Compressed air and screen dust - Nexus One Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

Has anyone tried taking a can of compressed air to the back of the Nexus One in order to try to clear dust away from the screen? I just want it off the center of the LCD screen, don't need to get it out as long as it's not that visible.
What about partially disassembling the phone (like taking out everything that doesn't require you to disconnect flex cables) and then blowing it with the air?
I managed to drop my phone a couple times and that seemed to have caused dust to get under the screen, but I don't want to take it apart completely until I've exhausted all other options. Returning it is also not an option in my geographic location.

Fancy meeting you here
How would the air get into the screen from the back? Isn't it supposed to be sealed?
I wonder if you could move the dust under the screen with static electricity. Get one of those plastic rods like they use for demonstrations in chemistry class and charge it up. Then drag it across the screen over the dust. Just be careful not to discharge the rod onto the metal body of the phone...

Even if you did attempt this...
It would probably leave an unremovable sticky film. That's one of the reasons they tell you not to use it to blow off camera sensors, lenses, and CCDs (you're supposed to use a blower bulb). The compressed air isn't just pure clean air, it's got a bunch of bull**** in it. Not to mention it could quickfreeze the OLED parts and ruin the screen permanently. I would NOT try it. In fact, if you clean the back (battery, SD, SIM area) make sure you hold a piece of CLEAN 100% cotton (best if it's from a t-shirt) over the camera sensor or it will blow off the IR filter. Hope this helps.

I have done it twice. I posted pictures up on here on a different thread the first time around, which was probably 3 months ago. Send me a pm if you want the pictures. It wasn't horrible to do, but I don't know that I'd recommend it unless you're already experienced in these type of exercises. I didn't have any adverse side affects to the screen.

Here's the before and after.. I have pictures of the dis-assembly as well.

Oh yeah, I also found that a can of compressed air wasn't strong enough. I used an actual compressor set at 60-80ish psi I think.

@enisoc lol...
The teardowns online haven't said that there was anything sealing the screen and the front cover, but the cellphone shops here that I've asked have said that they would apply a sealant if I paid them to take the phone apart for me.
It looks like I can't get to the dust with anything short of a complete teardown :-(. I took the canned air to the back of the phone and it didn't do anything, but I also didn't disassemble the battery tray (no torx screwdriver).
@dhendrix11 if you took the phone apart, why did you still have to use a compressor? Couldn't you then just take something and wipe the dust off?

hgcrpd said:
@enisoc lol...
The teardowns online haven't said that there was anything sealing the screen and the front cover, but the cellphone shops here that I've asked have said that they would apply a sealant if I paid them to take the phone apart for me.
It looks like I can't get to the dust with anything short of a complete teardown :-(. I took the canned air to the back of the phone and it didn't do anything, but I also didn't disassemble the battery tray (no torx screwdriver).
@dhendrix11 if you took the phone apart, why did you still have to use a compressor? Couldn't you then just take something and wipe the dust off?
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I used a combination of compressed air and a microfiber cloth. I found that it was impossible to find an absolutely clean spot on the cloth, so it basically just put dust back on the phone. I mostly used the cloth to wipe off smudges when I accidentally touched the back side of the lens/touchpanel, and relied on the compressed air to remove the dust. Also, I didn't detach the lens from the phone frame, so it's hard to get into the corners (where most of the dust is) with a cloth.
The second time around I had a lot less dust and tried cleaning it without fully removing the LCD. If you take the phone apart, you'll understand why you might want to leave the LCD attached and simply lean it back from the lens. However, in the end, I didn't find that to be effective, so I took the LCD out both times. I've got a small amount of dust back in there again, but may 5-10% of what I had the first time, and I really haven't noticed it at all, even out in the bright sun, which was the environment that I typically found it most offensive.
As long as you have patience, it's certainly a do-able task. The main reason I did it myself is because it was early on before anyone was reporting confirmed success of getting HTC to fix the issue free of charge with an unlocked bootloader. I didn't want to chance getting billed for it so it was a nice little project instead. Now that many people have proven that HTC will honor hardware defects regardless of unlocked bootloader, I'd go the replacement route if there's not some other reason keeping you from it.

dhendrix11 said:
I have pictures of the dis-assembly as well.
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Click to collapse
Please could you post? Thanks

GyTe said:
Please could you post? Thanks
Click to expand...
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Disassembly 1

Disassembly 2

Full breakdown and then put back together

Hi dhendrix11 thanks for the pictures... I've saved everything on my pc.
Cheers

well, I ended up taking my phone apart too, using the iFixit guide and the Youtube video. Actually not as painful as I expected it to be, but for some reason I did not have a rubber microphone channel under the bottom mainboard, and I didn't have a screw at the top left of the top mainboard.
I also didn't take the screen out completely, just pulled it up a bit and used tweezers and a cloth to wipe everything off.
Now I have a like-new screen!

