Steve Conover
May 12, 2007

Introduction

I took apart my old Motorola V60t, Nokia 6230b, and Motorola C331 cell phones. Here are the pictures and observations.

 
Left to Right: The V60t, 6230b, and C331

Summary

* I'm basing the year off the copyright of the user manual. I'm not sure about how to get the exact manufacturing date. Any ideas?

I don't have an exact date for these phones, but none of them were very far from each other. Of the three, the 6230b is the most advanced and expensive model, followed by the C331 and then the V60t.

Similarities and Differences

One of the most interesting similarities across all three phones is that they all used the exact same size (~1/16", I think) Torx screws to hold the main components in place. Keep in mind that's the same size screw for both the Motorola and the Nokia phones.

 
Inside the (left to right) V60t, 6230b, and C331

The number pads were all separate sheets behind the front plate of the phone. They were all formed of plastic buttons with some type of rubber behind them (to make the button feel squishy as it was pressed), but the exact structure varied slightly. The  flip V60t pad was fragile and contained only a bit of rubber behind each number (you can actual see it curling in the picture below). The expensive Nokia phone was formed from a full sheet of rubber covered by a full sheet of hard plastic numbers. The C331 went the opposite of the V60t and was formed from a full sheet of rubber with each number individually formed on the rubber.  [edit: the V60t actually had hard plastic behind the numbers, not rubber--resulting in a very "hard" click]

These choices for panels were parallels of their overall performance:

1. The Flip phone was brittle like its plastic numbers and ended up breaking.
2. The Nokia was expensive, solid and heavy like its choice of both full rubber and full plastic.
3. The C331 was actually really squishy altogether--you could squeeze, twist, and bounce the entire phone without worry.

   
Left to Right: Number panels for the V60t, 6230b, and C331

The connectors inside the phone were extremely interesting as well. The Nokia and C331 (squishy) both had multiple layers inside the phone that had to communicate. Rather than having a plug of some type, the layers used two different methods.

The Nokia used a simple multi-pronged connector that would press into three flat copper nodes on the next layer.

 
Prongs like those on the left would press into flat, circular
connectors on the next layer as seen on the right.

This mechanism is space-conservative, allowing the layers to fit together snugly as well as making construction trivial.

The C331 connectors were actually a bit more impressive and probably use a patented connector. Staying true to the "squish" paradigm, the C331 used a length of bare wire wrapped around a small piece of foam. When the connector plate of the adjoining  layer presses into the foam, the wire is pushed forward and a firm connection is made. I would guess that this creates a gentler, more robust connection as compared to the Nokia's hard metal prongs. However, the C331 also used a couple of these prong interfaces.

 
The white strip with the line through it is actually a
piece of foam with a wire that connects the speaker to the layer below it.
(click for a larger view)

The V60t flip phone used fragile strip connectors between layers and around the hinge in the "flip" part of the phone.

Of all the phones, the V60t flip phone gave me the most trouble. Where the others came apart and went together quite easily, the V60t did not. I felt kind of sad for the designers as tiny pieces kept dropping out of the phone as I took it apart. Each rubber button on the side was a loosely held on piece and there were a couple other separators and nubs that just "fell out" as I took the phone apart. I guess this worked for Motorola, but I could only feel that it was the sign of a cheap, poorly constructed phone. Indeed, it was this phone whose antenna snapped off in my pocked because it was exposed and poorly attached.

 
Pieces like this kept falling out of the
V60t flip phone as I took it apart.

I'm still not entirely sure how the screen/upper part of the flip phone is put together. Screws inside this section are attached to the back cover of the phone, yet it appears that this section must be removed to get access to the screws. In the name of discovery I forced the phone apart, but was unable to derive exactly how to open this section without damage.

Conclusion

Overall, this was a good experiment.

It's interesting to see--even across brands--that the phones both vary widely and have great similarities. The keypads, for instance, were nothing but variation on a theme and the overall structures of the phone were the same. Nevertheless, the phones exhibit distinct behaviors: cheap, solid, and squishy--and these behaviors appear in the design choices.

In Pieces: V60t, 6230b, C331

More photos can be found on the flickr pages for these phones:

• Taking Apart the Motorola V60t Cell
• Taking Apart the Motorola C331 Cell
• Taking Apart the Nokia 6230b Cell

Links

• Extensive Cell Phone Disassembly Site
• Motorola V60t User Manual
• Motorola C331 User Manual
• Nokia 620b User Manual

© 2005 Copyright Steve Conover. All rights reserved.