Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Box

As of this writing, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 is available for $449.99 (US). The current versions only support Wi-Fi connectivity.

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: In the box

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic
Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Box contents

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9:

The Samsung Galaxy Tab 18.9 comes in both gray and white versions. It has a dual-core 1GHz processor, 1GB of LPDDR DRAM, a 8.9-inch touchscreen display (1280x800), a 2.0 MP front camera and 3.0 MP rear camera. The Galaxy Tab 8.9 comes with Android 3.1 Honeycomb installed.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic
Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9:

The Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 weighs just under one pound (447 grams) and measures 9.09" (W) x 6.21" (H) x 0.34" (D). It's the same thickness as the Apple iPad 2, but even lighter.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic
Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Speakers and connector port

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: 3.5mm headphon jack, volument buttons, and power button

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Back

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Popping off the back cover

The Galaxy Tab 8.9's back cover is held in place with plastic tabs. I used a thin metal blade to pry loose the cover, and a suction cup to apply slight upward pressure on the display assembly.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic
Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Removing the back cover

With the back cover detached from the front panel assembly, I lifted it off the Galaxy Tab 8.9.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic
Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Internal hardware

Like the Galaxy Tab 10.1, the 8.9 model has a very efficient internal hardware layout. A single large PCB contains most components and there are only two ribbon cables the run across the device.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic
Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Back cover

Unlike the Galaxy Tab 10.1, the 8.9's back cover is not held in place with heavy-duty adhesive.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic
Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Disconnecting the docking connector and touchscree cables

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Removing the docking connector/speaker assembly screws

Four screws hold the the docking connector/speaker assembly to the Galaxy Tab 8.9's internal frame.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic
Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Removing the docking connector/speaker assembly

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Docking connector/speaker assembly

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Removing the battery screws

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Removing the battery

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: 6,100 mAh Li-ion battery pack

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Disconnecting the remaining motherboard cables

Several ribbon cables connect various components (cameras, LCD, headphone jack, etc.) to the Galaxy Tab 8.9's motherboard. You'll need to disconnect these before removing the motherboard.

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Removing the motherboard screws

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Removing the motherboard

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Motherboard removed

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Display and touchscreen assembly

The Galaxy Tab 8.9's touchscreen panel and LCD are fused together into a single unit. Separating the two components is likely to damage one or the other.

You can however, remove sevral of the other components attached to the assembly.

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Removing the front-facing camera

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: 2MP front-facing camera

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Removing the headpohone jack bracket

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: 3.5 mm headphone jack, microphone and ambient light sensor

The 3.5mm headphone jack, microphone, and ambient light sensor are all connected. They are held in place with a pair of metal brackets and adhesive.

Although the brackets are easy to removed, the light sensor is firmly attached to the front glass panel. I feared prying it loose would damage the sensor, so I left the components in place.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic
Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Vibration motor

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: LCD connector

The small PCB connected to the Galaxy Tab 8.9's LCD is covered by the unit internal frame. There's no way to access the PCB without breaking the frame away from the front glass panel--an action that would likely damage the front panel assembly beyond repair.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic
Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Samsung LTN089AL03-802 LR LCD panel

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Mysterious empty spot

The Galaxy Tab 8.9 has a mysterious empty spot inside the case. Given the cavity's location and size, it's likely either for the future addition of a SIM card or microSD memory card reader.

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Motherboard and rear-facing camera

No that we've thorooughly examined the display/touchscreen assembly, let's turn our attention to the Galaxy Tab 8.9's motherboard. At this point, the rear-facing camera and EMI shields are still attached.

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Removing the rear-facing camera

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: 3MP rear-facing camera

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Removing the EMI shield screws

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Motherboard - Top

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Motherboard - Bottom

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: 1GB Samsung K4P8G304EB-AGC1 LPDDR2 DRAM

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Unknown chip 34LM85AM 1110

I'm not exactly sure what this chip (markings 34LM85AM 1110) is. As there isn't a clearly marked NVIDIA chip on the motherboard, it could be the 1.0 GHz dual-core NVIDIA Tegra 2 T250S application processor. The Tegra 2 processor could also be mounted under the Samsung RAM chip.

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Samsung CMC6230R LCD driver

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Silicone Image Sil9234BT HDMI interface

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Texas Instruments TPS658624 GPIO

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: 16GB Samsung KLMAG4FEJA-A002 moviNAND flash chip

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Broadcom BCM4330 802.11a/b/g/n MAC/Baseband/Radio with Integrated Bluetooth 4.0+HS and FM Transceiver (BCM4330XKFFBG)

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Broadcom BCM4751 Integrated Monolithic GPS Receiver (BCM4761IUB2G)

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9Invensense MPU-3050 three-axis gyroscope

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: KIONIX KXTF9-20293 tri-axis accelerometer

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Texas Instruments TPA8903CE Power Managment

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Fairchild Semiconductor FDMC 510P -20V P-Channel PowerTrench MOSFET (x3)

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Wolfson WM8994E audio codec

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Melfas MCS-8000 Series touch screen controller 8BK120-1123 (x2)

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: GT-P7310 motherboard markings

The Galaxy Tab 8.9's motherboard is stamped with the device's model number (GT-P7310).

Cracking Open the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9: Complete teardown

The Galaxy Tab 8.9 was relatively easy to crack open. As I expected, it has an extremely efficient internal hardware layout and is well-built. This Android tablet did provide a few surprises however. It either doesn't have a standard Nvidia Tegra 2 processor, like the Galaxy Tab 10.1, or the processor isn't mounted to the motherboard. And, it lacks a microSD card slot and HDMI output.

For a more complete analysis of the hardware inside the Galaxy Tab 8.9, check out my article, Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 teardown: Unmarked processor, replaceable battery.