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Hardware

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

By Bill Detwiler January 10, 2011, 7:25 AM PST on Twitter billdetwiler

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Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Cracking open the Dell Inspiron Duo

Cracking open the Dell Inspiron Duo

In December 2010, Dell upped the ante in the tablet game with the Inspiron Duo. Unlike other convertible tablets, which have rotating screens, the Duo’s screen flips 180 degrees. It also has a touch-sensitive display which eliminates the need for a stylus. Follow along as we crack open the Duo and see the hardware hidden inside.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

AC adapter and cable

AC adapter and cable

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Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Top - Screen in standard position

Top - Screen in standard position

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Lid open

Lid open

With the lid open and the screen in the standard position, the Inspiron Duo looks like any other small notebook or netbook.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Flipping the screen

Flipping the screen

Gently pushing on the top of the screen you can flip it into tablet mode.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Top - Screen in tablet position

Top - Screen in tablet position

In the tablet position the screen is flipped to face outward and the lid is closed.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Audio-out/headphone connector and USB ports

Audio-out/headphone connector and USB ports

The audio-out/headphone jack and USB ports are hidden behind plastic covers.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Remove the label panel

Remove the label panel

The removable “label panel” hides the Windows product key sticker, SIM card slot, and three more case screws. You’ll need to remove these screws next.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Removing the keyboard

Removing the keyboard

After removing the six exposed case screws and those hidden under the label panel, you’ll need to remove the keyboard. Underneath it are the last for case screws and several ribbon cables that must also be disconnected before opening the case.

To remove the keyboard, gently pry up from the top using a thin metal blade or plastic spudger.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Keyboard ribbon cable

Keyboard ribbon cable

Take care when removing the keyboard. You’ll need to disconnect the keyboard’s ribbon cable before lifting it away from the Inspiron Duo.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Keyboard removed

Keyboard removed

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

keyboard - Back

keyboard - Back

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Top cover ribbon cables

Top cover ribbon cables

Three ribbon cables connect components mounted on the upper case panel to the mother board. You’ll need to disconnect these ribbon cables before continuing.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Removing the last case screws

Removing the last case screws

The last four case screws are located under the keyboard.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Popping loose the top half of the case

Popping loose the top half of the case

With all the case screws removed, you can pop loose the upper case panel with a thin plastic spudger. Start at one corner and work your way around the entire case.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Lifting the upper case panel off

Lifting the upper case panel off

As we lift up the upper case panel, we get our first look inside the Dell Inspiron Duo.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Upper case panel - Internal

Upper case panel - Internal

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Unknown PCBs

Unknown PCBs

I’m not sure what the two small PCBs on the underside of the upper case panel are. They are connected to the metal frame under the keyboard, so they could be sensors to determine when the keyboard is in place.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Touch pad - Internal

Touch pad - Internal

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Internal hardware

Internal hardware

With the upper case panel removed, we can see the key hardware inside the Inspiron Duo (battery, mothetboard, HDD, cooling fan, RAM, wireless card, and speakers.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Removing the batter

Removing the batter

Next we’ll remove the battery. First, we’ll disconnect the battery cable and then remove the three Phillips screws that hold the battery assembly to the case.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Removing the RAM

Removing the RAM

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Hynix 2GB DDR3 SDRAM

Hynix 2GB DDR3 SDRAM

Hynix 2GB DDR3 SDRAM

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Removing the hard drive bracket

Removing the hard drive bracket

The hard drive is held within a metal bracket, which is attached to the plastic case with Phillips screws.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Hard drive and bracket

Hard drive and bracket

Four Phillips screws hold the drive to the bracket.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Hitachi 320GB 7200RPM SATA hard drive

Hitachi 320GB 7200RPM SATA hard drive

Hitachi 320GB 7200RPM SATA hard drive

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Removing the wireless card

Removing the wireless card

The Inspiron Duo’s wireless card is held in place with a single Phillips screw. We’ll need to remove it and the two antenna wire connectors before lighting the card away from the motherboard.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

AzureWare AW-NB048H 802.11 b/g/n + BlueTooth card

AzureWare AW-NB048H 802.11 b/g/n + BlueTooth card

AzureWare AW-NB048H 802.11 b/g/n + BlueTooth card

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Disconnecting the display cables and lid hinges

Disconnecting the display cables and lid hinges

Next, we’ll remove the Inspiron Duo’s lid. Disconnect all the cables that connect the lid components to the motherboard. Then remove the Phillips screw holding each lid hinge to the case.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Lid and display removed

Lid and display removed

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

With lid removed

With lid removed

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Disconnecting the speaker, cooling fan, and AC power jack cables