Related

Help got my G1 wet!!

I got a G1 and got it wet now it works fine till the screen goes in timeout it dont want to came back it normally happens doring a call i already have the phone on never to time out i downgrade to rc29 then rc30 then rc33 and back to rc30 with no result same old problem after the screen finally cames back I get a notification telling me to close the program it was running before.any help will be appreciated.
Dude, take the battery out and put a fan or something on it to let it dry. The more you use it the more you risk a short. It sounds like your phone might be OK, but let it dry overnight at least.
Good Luck!
I've done that to 2 phones in the past. The deal is the phone may work for a couple of days and die out for no apparent reason. The more you use it the worse it with get. To dry out properly means putting it in a windowsill for 2 weeks to insure complete drying with the battery and sim card removed. But corrosion and rust can still take place and your phone will never be the same. BUT... you can save it with 90% success rate if wanna take it apart. It's risky but with the right tools it can be done by anyone. What you need is a G1 manual from HTC here (here ya go... www.mikechannon.net and a torx screwdriver. Take it apart following the pdf disassembly guide and dry out what you can with a dry rag and then clean it out with isopropyl alcohol and an old toothbrush (just dip the brush in the rubbing alcohol lightly). Just be care with disassembly and all the ribbon wires (they break and tear easily). And if the screen has condensation, I would consider taking it apart also (that part was somewhat difficult and yes I have done it for fun, lol!) Good luck!
sino8r said:
I've done that to 2 phones in the past. The deal is the phone may work for a couple of days and die out for no apparent reason. The more you use it the worse it with get. To dry out properly means putting it in a windowsill for 2 weeks to insure complete drying with the battery and sim card removed. But corrosion and rust can still take place and your phone will never be the same. BUT... you can save it with 90% success rate if wanna take it apart. It's risky but with the right tools it can be done by anyone. What you need is a G1 manual from HTC here (here ya go... Link removed - no longer valid and a torx screwdriver. Take it apart following the pdf disassembly guide and dry out what you can with a dry rag and then clean it out with isopropyl alcohol and an old toothbrush (just dip the brush in the rubbing alcohol lightly). Just be care with disassembly and all the ribbon wires (they break and tear easily). And if the screen has condensation, I would consider taking it apart also (that part was somewhat difficult and yes I have done it for fun, lol!) Good luck!
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taking it apart is an excellent idea. i did that when i dropped my sony erricson K750i in the bath (lol ><), left the pieces on a radiator on low heat for about 3 days and it worked fine.
thank you for the responces but.....
i did let it dry for about 3 weeks i was hoping it could be software related since it gives me those application closure pop ups. otherwise it works fine i might just go back to my trustworthy dash.
Have you done a factory reset? If not try that and see if the problem goes away.
let it dry, once its dry get a replacement
just make sure you say you have no idea how it stopped working, if you say it got wet they will probably charge you for it
Well, if you open up the back, there's a little dot there beneath the battery. That's there so that T-Mobile can tell if you got your phone wet. If they find out that you did, they will bill you for the new one.
The best thing to do would be to try using a teeny tiny bit isopropyl alcohol on the dot to see if it changes back. If not, you should take it apart and swab most of the nonelectric pieces.
i've done this to a few phones but i can usually have them up and running in less than an hour and they work perfectly, what i do is take the phone apart to every component, completely submerge each piece in ethenol, isopropal alcohol works too but i can get ethanol for free, the alcohol is highly volatile and will actually absorb water and evaporate with it, after taking the pieces of the phone out of the alcohol i scub it with a toothbrush for 5 or so minutes making sure that each part of that piece has been scrubbed from every angle, then i place the parts of my phone on a dry microfiber cloth and move to the next piece. when i have dipped and scrubbed all pieces i run them under a hair dryer on high for ten to fifteen minutes and put the phone back together. all my phones still work and one took an hour long bath in a lake, i had to go snorkeling to find it and thought it was a lost cause, the only reason i bothered to fix that one was to win a $100 bet that i could.
Keep the phone together
get a plastic freezer bag and fill it with dry, uncooked rice
place your phone in with the rice and make sure the phone gets submerged under the rice.
Let it sit for 24 hours.
I've seen this fix phones that had dr pepper spilled on them, dropped in toilets, even washed.
And hell its easy.
