Hi,
I am wondering whether the Galaxy S4 (I9500, specifically) can be used as a development board.
By this I mean something like the Raspberry Pi, BeagleBone, etc.
The I9500 already has powerfull CPU, 2G RAM and lots of ROM. What is missing (if at all) is:
# I/O pins. I am sure the exynos 5 has lots of I/Os, but the question is how many of them are accessible on the I9500 board? Looking at techinsights.com teardown article, the motherboard looks very dense and no I/Os seem to be accessible, but hopefully I a, wrong.
# Ability to run Android 4.0 (or any other version) with minimal resources. For example, is it possible to run Android in text-mode so that we leave the RAM and CPU power for the application we want to run/use?
# Availability of replacement parts individually. In such case, we would "buy" a blank motherboard with only the CPU, RAM, ROM and PMIC chips. All other chips (all of networking) are irrelevant. This should not be too expensive(or is it?). This poses another question about the ability to modify Android so that it still work without having the other chips on board.
BTW: Where is the GPS module? It is not mentioned in the teardown article.
Regards,
1ccbf
Related
So qualcom realeased their new S4 chips that are said to be backwards compatible with S1 hardware/software... Would that mean the HD2 that has S1 can be replaced with a newer one? In theory anyways...
Just a random thought
sent from my Rezound
Thatz a promising thought. But who will take such a risk? After all its soldered into pcb. And removing it is a hell job. U r dealing with something like brain transplanting...
send from my hd2 @ miui 1.12.2
True, but in this community there are some crazy people roaming around
But then the question comes up, how would somebody get a hold of that chip
.. Dreams
sent from my Rezound
noup, not a chance.
backwards compatibility mostly refers to the software platform/applications or the instruction set that particular cpu must execute.
For example, x86 - is a platform (PC) defined by a specific instruction set executed by all cpu's in that family. Any x86 cpu must be able to execute those specific instructions in the same manner, thus making it easier for software developers to create programs for that platform. So, either if you have an AMD or Intel chip inside, from the software point of view, it's just the same deal.
To place it in a more familiar context a Pentium 4 class CPU is x86 compatible. But so is a Core2Duo chip. Therefore, even if the C2D chip supports aditional features, at it's core, it's still x86 compatible. So you can still run your older programs on it. However, at hardware level, things are different since those 2 chips have different hardware layout, different number of pins, require different motherboards etc. Furthermore, for the sake of example an Intel 486 chip and a core I7 chip are both x86 compatible (you can.. in fact run windows 7 on a 486 chip, but... it will take some ..time) , but other then this, they are totally different chips.
In the case of HD2, it's just the same. You cannot simply swap one chip and solder another, for the same reason. They require different hardware layouts - specific motherboards and I/O interfaces.
I have been using my Archos 101 tablet for a few months now, I quite like it, and have tried a few of the different android builds available to download. I am keen to try and upgrade the ram, as 256MB is not alot. This is the progress I have made so far, I hope that maybe other people can add to it. First step is to find a suitable ram module that has the same pinouts, and specs, but with larger capacity. The ram module is marked "OVA18 D9LBZ". Using Microns FBGA decoder We find that the full part number of the ram module is "MT46H64M32LFMA-6 IT:A". If we go to microns list of available low power DDR modules we can see that there are available a 512MB and a 1GB version. (note that they are listed in megabits, not megabytes, so the original 256 megabyte module is a "2gb" size, 512MB is "4gb" and 1GB is "8gb")
I am in the UK, and havent yet found a uk supplier, but I found the 1GB module available in the US for about 50 US dollars.
I dont know what the max ram limit of the cpu is, I have read somewhere that the OMAP3630 cpu can support max 1GB, but cant remember where.
Im my mind there are two further problems once the chip has been bought:
1. physically removing the old ram module and fitting the new one. my plan is to setup a spring with one end glued/fixed somehow to the top of the old ram module, and then put the mainboard in the oven, and once the solder melts the spring will pull the ram chip off. Or it might pull the ram chip and the cpu at the same time. Then put tiny bits of solder on all the pins of the new ram module, align it ontop of the cpu, maybe under slight pressure, and put it back in the oven and hope that all of the solder joints connect properly. Quite a few of the pins are not used, so we can get away with 1 or 2 pins not connected. One concern I have is that in the spec sheet alot of the pins are labelled NC for not connected, but several have DNU which I take to mean "do not use". If these end up connected aswell then will this work or not. Another idea is instead of soldering the new chip on, we could polish the pins on the cpu really smooth and also polish the pins on the ram chip, and build a clip/holder type device, it might be possible to run the system with the ram chip just held under pressure on the cpu. We would need to stop the chip moving sideways also.
