Soldering extra RAM ??

[darren]

Has anyone taken apart their fancy smartphone and taken out the 1-2GB you have inside and replaced with 4GB RAM chip??

I know some iPhone users in the past have upgraded their mobiles this way?

Maybe replacing the ROM too?

Does anyone know anything about either of these two questions I have for you guys and gals today

[mirandam]

I doubt if anyone will do that unless they already posses a professional SMD soldering station with antistatic environment control, which will cost a lot more than a new phone with more memory.

[darren]

I doubt if anyone will do that unless they already posses a professional SMD soldering station with antistatic environment control, which will cost a lot more than a new phone with more memory.

Nice informative reply, thanks. ;)

I have approached the manufacturing company as well! For a complete batch to be made, 32bit quad core processing with 4GB and octacore with 8~16GB RAM enhancements. If I can't do this myself or find someone ;)

[mirandam]

You're welcome. Actually I'll explain a little more about this to prevent someone telling you it can be done in a "hobby" style fashion.
The problem is not so much soldering, which requires an ESD safe workstation that go from $250 upwards, but moreover the handling of the chips. Once these are withdrawn from their protective packaging they very prone to static discharges produced by clothing and inadequate tools. Thus handling should be done with: ESD safe clothing, an ESD discharged workfloor and workbench, and ESD safe gloves and tools and for real good measures an ESD safe controlled environment, controlling temperature, humidity and particle filtering.
This is why there are only a few countable factories in china (and the rest of the world) because the investment needed for a factory is very expensive.
Being an electronics engineer I've seen several computer data centers where they apply equal measurements.

[WuddaWaste]

I have to admit, it's a novel idea. I'm skeptical myself, but if I had a phone whose RAM had already died, I might attempt it as a hobby.

Here are the steps I would mentally step through to do something like this:
1. Identify the RAM chip(s) my phone uses.
2. Research to find out what other form-fit-and-function chips exist with higher capacities
3. Make sure that chip works with my processor
4. Find a company who has a solder reflow machine or similar to get pricing.
5. Decide to take it to them (probably not likely because it would cost too much) or try to find the hobbyist alternative to doing so.

I would NOT attempt this on any working phone. The probability of messing it up is high. Where I work we do have a lot of this equipment, but even so, you can only reflow solder on a board so many times (like 3 or so) before you start inducing a ton of failures in other areas.

Keep in mind most chips are 50+ pins in a tiny package. A soldering iron isn't going to work. You need a way to localize heat distribution across the contact points without letting it destory the other solder connections on the board. Tricky stuff. I'd be impressed if you got it done!

[darren]

Thanks for the replies fellas,

I'm going to see where this project takes me.. If something comes of it, maybe we could partner up on something like this and see what we can make of it

You can checkout my company URL if you like [Only registered and activated users can see links Click here to register] it's only a start-up but you have to start somewhere don't you

Thanks very much for all the useful replies, I was actually expecting just folks to tell me to wise up and that it's a stupid idea.. But it is possible it's just allot of effort.. But thinking about it effort is why the human race is where it is now not through an easy life eh

Thanks again fellas

[Bacon_Puffs]

In contrast to mirandam, I've never had an issue working with RAM in an 'unsafe' environment. Just normal in my house and handled ram plenty of times no problem. I don't think its as sensitive as some would have u believe.

[mirandam]

In contrast to mirandam, I've never had an issue working with RAM in an 'unsafe' environment. Just normal in my house and handled ram plenty of times no problem. I don't think its as sensitive as some would have u believe.

I'm sure you've handled these 48 pin chips based on a 0,5 mm grid 2GB chips (yes, only 2GB as I'm not talking about the even more dense 4/8GB 78 pin packaged chips) all with your bare hands and your 40W soldering pistol....
   
or just maybe you're confused with the DDR2/3 chip modules that are placed into your pc, already soldered and provided with protective supression chips...
   

As I said

.... to prevent someone telling you it can be done in a "hobby" style fashion.

, don't be mislead, bare chips are a complete different matter as memory modules which are manufactured to be handled by humans, whereas bare chips are made to be handled by machines, adequate machines that is.
And Wuddawaste is right, these are to be soldered by professional equipment capable of localizing IR heat sources within a limited timeframe, costing well above $250.

[Athos]

I'm pretty sure @"Bacon_Puffs" knows you guys are talking about bare ICs.

bare chips are made to be handled by machines

Not really. ICs are pretty resilient.

I've handled the GPU of my Xbox, its fine. That was a ball grid, so used hot air. That Samsung chip shown looks easier to solder because the pins are exposed.

@"WuddaWaste" is correct about checking compatibility: Make sure it is a pin by pin replacement. If it is an exposed pin IC, what you do is flood it with lead then exploit the surface tension, and swiftly pull away the excess in one giant bead so you wont have shorted pins. (Kind of emulating how reflow works) There is also an option to use solder paste and hot air, but the flux might be hard to clean off.

If you're worried about esd, just remove your body's potential difference from what you're working on. Hold something metal (the chassis maybe), ground yourself out.

The sensitivity portrayed in post#4 is more applicable to wafer/die level manufacturing, i believe.

[wisdom]

I am definately learning a lot here, thumbs up guys