesday December 18, 2024 11:39 am PST by Juli Clover
Apple is no longer planning to launch a hardware subscription service that would let customers "subscribe" to get a new iPhone each year, reports Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
Gurman first shared rumors about Apple's work on a hardware subscription service back in 2022, and at the time, he said that Apple wanted to develop a simple system that would allow customers to pay a monthly fee to gain...
Contrary to recent reports, the iPhone 17 Pro will not feature a horizontal camera layout, according to the leaker known as "Instant Digital."
In a new post on Weibo, the leaker said that a source has confirmed that while the appearance of the back of the iPhone 17 Pro has indeed changed, the layout of the three cameras is "still triangular," rather than the "horizontal bar spread on the...
Wednesday December 18, 2024 10:05 am PST by Juli Clover
Elevation Lab today announced the launch of TimeCapsule, an innovative and simple solution for increasing the battery life of Apple's AirTag.
Priced at $20, TimeCapsule is an AirTag enclosure that houses two AA batteries that offer 14x more battery capacity than the CR2032 battery that the AirTag runs on. It works by attaching the AirTag's upper housing to the built-in custom contact in the...
Tuesday December 17, 2024 9:02 am PST by Joe Rossignol
The current Apple TV 4K was released more than two years ago, so the streaming device is becoming due for a hardware upgrade soon. Fortunately, it was recently rumored that a new Apple TV will launch at some point next year.
Below, we recap rumors about the next-generation Apple TV.
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman last week reported that Apple has been working on its own combined Wi-Fi and...
Monday December 16, 2024 4:17 pm PST by Juli Clover
Blackmagic today announced that its URSA Cine Immersive camera is now available for pre-order, with deliveries set to start late in the first quarter of 2025. Blackmagic says that this is the world's first commercial camera system designed to capture 3D content for the Vision Pro.
The URSA Cine Immersive camera was first introduced in June, but it has not been available for purchase until...
Apple launched the controversial "trashcan" Mac Pro eleven years ago today, introducing one of its most criticized designs that persisted through a period of widespread discontentment with the Mac lineup.
The redesign took the Mac Pro in an entirely new direction, spearheaded by a polished aluminum cylindrical design that became unofficially dubbed the "trashcan" in the Mac community. All of ...
Sunday December 15, 2024 9:47 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple is planning a series of "major design" and "format changes" for iPhones over the next few years, according to The Wall Street Journal's Aaron Tilley and Yang Jie.
The paywalled report published today corroborated the widely-rumored "iPhone 17 Air" with an "ultrathin" design that is thinner than current iPhone models. The report did not mention a specific measurement, but previous...
The iPad 3 is shaping up to be a repeat of the iPhone 3G (read: only survives one iOS update before becoming slow enough to impair its usefulness).
I think that comparison is invalid. The biggest problem with iPhone 3G was its lack of RAM when iOS was upgraded, which isn't a problem with the new iPad as it now has 1G of RAM.
I predict next year the new iPad will be released with 1G of RAM and the same Retina display, and people will complain how that isn't a "true" upgrade because the display, LTE and the RAM have not changed, telling everyone how they'll wait for "iPad 5" which will be the "true hardware upgrade". Then the next year people will complain how the new iPad isn't a true upgrade and...well you get the point ;)
As I've alluded to in other threads, a 45nm A5X is a deal-killer for me :(. The "iPad 3" is essentially an underpowered version of the iPad 2 considering the display's high resolution and lack of CPU/GPU clock increases. The next iPad will benefit from a full node shrink to (presumably) 28nm on BOTH the CPU and the 4G baseband; likely in addition to new CPU (Cortex A15) and GPU architectures. The iPad 3 is shaping up to be a repeat of the iPhone 3G (read: only survives one iOS update before becoming slow enough to impair its usefulness).
This is in addition to the battery problems the iPad 3 is likely to experience: that 45nm A5X is BIG for a mobile SoC, and will be generating a lot of heat. Hot iPad innards = significantly diminished Li-Ion battery lifetime.
Looking forward to the "iPad 4"... Android's non-GPU accelerated UI just won't do it for me.
I fail to see how the GPU being doubled in its architecture is underpowered? The CPU means squat in this case. It is all based upon the GPU in this case. With 4 cores being able to process the display, then I don't get what the problem is. Yes the SoC uses a bigger form factor, but it doesn't seem to be generating outrageous amounts of heat. Definitely not enough to significantly diminish the battery.
