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Video Overview

Step 1 Nexus 5 Teardown

The Nexus 5 is the first phone to ship with the latest version of Android's OS, KitKat. It may not be coated in chocolate, but it has plenty of tasty features:

• 4.95" full HD 1920x1080 display at 445ppi

• Quad-core, 2.26 GHz Snapdragon 800 processor and 450 MHz Adreno 330 GPU

• 2 GB RAM

• 8 MP/1080p rear camera with optical image stabilization, and 1.3 MP front-facing camera

• 4G/LTE wireless support, 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (2.4GHz and 5GHz) dual-band Wi-Fi, NFC, Bluetooth 4.0, and wireless charging

• 16 GB or 32 GB built-in memory

• Android 4.4 KitKat

Step 2

• Sounds of joy emanate from the teardown factory as we find this Nexus is held together by…plastic clips!

• These clips are plenty stubborn, but nothing like the headache that a glued panel would be.

• Agent P.O.T. (plastic opening tool) is deployed to handle this noble mission.

Step 3

• We may have cheered too soon—either someone spilled some chocolate syrup, or that's adhesive securing the bottom of the case.

• Finding glue in your gadget is as much fun as finding chewed gum on your shoe.

• Luckily this bit of foam adhesive is no match for a few swipes of a plastic opening pick. Our poor fixer souls have seen much worse recently.

• With the adhesive out of the way, we get our first peek inside this delicious new device.

Step 4

• Before taking another bite, we pause to chew over the back case:

• We find conveniently labeled antennas for the Wi-Fi, MIMO, and GPS. It's not quite instructions, but hey, we'll take what we can get.

• The NFC and wireless charging cables' spring contacts aren't so nicely identified, but are present and accounted for.

• The vibrator is held in place with only a small amount of adhesive. That means an easy repair, should your phone lose its ability to shake it up.

• How many licks screws does it take to get to the center of a Nexus 5?

• No matter the number, our Pro Tech Screwdriver Set is up to the task.

Step 5

• Google gives us the Goldilocks of glue: It's just enough to hold the battery in place, but not too much—the battery can still be removed with minimal prying and virtually no bending.

• Non-LG manufacturers, take note! We don't want none of your "that ain't possible" funny business when it comes to using glue in devices.

Step 6

• LG's 3.8 V, 2300 mAh battery offers a slight jump in capacity over last year's Nexus 4.

• Google boasts that this pack will keep you sugar-high for 17 hours of talk time, 300 hours of standby, or 7 hours of LTE web browsing.

• We're pretty sure this warning icon indicates that it's unsafe to let pets smaller than this battery anywhere near it.

Step 7

• Time to break us off a piece of this KitKat phone!

• The speaker pops out with minimal fuss; it's only secured by few screws and no cables. This is the Nexus standard single speaker, despite the dual grilles.

• No, this Nexus is not preparing for a BBQ—the second grille is for the microphone. Don't worry; we'll get there soon.

Step 8

We free the Oompa-Loompa-colored daughterboard, and she's got more goodies than the Easter Bunny:

• Microphone

• RGB Indicator LED

• Micro-USB port

• Speaker spring contacts

• Antenna spring contacts

Step 9

• Less tasty, but more powerful than a Pixy Stick, our spudger makes motherboard removal easier than taking candy from a baby.

• We quickly spudge away the wireless charging control and NFC board. LG built this little board into an EMI shield assembly that pops in right over the motherboard.

• This shape reminds us a little of this helpful KitKat map…

• NFC is the tech behind Google Wallet—one of the Nexus devices' most loved features and one often blocked by carriers. Last month, the rumor mill speculated that the Nexus 5 would feature a Broadcom NFC controller that could eliminate carriers' ability to wallet-block customers.

• Lo and behold: the Broadcom BCM20793M NFC controller.

• Also on board: Texas Instruments BQ51013B Qi 1.1 Compliant Wireless Power Receiver

Step 10

That's some scrumptious silicon! Feast your eyes on these ICs:

• Sandisk SDIN8DE4 16 GB NAND flash

• Qualcomm WTR1605L LTE/HSPA+/CDMA2K/TDSCDMA/EDGE/GPS transceiver

• Qualcomm PM8841 power management IC

• Broadcom BCM4339 5G Wi-Fi combo chip with integrated power and low-noise amplifiers (the updated version of the BCM4335).

• Avago RFI335

• InvenSense MPU-6515 six-axis (gyro + accelerometer) MEMS MotionTracking device

• Asahi Kasei AK8963 3-axis electronic compass

Step 11

• SK Hynix H9CKNNNBPTMRLR-NTM 2 GB LPDDR3-1600 RAM

• The Quad-core, 2.26 GHz Snapdragon 800 SoC is layered beneath the RAM

• Qualcomm WCD9320 audio codec

• Analogix ANX7808 SlimPort transmitter

• Qualcomm PM8941 power management IC

• Texas Instruments BQ24192 I2C controlled 4.5 A USB/adapter charger

• Avago ACPM-7600 Multi Mode, Multi Band RF power amplifier

• Qualcomm QFE1100 Envelope Tracking IC

Step 12

• Out next is the 8MP rear-facing camera.

• Google has taken some criticism for the less-than-impressive image capture in last year's candy-powered devices. This year they've added Optical Image Stabilization (OIS), but we've only heard tepid reviews so far.

• The Nexus 5's OIS is powered by an InvenSense IDG-2020 dual axis gyroscope.

Step 13

• We pop out the last of the bite-sized morsels in the Nexus 5:

• Earpiece speaker

• Headphone jack

• 1.3 MP front-facing camera.

• What a treat! These components were modular and only lightly adhered, seasoned just to our repair tastes.

Step 14

• Unfortunately, our hopes come crashing down like a blood sugar crash after a candy binge: the front panel is one fused flustercluck.

• While we saw this in the Nexus 4, we had hoped the LG/Google team could learn the error of their ways.

• Alas, the front frame, LCD, and glass are doomed to a single shared death sometime down the road to Candy Land.

• Imagine if one cavity meant losing all your teeth... Talk about a hard pill to swallow.

• Tucked in at the base of the display, a Synaptics S3350B IC provides touchscreen control.

Step 15

• Nexus 5 Repairability Score: 8 out of 10 (10 is easiest to repair).

• Very modular design allows independent replacement of several wear-prone components—like the headphone jack and speakers.

• Only very mild adhesive holds the battery in place, making it fairly easy to safely remove and replace.

• Standardized screws (ten identical #00 Phillips) simplify repairs and reassembly.

• The back cover is held in place with plastic clips. Sturdy and rather difficult to remove, but easier than glue.

• The glass and LCD are fused to the display frame. Fixing broken glass will be either expensive or very difficult.
  

All info from: https://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/Nexus+5+Teardown/19016#s53734

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