iFixit has performed one of its extensive teardowns of the new iPhone 12 mini, and in the process has provided a good look at the components that make up the smaller form factor iPhone 12 model.
The highlights of the teardown include:
- A14 Bionic with fourth-generation Neural Engine
- 5.4 inch (2340 × 1080 pixels) Super Retina XDR OLED display with True Tone and HDR
- Dual 12 MP camera system with ultra-wide angle (ƒ/2.4) and wide angle (ƒ/1.6) cameras
- 64, 128, or 256 GB of storage
- 5G (sub-6 GHz and mmWave) connectivity, plus 4×4 MIMO LTE, 802.11ax Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.0, and ultra-wideband (UWB)
- MagSafe 12 W wireless charging
- IP68 rating, water-resistant to a depth of 6 meters for up to 30 minutes
The iPhone 12 mini teardown reveals the handset’s smaller 8.57 Wh battery. Although the battery is small, it is still larger than the one powering the larger iPhone SE 2020, which has a 6.96 Wh battery. However, as you might expect, it falls short of the 10.78 Wh battery found in the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro.
The teardown also reveals that while the iPhone 12 mini contains iPhone 12 components, it uses smaller versions of the components to save space. Smaller components include the Taptic Engine, speakers, and MagSafe ring.
The cameras in the mini are the same as are found in the iPhone 12, with the same ƒ/1.6 wide-angle and ƒ/2.4 ultra-wide-angle cameras found in the iPhone 12. The wide-angle module also features optical image stabilization.
While the layout of components on the device’s L-shaped logic board is quite similar to the iPhone 12, although Apple has done away with the plastic spacers found in the iPhone 12 due to the lack of space inside the camera shield. The mini also only has two displays cables instead of three, and iFixit also notes the handset’s “increased grille asymmetry,” which it says is likely because the device needs more space for the 5G antenna band.
Chips inside the iPhone 12 mini include:
- Apple APL1W01 A14 Bionic SoC, layered over Micron D9XMR 4 GB LPDDR4 SDRAM (same as the iPhone 12/12 Pro)
- 1UED, most likely a U1 ultra-wideband chip similar to the USI chip in other iPhones
- STMicroelectronics STWPA1-3033ABM wireless charging IC, possibly something similar to their STWBC-EP chip
- KIC M224 BE0408 TWNA 12031, 64 GB of Kioxia NAND flash memory
- Qualcomm SDR865 5G and LTE transceiver
- Qualcomm SDX55M 5G modem-RF system and SMR526 intermediate frequency IC
- Apple APL1094 power management IC
The iPhone 12 mini earns the same 6 out of 10 repairability score that the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro received. iFixit liked the modular and easy-to-replace nature of many of the components but disliked the device’s increased waterproofing that complicates repairs, the continued use of proprietary screws, and the breakability of the device’s glass on the front and back.
