Doing this will cause cosmetic damage to the device around the base. This does not damage the waterproofing.
Waterproofing is provided by:
A) the rubber cap held on by the D ring protects the USB/AUX ports.
b) The purple O ring under the black plastic cap held in by the 4 Phillips screws.
So, if you put all that back correctly, the waterproofing will be fine.
I found that To more easily remove the top, Re-install the D-ring during step 3, then unscrew it 1.5 turns, and grip it with a pair of vice grips.
The vice grips in combination with the Spudger will ease removing the top cover. BE GENTLE, you don’t want to tear the rubber!
If you remove the blue rubber, and it’s smooth plastic underneath instead of 4 screws, you %@#%ed up, and separated the rubber over-molding from the top plastic.