2. There may be a firmware issue with the new ram module, the system may not recognize the ram chip at all, or only address 256MB of it, because that is what its expecting to be there. I have seen a tutorial on upgrading the ram on an xbox and this is the problem they had, the new ram runs fine but only the original amount that was installed can be used without significant software changes. Hopefully archos have not made it too difficult for us.
These are my thoughts so far, I hope we can make some progress, or at least work out why it cant be done before destroying any hardware. I have links to the FBGA decoder, microns list of lp ddr chips, and the supplier of the 1GB chip, but as this is my first post I am not allowed to post links yet! PM me and I will send you the links.
Hi! Scholbert is good in this staff ask him . Bye
Sent from my A70H firmware 2.4.82 root oc 1.1GHz using Tapatalk
To be able to support bigger memory both memory controller of OMAP and pcb itself MUST have additional address lines. I almost sure that OMAP has at least 512MB support but not sure if Archos did preparation for bigger memory chip on board.
Also replacing of memory BGA chip not so simple and may cost more than new tablet
I am hoping that the larger memory chips still use the same interface, and therefore the same pin layout as the 256MB chip, as the link for the datasheet for 512MB and 1GB modules is the same as for the 256MB chip. So I dont think any additional data lines are needed.
Yes im sure your right, buying a later tablet will have larger ram module as standard, but I just like to tinker with things
Wikipedia list a few phones that use the omap 3630 cpu, and therefore probably use a ram module soldered ontop as in the archos. The motorola cliq 2 has 512MB of ram, as does the palm pre 2, the nokia n9 has 1GB ram but is a fairly new phone and still expensive to buy. I am going to looking out for a damaged mobile (cracked screen etc) and hope that the ram module is intact.
PPCtech did such an upgrade for the venerable HP hx4700, for $130 including material and shipment.
You'll need rework equipment (special kind of heat gun, not that expensive ($60 is the cheapest)), in an oven you'll probably kill components that were added later on (audio jack etc) and can't stand heat.
If you have the right equipment, it's not that hard to do. You'll heat the RAM chip till you can gently pull it off. Then you'll clean the PCB of solder residue. Next you put on solder paste using a BGA screen made for the chip you want to use.
Then you put the new RAM ic in the correct position (using a microscope to align it correctly), and locally heat it using the heat gun.
Then you pray it worked, or retry (best with a new RAM chip, but they can stand quite some heat, so reusing should be possible).
Problem is that you don't know for sure it could work, thus it's unclear if the error was in the soldering or in the firmware....
Sweet project! Any updates?
I'm working on reviving a dead Note at the moment and so I'm looking at making a JTAG as it really doesn't want to come back to life. Various videos I watched got me thinking...
I wonder how difficult it would be to upgrade the CPU?
What matters is the pinout of the chip. After two hours of searching I've been unable to find the datasheet to give me the details on the snapdragon 805.
Getting the old one off with a heat gun would be no problem. Putting the new one on would probably require a reflow oven (which I happen to be buying anyway) and baking the old chip at close to 100° for a day or two to dry it out so it does not explode when heated above 100° (3 mins at 265° to reflow solder the new chip).
The new CPU has its own RAM (preferably one with more than 3GB) but could be matched with new cameras.
The Kernel would need to be modified to have the new features. Probably it would be best to take an off the shelf one from for example Note 7 source code and build in the Note 4 stuff needed. That would then get programmed into the flash with a JTAG programmer. But there is very little which is not on the CPU itself beyond SD card reader, sim card reader, wacom digitiser and antenna. Its basically just a power supply (battery and voltage control chips) flash chip, screen and USB connected peripherals.
Basically pick the best camera and camera and CPU combination where the CPU has the identical pin layout of the Snapdragon 805.
That should get it to the point of having a bootable phone with new CPU. It might need also a custom built ROM to go with the custom modified board.
So can anyone show me links to the Snapdragon 805 and newer chips?
If there is a pin replacement chip for the 805 then we could upgrade our beloved battery replaceable phones.
