If only I had known!

Mein Problem

My son badly cracked the screen on his iPhone 4S. Originally it was just ugly but it became progressively worse until I was afraid he would cut his face when answering the phone.

Meine Reparatur

It worked! But that was a total surprise. You can get the screen on an iPhone 4S replaced at booths in malls for $55.

If I had known how difficult this repair was I would have waited for them to get the part back in stock and left them to it.

I had previously repaired a 3GS phone and this was far, far worse. You have to completely disassemble the phone to take the screen out. Battery, logic board, speaker, it all has to come out. And everything it held in place with screws that:

a. Need an electron microscope to be seen

b. Are different sizes every time

I completed the repair with 3 screws left over and knowing that one screw went in the wrong place and never came out.

Despite that THE PHONE WORKS! I was surprised. If it had not turned back on I would literally have replaced the phone rather than attempt that again. The whole process took well over an hour.

Mein Rat

I love repairing things myself but, for this one, unless you are into self flagellation you should take it to one of the third party repairers and let them do it.

I tried to take it to two different repair places in New York. They charged between $45 and $55 but were out of stock of the screens. If I known what I know now I would have waited for them to get the parts.