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What you need

This teardown is not a repair guide. To repair your Pumpkin, use our service manual.

  1. Pumpkin Teardown, Pumpkin Teardown: step 1, image 1 of 2 Pumpkin Teardown, Pumpkin Teardown: step 1, image 2 of 2
    • Pumpkin: this fall's must-have device. Despite a yearly release cycle, our Late 2016 Pumpkin doesn't sport any major upgrades from last year's model.

    • It's scratchgate all over again! Our brand-new Pumpkin came with a few dents and dings. This could haunt Pumpkin's durability over time.

    • Here're some specs on Pumpkin:

    • Pumpkin comes in several stunning finishes: Really Orange, Space Orange, and Annoying Orange. Jet Orange is currently sold out.

    • This model is marketed primarily as decorative, lacking the necessary features (e.g. heat sensitive material) for models used in pie-making.

    • No operating system is required

  2. Pumpkin Teardown: step 2, image 1 of 1
    • Time to disconnect the battery.

    • No matter what device you're cracking open, it's important to disconnect the battery first. We're not making pumpkin pie, so we don't want to cook this device in the course of a teardown.

    • We've said it before, we'll say it again: integrated, difficult-to-replace batteries are spooky. We're pleased this Pumpkin-maker made the battery easy to access.

    • This long-lived battery will have enough pumpkin juice to make it all night—or at least until the Great Pumpkin comes.

  3. Pumpkin Teardown: step 3, image 1 of 2 Pumpkin Teardown: step 3, image 2 of 2
    • Pumpkin's spherical unibody design is something of a novelty—the last time we saw anything like this was Google's Nexus Q.

    • Getting in will prove challenging, as the seams on the outside appear to be purely decorative. And there's not a screw in sight. This thing is locked up tighter than Dracula's castle.

    • Before we resort to invasive tactics, we heat up our iOpener to soften up any hidden adhesive that might be lurking under the handle. But Pumpkin keeps mum.

  4. Pumpkin Teardown: step 4, image 1 of 3 Pumpkin Teardown: step 4, image 2 of 3 Pumpkin Teardown: step 4, image 3 of 3
    • We were hoping to avoid smashing pumpkins, but it looks like we're going to have to bust our way in. A top-down approach seems most intuitive.

    • We start by carefully plotting out a path of entry. We don't want to damage any internal components that may be hiding under the handle.

  5. Pumpkin Teardown: step 5, image 1 of 3 Pumpkin Teardown: step 5, image 2 of 3 Pumpkin Teardown: step 5, image 3 of 3
    Tool used on this step:
    Jimmy
    $7.95
    Buy
    • Peter, Peter, pumpkin-eater couldn't breach this orange shell. Instead we tried our Jimmy—and it worked out very well.

    • Usually, we use the Jimmy for prying. But we're going full Michael Myers and using the Jimmy to stab Pumpkin open.

    • Even with a convenient handle, the lid is difficult to remove. A mystery adhesive underneath is too strong for our suction cup. And that just sucks.

    • So we break out our spudger. Jamming it under the lid seems to do the trick(-or-treat).

  6. Pumpkin Teardown: step 6, image 1 of 2 Pumpkin Teardown: step 6, image 2 of 2
    • Grasp Pumpkin firmly by the handle.

    • After a decent tug, the lid comes free from the device, trailing an adhesive residue after it. We haven't seen this much adhesive gunk since we took apart the Surface Pro.

    • Ripping the head lid off proves to be a bit of a nightmare.

    • We raise this Pumpkin-top like the dead, anxious for a little grave robbing pie making investigation of its fleshy, vascular strands.

  7. Pumpkin Teardown: step 7, image 1 of 3 Pumpkin Teardown: step 7, image 2 of 3 Pumpkin Teardown: step 7, image 3 of 3
    • Now comes the delicate process of removing the internal components. We reach our tweezers into the unexplored depths of Pumpkin and pull out an ...

