iPhone 5s Hardware – Identify the Dot Between Rear Camera and LED Flash

From Wikipedia:

LED Flash (Illumination)

Although they are not yet at the power levels to replace xenon flash devices in still cameras, LEDs (specifically, high current flash LEDs) have recently been used as flash sources in camera phones. LEDs are expected to approach the power levels of xenon in the near future and may replace built-in xenon flashes in still cameras. The major advantages of LEDs over xenon include low voltage operation, higher efficiency and extreme miniaturization.

So, now that we know that we have a LED (Light Emitting Diode) in there, let’s see how much should that live (according the the super-experts @ wikipedia):

LED Lifetime and Failure (read all that for more info)

Short answer:

"Typical lifetimes quoted are 25,000 to 100,000 hours but heat and current settings can extend or shorten this time significantly.”

Now do you think your iPhone will last 25,000 hours (worst case scenario for the LED)? That’s a little bit less than three years. It’s certainly possible for an iPhone to last much more than that (I still use a 1s-gen iPhone), however, I highly doubt that you’re going to use it with the flash ON, for three years, non-stop. :)

The iFixit Teardown says that it has the same front panel (i.e. same positions for the Home button, LCD, sensors and earpiece). Other sites have also confirmed that it's the same layout as the CDMA iPhone 4.

It should work with any case made for the CDMA iPhone 4, and some of the less precise GSM iPhone 4 cases (i.e. ones with large cutouts around the buttons). It should also work with any Apple bumper purchased from January on, as those were designed to work with the GSM & CDMA iPhone 4.

The 4S also has 4 symmetrically positioned black strips (gaps between the antenna segments), 2 on each side, just like the CDMA 4. It also has a GSM slot, which is pretty much the only distinguishing feature between the CDMA 4 and the 4S.