How Smartphones Work? What's Inside a Smartphone?

A smartphone is the result of many compromises made to satisfy many conflicting requirements. The marketing team wants a thin, lightweight product with a dazzling display, but the electrical team wants to use the least amount of energy.

Figure 1 shows a high-level, functional block diagram of a typical smartphone. It consists of a processor, RF front-end, antennas and modem, display, peripherals, GPS, accelerometer and other similar components.

In order to cram all these sub-systems into the available space, the entire smartphone is implemented on a single mainboard.

The system processor is the most complex component in the entire smartphone, and it differs from one smartphone to another.

Smartphone displays are made by a limited number of companies.

Smartphones must be able to support many different cellular communication standards, including GSM/EDGE and CDMA.

The smartphone runs off battery power, and the battery must be charged. The smartphone also has to be protected against electrical abuse, so a charging system has to be included in the device.

A smartphone needs a frame to hold everything together. This frame is usually aluminum.

Take a look inside your smartphone and fly through it. My former smartphone's models and images were used to create an animated teardown like an actual teardown. This video doesn't have a script or me reading anything, but rather gives an overview of the components in your smartphone.