Electronics Manufacturing – M528

Introduction

The iPod and iPod Nano have almost become staple goods among the youth, and adult, cultures of the world. It is a portable digital music player that can support several file types; MP3, AAC/M4A, Protected AAC, AIFF, WAV, Audible audiobook, and Apple Lossless audio file formats. Released by Apple, the first model of the iPod was announced in October 2001, with the first generation of the iPod coming to market by Christmas of the same year (Wikipedia, n.d., iPod) . Since the first generation of the original iPod, Apple have released several other models of the iPod, they are currently at the 5th Generation iPod, with the iPod Nano and iPod shuffle also released world wide.

A little history

When developing the first generation model of the iPod, Apple had to make the decision on how to store the data on the device, with the two options being a Hard Disk Drive, or a Flash memory module. The advantages of a hard drive are that it offers superior capacity to a flash memory module, but the size and cost are not comparable to that of flash, the opposite is true for the flash memory module. Toshiba America Information Systems had been researching into making a hard disk drive smaller, and had pioneered a hard disk technology, offering a 1.8 inch hard disk (actual dimensions with protective casing just shy of 2 x 3 inches) weighing in at 2oz, and capable of storing up to 5Gb of data. They offered this technology to Apple, and it was used in the first generation iPod. The technology for the microprocessors that Apple use in their iPod models, started out with 2 ARM cores that were designed and produced by PortalPlayer. To help design the user interface (and implement it) Apple CEO Steve Jobs supervised while they contracted design company Pixo. When Pixo had came up with a suitable idea, Apple tweaked the interface until it suited their needs. (Wikipedia, n.d., iPod)

(Technology Review, 2005, Inside the iPod Nano)

What goes inside?

There are five main categories of components and chips that go inside the iPods and iPod Nanos, these are the Microcontroller (the hub of the goings on inside the device), the Audio chip (Codecs and decoding algorithm's for the digital music), the Storage Medium (where your precious music is kept), the Batteries (the things that make it go!) and the LCD display (the bit that lets you see what you're doing).

Microcontroller

• The first, second and third generation iPods all use two ARM 7TDMI-derived CPUs running at 90 MHz. An ARM is an Advanced RISC (Reduced instruction set computer) Machine, they offer a specific instruction set, providing required functionality to the user, whilst also offering a significant amount of power saving, making them ideal for use in mobile digital electronics.

• The fourth and fifth generation iPods, iPod Mini and iPod Nano first generation, all use Variable-speed ARM 7TDMI CPUs, running at a peak of 80 MHz to save battery life even further than their predecessors.

• The second generation iPod Nano uses a new derivation of the ARM 7TDMI from Samsung, the Samsung System-On-Chip (SoC) replaces the previous semi-custom PP5021 SoC from PortalPlayer Inc.

• The first generation iPod shuffle uses a SigmaTel STMP3550 chip that handles both the music decoding and the audio circuitry, which removes the need for the next task specific chip to be analysed (Wikipedia, n.d., iPod).

Audio Chip

• All models of the iPod (with the exception of the first generation shuffle) use audio codec chips manufactured by Wolfson Microelectronics. The Wolfson audio codec used in the newer models of iPods, the WM8750S, is a custom, smaller-packaged version of the company’s standard WM8975G which was used in the first-generation iPod nano (Wikipedia, n.d., iPod). A block diagram of the codec is shown to the right:(Wolfson Microelectronics Plc., n.d., WM8750 CODEC with speaker driver)

Storage Medium

• The iPod first to fifth generation all use the 1.8 inch hard drives (ATA, 4200 rpm with proprietary connectors) made by Toshiba, which have gotten progressively larger in size, at the same physical dimensions.

• The iPod mini uses 1 inch Microdrives manufactured by Hitachi and Seagate, still based around the Hard Disk Drive technology, just at a smaller physical size, reducing the maximum capacity of the drive.

• The iPod nano (All generations) uses Flash memory sourced from Samsung, Toshiba, and others. Apple reportedly struck a deal with Samsung meaning that 40% of their flash production was carried out at a significant discount. Meanwhile, the same 2GB flash would cost another manufacturer $90 (iSuppli, 2006, Apple Delivers More For Less With New iPod Nano). This is why Apple uses Samsung for its 2GB flash drives, and Toshiba for its 4GB ones.

• The iPod shuffle also uses flash memory, sourced from the above manufacturers. (Wikipedia, n.d., iPod)

Batteries

• The iPod first and second generation, iPod nano and iPod shuffle all use Internal lithium polymer (Li-Poly) batteries (Wikipedia, n.d., iPod). Lithium polymer batteries are rechargeable batteries which have technologically evolved from their father technology lithium ion batteries. Unlike the Lithium Ion design the lithium salt electrolyte is not held in an organic solvent, but in a solid polymer composite such as polyacrylonitrile (a resinous, fibrous, or rubbery organic polymer). There are many advantages of this design over the classic lithium ion design, including the fact that the solid polymer electrolyte is not flammable (unlike the organic solvent that the Li-Ion cell uses). Lithium ion polymer batteries started appearing in consumer electronics around 1996 (Wikipedia, n.d., Lithium ion polymer battery).

