I've seen some 128GB Toshiba eMMC parts floating around that are ball-number compatible with the 32GB one in the N900.

So say we have a heat gun/reflow station and some patience, anyone here think it'd be possible to make the N900 once again the king of mobile storage?

Failing that, these things don't really use all 150+ balls right? IIRC I read a post here saying that they use 8/9 balls, similar to a uSD card.

If you read the product specifications it says it needs 153 balls +16 or 64 support balls...
And having the same pin number doesn't mean it also has the same pin pattern...

http://www.toshiba.com/taec/Catalog/...&lineid=900195

Also, knowing how to solder SMD doesn't mean yo know how to solder BGA, you must have specific knowledge (and tools) for this technology...

You've got balls if you try this!

Okay, here's what I got so far.
Assuming the eMMC part in the N900 is a Toshiba chip, it should be size, ball-pin and voltage range compatible with the N900. I might need to remove the EMMC shield for installation though.

What I'm not sure of is the pinout of the chip. The Toshiba PR says it uses HSMMC, so we'll assume the driver magically finds the GPIO pins.

Also, I do not have the balls to spend ~$200+++ on a part, and attach it to a $350 phone, without the ${insert 6 figure number here} factory equipment.

'Tis be a pipe dream, like replacing the 3430 with a 3630.

maybe you can ask for one sample :-)

and here you have more than enough balls

Heh, I've been terrible at wording my bull for free samples.

...And I assumed that the eMMC module comes with the solder already attached, ready for aligning and melting. Apparently not, and it wouldn't really be good to ship them that way. No problem though, those seem like good solder balls, should have no problem with cold solder at 183C.

Now, I just need to find a way to somehow aquire a chip sample.

And does your reflow station have temperature profiles? or only one fixed temperature setting?
because it's important to follow a certain heating and cooling rate in order to obtain a good solder in all balls

If you are interested, here (in spanish!) you can see my progress in making a DIY reflow station , but it's intended for working with lager PCBs like PS3 or XBOX

If by reflow station you mean a heat gun with adjustable temperature and a clean table, yes I do have one.

I'm used to working with broken 360's and PS3's, actually. Disassemble, heat CPU, don't touch, apply AS5, reassemble.

I meant than the station should be able to adjust automaticaly the temperature over time, like this:
(I'm sorry if I am not expressing very clearly as my first language isn't english)


with a 'simple' heat gun you can't be sure that all the balls, have been heated and cooled in a proper way, which can result in future cracks due to temperature stress and a short life of the component.

Oh, that's what you meant. I don't think I can change temps that fast with my heat gun.

There'd also be the problem of evenly heating the board, which my heat gun cannot do.

Anyone here think that it'd be OK to simply shield the rest of the board with aluminum foil?