In the summer I've rescued a phone by putting it on top of an air conditioner vent to dry out. The key is you want to bathe it in VERY DRY air - you want to dry it quickly. You don't want too much heat - but you need it to be very dry.
The isopropanol suggestion is probably good, although I'd be a little concerned that it might damage some of the plastics. You're basically washing off the water with another solvent, and that other solvent will dry off much more quickly. Isopropanol and ethanol are relatively easy on most plastics - I'd avoid anything like acetone as that is more likely to fog your screen/etc. Solvents that aren't miscible with water (ether, toluene, etc) won't work.
Oh, and those solvents need to be fairly concentrated. Many household solvents are more water than anything else - you're not going to get as effective drying if you're using something like 30% ethanol (it is still 70% water).
Above all, take out the battery IMMEDIATELY after getting it wet. Once the battery is gone your only real concern is rust, and that takes a while to build up.
Oh, if you get it wet with salt water you might want to wash it out with clean water first (again, remove battery first). You don't want salt deposits left behind. Do that before rinsing with a solvent - the solvent isn't going to effectively remove salt (depending on the solvent).
With proper care (and assuming no serious shorts already happened) there is no reason you can't dry out a phone. Half of those components were probably washed with water during manufacture anyway. As long as you get rid of contaminants like salt, prevent rust, and make sure there is no residual water when power is applied you will probably be ok.
Regarding putting the phone in to the bag of dry, uncooked rice.....
Did you leave the back on the phone, or did you remove it to get better absorption?
Regarding drying out the phone in a bag of dry, uncooked rice....
Did you take the back cover off the phone to get better absorption, or did you leave it on?
Homer says "Doh!"
Well I washed my G1 in the laundry last night for 10 minutes before I realized where it was. (Thank you Thank you for the <insert stupid group here> nomination...)
I removed it from the laundry, removed the battery, soaked up all the water I could with paper towels, put the vacuum cleaner on it for several hours (moving from hole to hole to try to pull all the water out).
It booted this morning, but there was a fine film in the display and I had the same problem as the thread creator turning the screen on after it timed out.
So at work I put it in a vacuum chamber for several hours today.
Now the screen and rest of the phone looks perfect, all radios, touch, gyro and other hardware widgets work fine and all software seems fine.
But, I still have to hit power several times to get the screen to turn on without it either turning itself back off or it washing out to some random color (red or green or blue or white).
I think it is actually turning on quicker now, so maybe it will completely recover. Fingers crossed. Once on it seems to work fine.
WET PHONE - my two pence worth
WET PHONE - CLEAN WATER is the best hope you got (not going down the toilet route!!) :-
(( NO HEAT, unless really good air flow!! ))
1 - hold vertically upright, give fluid chance to run out ((pref opposite from where it came in!!))- WHILST - removing MAIN battery ASAP
(even the internal one - if you know how,) and can do it quick (can 'O' air!), aswell as, remove the covers <<Disassemble IF YOU CAN>>
((( NO HEAT, unless really good air flow!! ))
2 - centrifugal force ! <swing in one arm, around afew times> forcing fluid out wards (BETWEEN BOARDS!'"
"give fluid chance to run out ((pref opposite from where it came in!!))",
say 2 times with top outermost, then say four times with the bottom outermost -
arm outstreached fully infront of you, and go FAST "like winding a 6 foot wheel" think of ball on record player.
3 - small tin of "silica gel satchets", get them in lots of packaging <keep them or (or DRIED pasta, rice, peas)> mines in
attic next to entrance hatch, Tape box shut to keep agroscopic properties until needed, during, and after using!!!!!!!!!!!!
never personally had to do anything else **most times skipped 2**- maybe rest may help you !!!
a - compressed air (can / keyboard cleaner 'AIR') < never had a compressor / gone to the garage > - blow the EXCESS fluids out -
<<BEWARE screen, speakers, mics, DON'T LIKE THIS>> but under S.M.IC's, "connectors" (ribbon/wire) and (brown/see through) ones only (not the tri coloured foam stuff 4 LCD's!!!
b - internal battery maybe still powering things, while still wet=(short circuiting parts/portions of parts) starting the corrosion
c - if you try to use it before completely dried, will probably cause, either/both of:-
<"corrosion" of (circuit board) or (full/part -component) which is RUST!!> This will extentivly shorten the life of, and WILL eventually kill it
<instant failure of some components> due to short circuit, ( HOW MANY <replaceable> FUSES ARE IN YOUR PHONE ? ) -
(( NO HEAT, unless really good air flow!! )) THEME running through this!!
#===#===#{[_d.b_]}#===#===#===# . . . : . . .: "Not so many replaceable parts for disposable technology!!!"
i dont have rice in my house atm (no idea why), will lentils work?

