Alleged iPhone 5S assembly line shots show new internal layout, linear motor (Update: clone)

Update: These are likely an iPhone 5 clone (with better vibrating motor). Note the smaller 1150 mAh battery and the (d’oh) SD card slot.

The images above allegedly show a Foxconn assembly line in addition to some up close spy shots of what could be Apple’s next generation iPhone 5S. The images were originally posted by Chinese CNET/CBSi-owned tech site sjbbs.zol.com and later reposted by GizChina. We see a front panel largely resembling the currently shipping iPhone 5 in the images and some rather nice shots of the devices’ components, providing clues that this is indeed the next-gen iPhone and not the iPhone 5.

As noted by German language website PCgameshardware.de, the iPhone shown in the images above appears to have a vibrating motor that differs from the iPhone 5. Apple used a linear oscillating vibrator with the iPhone 4S, as pictured in this teardown image. iFixit noted the change was a “head-scratcher”:

Unlike the iPhone 4S, which used a linear-oscillating vibrator, Apple has gone back to a rotational motor with a counterweight.We praised Apple in the past for going with the quieter and less annoying linear oscillating vibrator, but now we’re scratching our heads as to why they went back.

While it wasn’t exactly clear as to why, Apple switched back to the sometimes louder, rotational motor that utilizes a counterweight for the iPhone 5. The alleged images of the iPhone 5S show that Apple appears to be going to a linear vibrating motor design (which also makes these spy shots a bit more believable than otherwise).

The post also provides a rare shot of workers relaxing on Foxconn’s assembly line: