Teardown Suggests Amazon Kindle Fire HDX 7 is Tough to Repair
Showtime's popular Dexter series might have come to an end (don't worry, no spoilers here), but if you're still interested in seeing things gutted, iFixIt is your go-to place for the same level of carnage, albeit in the realm of electronics. The newest candidate to fall on iFixIt's operating table is Amazon's recently announced Kindle Fire HDX, which is available in both 7-inch and 8.9-inch form factors (iFixIt opted for the 7-inch model).
The Kindle Fire HDX 7 sports a 7-inch display with a 1920x1200 resolution (323 ppi), 2.2GHz Snapdragon quad-core processor, 2GB of RAM, 16GB/32GB/64GB of built-in storage, dual-band 802.11n Wi-Fi, 720p front-facing camera, dual-stereo speakers, and a battery that's good for up to 11 hours of mixed use or up to 17 hours of reading.
Source: iFixIt
That's all well and good, but getting to those components is no easy task. According to iFixIt's teardown analysis, there's a lot of adhesive that makes just prying off the rear case a challenge. Once opened, there's a "pesky cable" connecting the two halves, so you'll want to be careful when opening it up (should you have a desire to).
Probably one of the most common reasons someone might be tempted to open up a tablet is to replace the battery at some point. In this case, the 3.8V, 4550 mAh battery also features liberal use of "mighty powerful adhesive" holding it to the plastic midframe.
In the end, iFixIt says it suspects "Amazon was feeling a little insecure when they built the HDX," ultimately leading to a low 3 out of 10 "Repairability" score.
The Kindle Fire HDX 7 sports a 7-inch display with a 1920x1200 resolution (323 ppi), 2.2GHz Snapdragon quad-core processor, 2GB of RAM, 16GB/32GB/64GB of built-in storage, dual-band 802.11n Wi-Fi, 720p front-facing camera, dual-stereo speakers, and a battery that's good for up to 11 hours of mixed use or up to 17 hours of reading.
Source: iFixIt
That's all well and good, but getting to those components is no easy task. According to iFixIt's teardown analysis, there's a lot of adhesive that makes just prying off the rear case a challenge. Once opened, there's a "pesky cable" connecting the two halves, so you'll want to be careful when opening it up (should you have a desire to).
Probably one of the most common reasons someone might be tempted to open up a tablet is to replace the battery at some point. In this case, the 3.8V, 4550 mAh battery also features liberal use of "mighty powerful adhesive" holding it to the plastic midframe.
In the end, iFixIt says it suspects "Amazon was feeling a little insecure when they built the HDX," ultimately leading to a low 3 out of 10 "Repairability" score.