Water damage questions

Hello,
I recently did one of the stupidist things ever-my tilt was water damaged. It was a whole 3 to 5 minutes before I figured it out. As soon as I realized it I hopped out, removed the battery, SIM, SD card, and wrapped it in a towel.
When I got home I did some breif reading on the ATT forums, some people said that you should completely dissasemble it. After taking out some Torx screws and having no idea how to take it apart, I saw some little "tamper strings" under the cover above the battery and decided to leave it alone.
This was in a residential pool with light chlorine. I read that if you get salt water in it, you should rinse it with distilled water, but I'm not sure if I should do that now?
It's been about 24 hours since it happened. It is currently sitting in a plastic bag with several silica gel packets. Luckily I can't see any water behind the screen.
The most interesting thing is that the little moisture indicator hasn't really changed. When I got it (refurbished from ATT) it was white with a tiny hint of pink at the very top. It doesn't look any different now. But I could see how a very grumpy ATT employee could mark it as water damaged.
How long should I wait before trying it out again? Should I discard the existing battery and buy a new one? Any other advice?
I would really appreciate your help. I know that there is info out there but I didn't see any that specifically dealt with chlorine and also I was wondering what you all thought about the water sensor.
Thanks, have a great day.
I don't pretend to be an expert, but I would not allow it to "air dry" because of minerals and rust setting up. I would use compressed air to force the moisture out, followed by a blow dryer to clear up any residual moisture. I'd then let it sit in a nice sunny window for a while, just in case. Never dealt with it in a phone, but this is the method I've used for other electronics, including a Nintendo DS. Sometimes successful, sometimes not. I think it really depends on the initial short.
Thanks for your response. It's not drying in open air, it is drying inside a small ziploc sandwich bag along with a three silica gel packets. Are you suggesting that I take it apart and then blow it out with the compressed air? Seeing as my water sensor hasn't really changed much color I'm hoping there's a sliver of a chance I might get a help at an AT&T store.
How long do you think I should wait before giving it a try? Do you think the battery I have is safe to use?
You are on the right track:
http://www.foxnews.com/video/index....t=3475797&referralPlaylistId=search|cellphone
Well sadly after 4 days drying out in the silica gell, I put the battery in and right away the LEDs at the top were flickering on and off-blue, white, green, etc. Then, I pushed the power button. The vibrator buzzed lethargically but nothing came onscreen.
Now when I plut it in I get the dreaded "red light."
I tried to start opening it up, but I couldn't even get that cover above the battery off. I don't want to damage the plastic even though it's out of warranty.
Any suggestions on places to get repair? If it would be under $100-120 it would probably be worth it to me to get it fixed.
you do not need to take it apart, dip in rubbing alcohol (prefereably a high percentage) then let sit for a while, depending on the amount of water you will need to soak or longer or several times. using a toothbrush after soaking can help.
No -- don't soak it in anything -- you'll get fluid inside the touchscreen.
Better to let it dry then try it -- and if it still doesn't work properly take it apart and clean each piece.
Check out www.ppctechs.com they did excellent work on both of my Tilts.
Wow they are expensive! $60 just to diagnose probably not going to be worth it. Anyway, I think I'll just wait another 3-4 days and then try it again. I'm a little wary about taking it apart cuz I can't seem to get the hang of it, but my warranty is over anyway so what's to lose?
@noodles21o2, do you mean to take it apart before soaking and brush the inside?
Thanks everybody for your suggestions.
no, just dip the thing in rubbing alcohol. it is proven to work...which is because alcohol is highly volatile. will absorb the water and evaporate much quicker. the brush is for if that doesnt work completely and would have to then take it apart. and worst case senario...it still doesnt work
before trying the alchohol thing, I plugged it in with the battery in. for about 10 seconds the orange lights up, but then switches to blinking which I haven't seen before. when i try to boot it up, it buzzes as normal but the LCD doesn't come on. then it just randomly buzzes likes it's trying again after a few seconds. this is after 5 days.
this is better than when I tried it after 3 days-it was red when I plugged it in, then when I tried turning it on all of the LED's flashed randomly.
I am going to suggest that you follow the advice of the guy who said submurge it in rubbign alcohol.. You really hsoudl do it right away... it will prevent minerals and otehr corrision inside it that will ruin it, the alcohol will displace the water inside, and as you have probalyl noticed if you ever spilt any rubbign alcohol, it evaporated very quickly... It is better to do it sooner than later before you get rust and other currosion inside it
Well I bit the bullet and submerged it in isopropyl rubbing alchohol in a covered plastic container. How long do you figure I should leave it in there?
chambo622 said:
Well I bit the bullet and submerged it in isopropyl rubbing alchohol in a covered plastic container. How long do you figure I should leave it in there?
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generle rule i follow is to let it sit there about as long as it was in the water, probably longer. though by turning it on you may have screwed it, so good job
You should have just listened to me in the first place.
Well sadly I didn't even get in into the silica gel until about 6 hours after the initial submission as I was far from home. Unfortunately this probably will be a lost cause, had I had better luck and followed procedure immediately it probably would have been fine.
I left it in there for about 30-40 minutes, now it's drying. Quite a bit of the liquid got behind the screen. But I'm pretty sure the screen is shot anway. This poor thing will probably end up on ebay unless I'm insanely lucky. But thanks for your help I appreciate it.
I decided to take it apart to see if I could dry out the screen faster that way. Anyway there was a lot of corrosion on the screws, plastic, etc. in the battery compartment, but as I got further in, it didn't look too bad but definitely not new lol.
I think I'll put it together in a few days and see if anything has changed. Not sure if its worth spending $$ on a new screen cuz if that doesn't work I don't know how to fix anything else.
Rubbing alcohol is good if you can get good air supply to the parts, which in this case, you weren't. High purity alcohol does dry quickly with little to no residues, but it also wreaks havoc on ink, glues, etc. I would have NOT gone with the alcohol dip. If you were able to disassemble it, then I would have gone with the alcohol/canned air route.
Also, silica gel packets only absorb water, they don't "refresh" once they dry (to a certain extent). Consider filling a ziplock bag with dry rice, and then sticking your phone inside. This is actually a very effective way to absorb moisture that continues to work, versus silica gel packets which decrease their absorbancy as time goes on, especially in a sealed ziploc.
If you are seeing corrosion inside the phone, you're most likely SOL. The fact that the phone was ON when you jumped into the pool greatly decreases your chance, as the water likely had time to get into the phone while you had electricity running through the circuit(s). At best, you can now try and clean the board(s) with a good quality circuit cleaner (not just rubbing alcohol, it will likely not touch any corrosion).

