crwdns2933803:06crwdne2933803:0
crwdns2933797:0Jeff Suovanencrwdnd2933797:0crwdne2933797:0
crwdns2936043:0crwdne2936043:0 crwdns2933505:0crwdne2933505:0 Jeff Suovanen
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| [* black] Like most brains, the grey matter in this Series 6 is pretty inscrutable: it's encased in hardened resin, as per usual, making further exploration extremely difficult. | |
| + | [* icon_reminder] ***Update***: Unless you have an X-ray machine, that is! [https://d3nevzfk7ii3be.cloudfront.net/igi/1fUBUyR1aTV4WO5n.full|Here's an inside look at the S6 package|new_window=true]. If you're wondering what all the tiny shapes are, check out the [guide|41323|original Apple Watch X-ray teardown|stepid=95346] for an explainer. |
| [* black] There ''are'' a few more conventional ICs piggybacked onto the package, and we can at least spot a Skyworks chip marked 239-7. The other chips are more mysterious, and none is an exact match for the U1 chip we found in last year's iPhones. | |
| [* icon_note] It was probably too much to ask for a labeled U1 package, but there ''has'' been [https://www.ifixit.com/News/33257/inside-the-tech-in-apples-ultra-wideband-u1-chip|more obvious printing in the past|new_window=true]. | |
| [* black] Sans-brains, we can see the Series 6 frame has a slightly modified footprint with a narrower lip for the adhesive gasket, which is now carefully routed around the band mechanism. | |
| [* icon_reminder] The modified case and lack of Force Touch gasket probably accounts for the fact that this year's model is a hair thinner, with overall thickness at 10.4 mm (down from 10.74 mm last year). | |
| [* black] Apple somehow packed more battery ''and'' more Taptic Engine into a (barely) smaller design. Impressive! |