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Parts

Tools

Troubleshooting ¶ 

Track down the source of your iPhone woes using our iPhone 3GS Troubleshooting Page.

Identification and Background ¶ 

The iPhone 3GS was the first iPhone to include video recording capabilities. The iPhone 3GS has a black or white back, silver bezel and a black front. The iPhone 3GS was first introduced with 16GB and 32GB of flash memory.

Some parts are more difficult to repair than others. The display panel and front glass are relatively easy to repair, but getting to the battery or rear panel can take some time and effort. This is due to the design of the 3GS. It is built from the back to the front, so the further back a component is (think rear case), the harder it is to replace. One major plus with the 3GS is the ability to replace the front glass by itself as opposed to other iPhone models that require replacing the entire display assembly when your screen breaks.

Tech Specs ¶ 

Size and weight

Height: 4.5 inches (115.5 mm)

Width: 2.4 inches (62.1 mm)

Depth: 0.48 inch (12.3 mm)

Weight: 4.7 ounces (133 grams)

Capacity

8GB or 16GB flash drive

Cellular and wireless

UMTS/HSDPA (850, 1900, 2100 MHz)

GSM/EDGE (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz)

Wi-Fi (802.11b/g)

Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR

Color

8GB model: Black

16GB model: Black or White

Display

3.5-inch (diagonal) widescreen Multi-Touch display

480-by-320-pixel resolution at 163 ppi

Audio

Frequency response: 20Hz to 20,000Hz

Audio formats supported: AAC, Protected AAC, MP3, MP3 VBR, Audible (formats 1, 2, and 3), Apple Lossless, AIFF, and WAV

User-configurable maximum volume limit

Video

Video formats supported:

  • H.264 video, up to 1.5 Mbps, 640 by 480 pixels, 30 frames per second,
  • Low-Complexity version of the H.264 Baseline Profile with AAC-LC audio up to 160 Kbps, 48kHz, stereo audio in .m4v, .mp4, and .mov file formats;
  • H.264 video, up to 2.5 Mbps, 640 by 480 pixels, 30 frames per second, Baseline Profile up to Level 3.0 with AAC-LC audio up to 160 Kbps, 48kHz, stereo audio in .m4v, .mp4, and .mov file formats;
  • MPEG-4 video, up to 2.5 Mbps, 640 by 480 pixels, 30 frames per second

Camera and photos

2.0 megapixel rear camera

iPhone and third-party application integration

Connectors and input/output

30-pin dock connector

3.5-mm stereo headphone minijack

Built-in speaker

Microphone

SIM card tray

External buttons and controls

Sleep/wake

Ring/silent

Volume up/down

Home

Sensors

Accelerometer

Proximity sensor

Ambient light sensor

Power and battery

Built-in rechargeable lithium-ion battery

Charging via USB to computer system or power adapter

Talk time:

Up to 5 hours on 3G

Up to 10 hours on 2G

Standby time: Up to 300 hours

Internet use:

Up to 5 hours on 3G

Up to 6 hours on Wi-Fi

Video playback: Up to 7 hours

Audio playback: Up to 24 hours

Mac system requirements

Mac computer with USB 2.0 port

Mac OS X v10.4.10 or later

iTunes 7.7 or later

Windows system requirements

PC with USB 2.0 port

Windows Vista; or Windows XP Home or Professional with Service Pack 2 or later

iTunes 7.7 or later

Environmental operating parameters

Operating temperature: 32° to 95° F (0° to 35° C)

Nonoperating temperature: -4° to 113° F (-20° to 45° C)

Relative humidity: 5% to 95% noncondensing

Maximum operating altitude: 10,000 feet (3000 m)

Additional Information ¶