• The iPod third to fifth generation use Internal lithium-ion batteries (Wikipedia, n.d., iPod). Lithium-ion batteries (sometimes abbreviated Li-ion batteries) are a type of rechargeable battery commonly used in consumer electronics. They are currently one of the most popular types of battery for portable electronics, with one of the best energy-to-weight ratios, no memory effect and a slow loss of charge when not in use. They can be dangerous if mistreated, however, and unless care is taken their lifespan may be reduced. It is a less advanced version of the Li-Poly that is used in the iPod first and second generation models (Wikipedia, n.d., Lithium ion battery).

LCD Screen

• The iPod 1st to 4th generation and iPod Mini first and second generation all used a Renesas HD66753 LCD controller/driver. This is a controller that provides a greyscale display on a greyscale LCD panel.

• The iPod photo (5th generation) and Nano all use Renesas's HD66789R, which supports a 176- by 240-pixel display and 260,000 colors.

• The iPod Video uses a display driver/controller and panel from Toshiba, a 16-bit colour, 2.5 inch :CD Display (Model number unspecified). (CommsDesign.com, 2006, Find out what's really inside the iPod)

Overview

As you can see, Apple actually produce a minuscule amount of what actually goes inside their iPod range, they get the components from a large range of suppliers, even using different suppliers for the same part, in a different model. After striking a deal with Sasmsung, they have managed to secure a massive advantage in their market, meaning that they can purchase their memory modules for the 2GB model of the Nano from Samsung , for $54 rather than the rate Samsung charge to their other customers of $90 (iSuppli, 2006, Apple Delivers More For Less With New iPod Nano). This allows Apple to increase their profit margins even more, and as iSuppli.com discovered, the iPod Nano costs roughly $90.18 in materials, and $8 to assemble, this model retails for around $150-$170 meaning that the profit margin on the 2GB model (before marketing and distribution costs) is in the general area of 50%, a staggering amount by all stretches of imagination (iSuppli, 2006, Apple Delivers More For Less With New iPod Nano). Also, an iSuppli.com teardown services manager found that “Due to design changes and component price declines, iSuppli estimates that Apple has reduced the Bill-Of-Materials (BOM) cost for the new $199 retail-priced 4Gbyte nano to $72.24, less than the $89.97 that was estimated for a first-generation 2Gbyte nano upon release,” (Andrew Rassweiler, teardown services manager and senior analyst for iSuppli, 2006, Apple Delivers More For Less With New iPod Nano). I believe that this is how Apple have managed to maintain market leadership, as it has allowed them to reinvest money into innovations and given them the ability to drive the price down, making the iPod appear more attractive to the consumers they are targeting.

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References:

• Apple Insider, (2005), A look inside the iPod nano and Apple's margins. Retrieved on March 29th 2007, from http://www.appleinsider.com/article.php?id=1283
• EETimes, (2006), Mystery chips, no Portal Player, in iPod nano. Retrieved on March 28th 2007, from http://www.eetimes.com/news/semi/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=193000601
• Wikipedia, (n.d.), iPod. Retrieved on March 28th 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IPod
• Wikipedia, (n.d.), ARM architecture. Retrieved on March 28th 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ARM_architecture.
• ARM, (1995), ARM 7TDMI Data Sheet. Retrieved on March 28th 2007, from http://www.eecs.umich.edu/~panalyzer/pdfs/ARM_doc.pdf
• iSuppli, (2006), Apple Delivers More For Less With New iPod Nano. Retrieved on March 29th 2006, from http://www.isuppli.com/marketwatch/default.asp?id=360
• Wolfson Microelectronics Plc., (n.d.), WM8750 CODEC with speaker driver. Retrieved on March 28th 2006, from http://www.wolfsonmicro.com/products/WM8750/
• EETimes, (2005), iPod upsets NAND flash Applecart. Retrieved on March 29th 2006, from http://www.eetimes.com/news/semi/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=169400638
• Wikipedia, (n.d.), Lithium ion polymer battery. Retrieved on March 29th 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithium_polymer
• Wikipedia, (n.d.), Polyacrylonitrile. Retrieved on March 29th 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyacrylonitrile
• Wikipedia, (n.d.), Lithium ion battery. Retrieved on March 29th 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithium-ion_battery
• CommsDesign.com, (2006), Find out what's really inside the iPod. Retrieved on March 29th 2007, from http://www.commsdesign.com/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=177105035
• Technology Review, (2005), Inside the iPod Nano. Retrieved on March 29th 2007, from http://www.technologyreview.com/InfoTech-Hardware/wtr_16058,294,p1.html
• NonstopMac.com, (2006), Computerworld: Apple's new iPods are better than ever. Retrieved on March 29th 2007, from http://www.nonstopmac.com/ipod/
• Andrew Rassweiler, teardown services manager and senior analyst for iSuppli, (2006), Apple Delivers More For Less With New iPod Nano. Retrieved on March 29th 2007, from http://www.isuppli.com/marketwatch/default.asp?id=360