    • iPhone headphone jack assembly! So that's where Apple put them all.

    • With that out of the way, we start removing the other components ... one by one. This is gonna take awhile.

    • The seeds appear to be nearly identical. We wonder if they are interchangeable. If so, that would certainly improve Pumpkin's repairability score.

  8. Pumpkin Teardown: step 8, image 1 of 3 Pumpkin Teardown: step 8, image 2 of 3 Pumpkin Teardown: step 8, image 3 of 3
    • Here's what we like about Pumpkin—there's no walled garden (unless you literally grow Pumpkin in a walled garden). When it comes to hardware—this sucker is fully moddable!

    • Modding the case will require us to use destructive techniques, so we want to be careful. One false move with our tools—and we could turn Pumpkin into a ghost.

    • We start by affixing a stencil to Pumpkin's outer case, and to "stay in the lines," so to speak, we do a little tracing too.

    • With this many pins in it, Pumpkin is shaping up to be a real Hellraiser.

  9. Pumpkin Teardown: step 9, image 1 of 3 Pumpkin Teardown: step 9, image 2 of 3 Pumpkin Teardown: step 9, image 3 of 3
    • We didn't find our favorite screw-type in Pumpkin, so we're going to put it on Pumpkin.

    • A tech knife is all it takes to excise the cross-head.

    • Scoring Pumpkin requires a more specialized tool. The scorer allows us to scrape away the hard, outer-layer of orange, revealing a softer, lighter material underneath.

    • A more accessible alternative for the DIY Pumpkin modder might be a small melon baller, or a Dremel if you have one.

  10. Pumpkin Teardown: step 10, image 1 of 2 Pumpkin Teardown: step 10, image 2 of 2
    • Doing some custom lettering on Pumpkin requires us to break out the big guns.

    • It's possible this thick case material serves as some sort of heat shield for the heating accesory often used in tandem with Pumpkin.

    • Of course, this kind of mod will likely compromise the device's waterproofing.

    • But the final result is just too good to pass on. We'll just avoid using Pumpkin anywhere near a toilet.

  11. Pumpkin Teardown: step 11, image 1 of 2 Pumpkin Teardown: step 11, image 2 of 2
    • Some models of Pumpkin come with a heating element preinstalled—but our base model didn't include one. Guess we'll just have to upgrade.

    • Good thing we've still got this handy fuel source! Once it spontaneously combusts, that 13.48 Wh battery will be just the thing to light Pumpkin up like the Fourth of July.

    • Please, do not handle, use, touch, approach, or even look at the Note7 (Unless you're actively putting it in a triple-layer box and shipping it back to Samsung).

  12. Pumpkin Teardown: step 12, image 1 of 3 Pumpkin Teardown: step 12, image 2 of 3 Pumpkin Teardown: step 12, image 3 of 3
    • Don't mind that smell, it's operating as designed. The flavor has proven to be very popular with modern consumers.

    • Added bonus: Our case modifications should prevent Pumpkin from overheating, but safety first! Keep an eye on your Pumpkin, once lit.

    • Uh-oh. This Pumpkin completely lost its head! Thanks to our friends at Creative Electron for popping Pumpkin into their spooktacular X-ray machine and sharing the results with us.

  13. Pumpkin Teardown: step 13, image 1 of 1
    • Like an overripe zombie, our Pumpkin has completely spilled it guts. The witching hour is now over.

    • For more Pumpkin tips and best practices, head to our Answers forum!

    • Happy Halloween to all you repair ghouls out there!

Taylor Whitney

Member since: 11/06/15

10,942 Reputation

14 Guides authored

37 Comments

Great work guys :)

Senad - Reply

How do I reassemble?

Jay Calvert - Reply

Facile : il suffit de planter une graine...

paddy -

There is no reassembly. But you can replicate by planting one of the excavated seeds.

anneeasterling -

Where is the Kanooter Valve?

ds40014 - Reply

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