Image: iFixit continued its investigation of the new iPod models yesterday with a comprehensive teardown (http://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/iPod-...eardown/3562/1) of the fourth generation iPod touch. The disassembly revealed a few interesting details, such as the fact that the device does not have a vibration motor as had been previously advertised, and that the A4 chip that powers the new iPod comes with only 256MB of RAM, like the iPad. As expected, the device is difficult to take apart, due to Apple's desire to both cut costs and make third-party repairs difficult if not impossible. With no external screws or fasteners on the case. iFixit needed to use a heat gun to melt the glue holding the front panel on. Once they got the case open, they discovered that the glass is permanently bonded to the LCD panel in the same way as the iPhone 4 display. Unlike previous iPod touch devices, this keeps dust from getting under the glass, but also raises the cost for repair. Behind the "surprisingly heavy" EMI shield - which iFixit notes makes up ten percent of the total weight of the device - is the iPod touch's battery, which is rated for 40 hours of playback time. The battery is actually soldered to the logic...

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