Disconnecting the speaker, cooling fan, and AC power jack cables

Before removing the motherboard, you’ll need to disconnect the cables for the speakers and AC power connector. You might as well disconnect the cooling fan’s cable as well. We’ll remove the cooling fan and heatsink assembly in a few minutes.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Removing the motherboard screws

Removing the motherboard screws

Next, remove the remaining Phillips screws the hold the motherboard to the case.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Motherboard removed

Motherboard removed

With all the screws removed and cables disconnected, you can lift the motherboard away from the case.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Near empty case

Near empty case

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Speakers and AC power connector

Speakers and AC power connector

Only the speakers (bottom right) and AC power connector (top right) remain attached to the case.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Motherboard and cooling assembly - Top

Motherboard and cooling assembly - Top

We’ll need to remove the heatsink/cooling fan assembly and black stickers before we get a good look at the chips on the motherboard.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Motherboard and cooling assembly - Bottom

Motherboard and cooling assembly - Bottom

More black stickers cover chips on the underside of the motherboard.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Removing the heatsink and cooling fan assembly

Removing the heatsink and cooling fan assembly

Three screws hold the heatsink and cooling fan assembly to the motherboard.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Heatsink and cooling fan assembly removed

Heatsink and cooling fan assembly removed

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Heatsink and cooling fan assembly

Heatsink and cooling fan assembly

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Motherboard - Top

Motherboard - Top

With the heatsink/cooling fan assembly removed and stickers removed we get a better look at the Inspiron duo’s chips.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Samsung K4W1G1646E-HC12 graphics DRAM

Samsung K4W1G1646E-HC12 graphics DRAM

Samsung K4W1G1646E-HC12 graphics DRAM (1Gb 64Mx16)

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Braodcom BCM70015 - HD advanced media processor

Braodcom BCM70015 - HD advanced media processor

<>?a href=”http://www.broadcom.com/products/Consumer-Electronics/Netbook-and-Nettop-Solutions/BCM70015″Broadcom BCM70015 – Single-Chip High Definition Advanced Media Processor

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

On Semiconductor ADP3211A

On Semiconductor ADP3211A

On Semiconductor ADP3211: IMVP6.5, 7-Bit, Programmable, Single-Phase, Synchronous Buck Controller

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

4XGK HM55 043 MLT

4XGK HM55 043 MLT

Chip with markings 4XGK HM55 043 MLT

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Intel Atom N550 CPU

Intel Atom N550 CPU

Intel Atom Dual Core Processor N550 (1.5GHz, 512K L2 Cache)

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Motherboard - Bottom

Motherboard - Bottom

Now let’s look at the main chips on the underside of the motherboard.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Intel CG82NM10 southbridge chip

Intel CG82NM10 southbridge chip

The Dell Inspiron Duo uses the Intel NM10 Express chipset, which consists of an Atom N550 CPU and a southbridge chip (shown here). The Intel CG82NM10 southbridge chip handles support for things like the HDD and external ports.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

ENE Technology KB926QF E0 keyboard controller IC

ENE Technology KB926QF E0 keyboard controller IC

ENE Technology KB926QF E0 keyboard controller IC

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Realtek RTM890N-397 Clock Generator

Realtek RTM890N-397 Clock Generator

This chip is likely a Realtek RTM890N-397 Single-Chip Clock Generator for Intel Chipsets

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Macronix MX25L160 8E 16MB Serial Flash

Macronix MX25L160 8E 16MB Serial Flash

Macronix MX25L160 8E 16MB Serial Flash

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Intersil ISL6251 battery charger controller

Intersil ISL6251 battery charger controller

ISL6251 Low Cost Multi-Chemistry Battery Charger Controller

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Removing the display panel screws

Removing the display panel screws

Eight screws hold the cover to the display assembly (four on each side). You can access the screws by flipping the display perpendicular to the display housing.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Popping off the display panel

Popping off the display panel

With all eight screws removed, you can use a plastic spudger or thin metal blade to pop loose the display panel.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

Display panel removed

Display panel removed

With the panel removed, you can see the back of the display.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

EETI EXC7200 capacitive touch controller

EETI EXC7200 capacitive touch controller

EETI EXC7200 capacitive touch controller for the touchscreen

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

EETI EX5404

EETI EX5404

The EETI EX5404 works with the EETI EXC7200 to provide the Inspiron Duo’s touchscreen functionality.

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

Dell Inspiron Duo teardown

LG Display SW0633A LCD controller

LG Display SW0633A LCD controller

LG Display SW0633A LCD controller

Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

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By Bill Detwiler
Bill Detwiler is the Editor for Technical Content and Ecosystem at Celonis. He is the former Editor in Chief of TechRepublic and previous host of TechRepublic's Dynamic Developer podcast and Cracking Open, CNET and TechRepublic's popular online show.
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