Guide on How to Replace the iPhone Screen

Since my post a while back providing video tutorials on how to replace a cracked iPhone screen seems to be a more popular post I thought it might be helpful for some who are looking to do this difficult repair to have a guide on how to go about fixing the iPhone.  This do it yourself project should only be attempted by those that are confident in their ability to work on delicate electronics and are willing to void the warranty for their iPhone.  This project should cost between $50 and $150 depending on where you get your parts and which ones you will need to get.

Where Do You Get the Parts to Fix Your iPhone Screen

Of course when you attempt to do this project you are going to make sure you can get all of the tools required to replace the iPhone screen.  First thing is first though, you need to determine whether you have broken just the front panel (glass covering the display) or the actual display (lcd) itself.  The easiest way to tell is if everything still looks clear aside from the broken glass.  If all of the pixels appear undamaged and there are no odd colors then you are probably in luck and it is only the front panel that needs to be replaced.  This could save you around $70 since the display is the most expensive part.  The guide to fix the screen is the same with the exception of actually using the new display or not; the video in this post does a great job of explaining that as well.

There are a few places that you can go to get iPhone parts and tools.  Without a doubt, iFixit is your best place to start your search for parts and tools for the repair.  iFixit has plenty of parts for most anything that you need Mac related and they also provide repair guides for the DIY project you are planning to do.  Although iFixit is a great place to get these items, there are other places that may have the parts and it may be a good idea to shop around so you get the best price on your iPhone parts.  Rapid Repair is a great site which has iPhone parts and also offers repair services if you think that you may be in over your head.  eTech Parts looks to have a good selection with some good prices and there is always eBay.  iFixit and Rapid Repair are probably the best places to get the necessary tools if you do not have them already. 

 How Do You Replace the iPhone 3G Screen

This guide will be very similar to the one for the iPhone 3GS, but you should make sure that you use the guide that applies to your specific model of iPhone if you are still using a first generation iPhone.

There are a few tools that you will need a also a couple of parts.  You will need a Phillips #00 Screwdriver,  a small suction cup, and a spudger.  The parts required would of course be the display and the front panel which is actually the covering for the display.  Once you have these items you should head on over to iFixit for the full guide on how to repair the screen.  There is also a somewhat humorous video below that goes through the process for an iPhone 3G.  It would be a good idea to familiarize yourself with both before attempting to do the repair.




Can You Replace An iPhone Screen Yourself

At this point you may be asking yourself, "can I replace the iPhone screen myself?"  The video above should make you a little more confident in your ability to do this repair, but if you do feel uncomfortable it may be a good idea to get a professional to repair it.  Apple will of course do the repair for you, but it will cost you about $100 more to get them to do it for you.   This will allow you to retain your warranty though, and it also could give you peace of mind.  Unfortunately, there is no fun in that approve at all.  If you are good with gadgets and think that you can be careful when doing the repair then you are probably going to be just fine.

AT&T Speaks Out About Their Network

It turns out that AT&T has not taken kindly to all of the Verizon ads lately knocking their network. It seems that the two networks are playing nice now after a small legal battle that was childish at best and just managed to bring light to the whole deal anyway; making it a lose lose for AT&T.  After the dust has settled a little bit though, I got this email from AT&T.  They decided to email me and let me know that their service was great and getting better all of the time.

Normally I would just think this was some email that I had signed up for accidently when buying something, but I know that for AT&T I had specifically told them not to send anything.  They sent it anyway and it only puts more bang in Verizon's advertising buck.  True, it does speak well about AT&T's network and it does try and reassure us all that they are working hard to make it better, but only when they are under the gun.  Shouldn't AT&T be working on their network all of the time.  I know that AT&T has to defend their brand whenever it is slandered in someone else's advertising, but AT&T should have addressed many issues long before deciding to take on the iPhone.  The iPhone has done so much to damage AT&T's reputation that AT&T has actually started to advertise their other devices more heavily to soften the blow when they lose exclusivity of the iPhone.  There will probably be a huge shift in brand loyalty when the iPhone does become available for other carriers, but unfortunately only time will tell.

iPhone to Verizon

Although it is just a rumor, it has been floating around so it may be worth a mention. With all of these Droid commercials and "there's a map for that" stuff you would think that Apple and Verizon will never have a partnership, but the truth is there is a perfect transition here that could truly make sense. The "Droid Does" campaign was not a very good one for the argument, but if Verizon keeps pushing the fact that their network is much better and you should pick your network and then your phone we could see a perfect shift to the iPhone coming on to Verizon's network. We have always known that Verizon was greedy and wanted too much control of the iPhone and so Apple had to logically fall back on ATT as the second best partner. Verizon is really kicking themselves right now since Apple and ATT have been living it up, but if Verizon gets a second chance it could mean great things for Apple and not so great things for ATT. I think with all of the talk of bad networks that ATT could actually see a decline in their subscriber numbers if Verizon were to get the iPhone. I for one would consider the switch if only to give Verizon a chance. The only reason that I ever switched from T-Mobile was because of the iPhone and to have a choice between the two biggest wireless providers in the US would just make it more dependent upon the network. Only time will tell if we are going to get a chance to have a big red iPhone, but hopefully we will get the option so that it helps pull prices down a little.

iPhone OS 3.1 kills Tethering Hack

AT&T has yet to release a tethering option for iPhone owners, but there was at least a little hack that was discovered which would allow you to use tethering for free without jailbreaking or unlocking your iPhone. Unfortunately, as promised, the new firmware for the iPhone does break that hack so that you can no longer use your tethering to surf the web on the go. There are a few upgrades that may be worth the update; especially alongside the iTunes updates that you can now use in conjunction, but still the loss of tethering is a major bummer. Hopefully someone will find another easy way to get the tethering working again for free and without jailbreaking. If I find one I will be sure to post it here.

Apple's New Snow Leopard

So now that Snow Leopard has been released and everyone has gotten a chance to get their copy it sounds like it is well worth the switch. Are you going to update your mac to Snow Leopard or are you going to wait for the next OS to make the upgrade? I have been anxiously awaiting the new OS especially since it has a lot of under the hood improvements that actually help with making your mac run more quickly. For a $30 upgrade cost it is not something that I think I can pass up. Sure I probably will not see much of a difference, but it is always good to keep as up to date as possible. Windows 7 on the other hand made a lot of improvements to the looks of the Windows platform, but possibly not as much focus on the internals. It is however, supposed to work much better than its predecessor so everyone is still working in the right direction it would seem.