Chapter 2. Understanding the iPhone
Although different models of the iPhone vary, the following core components are commonly found in Apple’s first-generation iPhones:
Capability | Equipment |
|---|---|
CPU | Samsung/ARM S5L8900B01 512 Mbit SRAM |
EDGE | Infineon PMB8876 S-Gold 2 EDGE Baseband Processor |
GSM | Infineon M1817A11 GSM RF Transceiver |
Disk | Samsung 65-nm 8/16 GB (K9MCG08U5M), 4 GB (K9HBG08U1M) MLC NAND Flash |
Amplifier | Skyworks SKY77340-13 Signal Amplifier |
Wireless | Marvell 90-nm 88W8686 |
I/O Controller | Broadcom BCM5973A |
Flash Memory | Intel PF38F1030W0YTQ2 (32 MB NOR + 16 MB SRAM) |
Audio Processor | Wolfson WM8758 |
Bluetooth | CSR BlueCore 4 |
Touchscreen | Philips LPC2221/02992 |
The iPhone runs a mobile build of Mac OS X 10.5 (Leopard), which has many similarities to its desktop counterpart. The primary differences include:
- ARM architecture
The iPhone uses the ARM (advanced RISC machine) processor architecture, originally developed by ARM Ltd. In contrast, a majority of desktop machines use the Intel x86 architecture.
- Hardware
Special hardware has been added to the iPhone to make it an effective and powerful mobile device. This includes various sensors, such as an accelerometer and proximity sensor, multi-touch capable screen to support gestures, and of course various radios including GSM, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth.
- User interface frameworks
Apple has built a custom set of user interfaces around the iPhone to accommodate the proprietary hardware sensors and the use of multi-touch. While the desktop version of Leopard contains frameworks for ...