Otherwise it's just a lovely pipedream
Hi!
Having dug my old Google Nexus 7 2012 out of storage and found it both working and happy in terms of battery lifetime I let my mind wander towards fixing what I consider the main flaw with the device: Its 1 GB of system RAM.
Now, I have my fair share of microsoldering and idle work in BGA soldering and the like but my software hardware is far more lacking. I already know that the Nexus I have holds 4 x Hynix 2Gb HTC2G83CFR DDR3L RAM and the datasheets for it these are fortunately available, I also know that the Tegra T30L chipset supports up to 2GB of RAM. The closest I've been able to scrape together sofar are Hynix 4Gb H5TC4G43MFR but these use 78ball FBGA and 96ball FBGA, but atleast I'm on the right track in finding older chips...
This is where I run into the software knowledge lack; Simply finding fitting chips to replace the old ones and successfully soldering those on will not neccesarily just work out of the box? Depending on the kernel it might detect and make use of the new chips but it might also not.
Am I right in assuming that there will be a need for software side hacking to accomodate the upgrade?
On a sidenote I also found Daniel Sauvageau's musings on doing the exact same thing back in 2016 but there are no follow-ups to it. He does raise a concerning potential roadblock in his article on the matter:
"Find out, preferably in a non-destructive way, whether A15 is actually routed from the SoC to the DRAM BGAs. Without A15, I would need DDR3L DRAM that has 2KB pages instead of the typical 1KB ones found in all eight-bit-wide chips I have looked at. If neither are possible, then this idea is as good as dead"
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Any thoughts, ideas or inputs are welcome!
(Yes, I am aware that this is neither particularly economical nor for the faint of heart lacking a decent way to reball BGA)
Good evening.
Was looking at my Shield Pro 2019 sitting on the shelf, and an idea popped into my head; would it be possible to upgrade RAM and eMMC chips? I have no particular reason for this, besides pure curiosity.
I've got access to professional solder equipment, including rework stations capable of desoldering BGAs, xray equipment to inspect said BGAs and about 20 years of experience with soldering and reworking complex circuitry.
If I'm not mistaken, RAM chips are either Micron, Samsung or SK Hynix and the eMMC chip would also likely be supplied by either Micron or SanDisk.
So, disregarding the physical job desoldering/resoldering chips, are there any software issues that must be taken into account?
The eMMC would of course need to be flashed and repartitioned if upgraded to a larger size, but would the RAM chips require any software modifications after swapping them out or would the system simply accept a larger RAM size out of the box?
I've Googled a bit, but couldn't find any concrete information on what changes would be required on the SW/FW side of this.
Best regards, Tim
Unfortunately, this looks like one of those things where ripping it apart and doing the do would be the way to go. Maybe the least "invasive" thing to do would be a RAM upgrade, provided compatible chips of higher capacity are available. Theoretically you wouldn't need to touch anything on the OS side for a bump in RAM capacity. I think the Tegra X1 supports a maximum of 4GB of RAM and the X1+ supports 8GB - allegedly. I suppose the memory controller is built into the SoC itself so there's no tampering with that.
I don't know anyone crazy enough to do that for me... nor am I really willing to apply my very amateur BGA soldering skills on a device like this one.
xxhyp0crisyxx said:
Good evening.
Was looking at my Shield Pro 2019 sitting on the shelf, and an idea popped into my head; would it be possible to upgrade RAM and eMMC chips? I have no particular reason for this, besides pure curiosity.
I've got access to professional solder equipment, including rework stations capable of desoldering BGAs, xray equipment to inspect said BGAs and about 20 years of experience with soldering and reworking complex circuitry.
If I'm not mistaken, RAM chips are either Micron, Samsung or SK Hynix and the eMMC chip would also likely be supplied by either Micron or SanDisk.
So, disregarding the physical job desoldering/resoldering chips, are there any software issues that must be taken into account?
The eMMC would of course need to be flashed and repartitioned if upgraded to a larger size, but would the RAM chips require any software modifications after swapping them out or would the system simply accept a larger RAM size out of the box?
I've Googled a bit, but couldn't find any concrete information on what changes would be required on the SW/FW side of this.
Best regards, Tim
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Both was already done on Nintendo switch (also tegra X1/X1+)
Emmc is the easy part, ram is possible but you need to know which ram are supported.
Check l4s discord maybe there are some people who can help.
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