How to replace Nexus Digitizier/Glass

So last week I cracked the glass on my poor Nexus. It took a horrible drop. Well I can't afford another Nexus and I can imagine having any other phone so I figured I'd repair this one. Read up alot on it and watched a video on Youtube. Ordered all the parts I needed I tackled it today.
Well I decided to do a How-To for any other Nexus owner with broken screens.
New digitizer - $40
Torx screwdriver -$5
Philips screwdriver -$5
Plastic tools - Free
Total - $50
Sure beats the $125 some online sites charge.
I would like to thank ifixit and slickromeo.
1. Gather all your tools and replacement glass (known as a digitizer).
Note: Needed tools are a Philips #00, a Torx T4, and a plastic pry tool (Mine was included with the new screen)
2. Set up a clean comfortable area to work in. You may be here for awhile and you're going to want to reduce the amount of dust that could potentially get on the new glass.
Note: I used a folded over microfiber towel to keep the area clean and also add some padding to the hard counter top to prevent even more damage while working with the phone.
3. Power phone off and remove battery cover, battery, SIM card, and Micro SD card. Set aside in a safe place.
4.Our first obstacle is going to be the antennae cover at the bottom of the phone. There are three plastic clips holding it in place (Circled in red). Use a combination of the pry tool, a guitar pick, butter knife, and any other instrument you need to shove in there. It is a pain in the ass... the video I watched online made it seem like it was going to be alot harder than it was, but if you work from left to right, or right to left, and get the outside one unclipped the other two come off pretty easy. Once you get it off set it aside with the battery cover and other things.
Note: Be careful not to break these tiny, fragile clips as they are the only things holding this cover in place.
5. Scream profanities and wipe the sweat off your brow from the previous step. I know it was frustrating and nerve racking trying not to break your precious Nexus.
6. Ok good job now to start the real deconstruction. I'm going to start with the battery tray and then move down to the antennae. There are three screws holding the tray down, but before we start on those there is this tiny ridiculous little "VOID" sticker covering up one of them. I wasn't able to remove it intake, partly because I don't really care about my warranty, but I'm sure with alot of patience and tweezers one could take it off intake and put it back. But screw that just get it off to get to the screw underneath.
7. Now two of these screws is a Torx and the third is a Philips (All in green). Remove them and put them somewhere very safe.
Note: I have four plastic cups set up to place my screws into. These are going into the first one.
8.Next you need to remove the battery tray. There are seven tabs (yellow circles) around it that you need to release using your plastic pry tool. Once those are released gently pull away form the bottom of the phone to remove the tray. Set the tray aside.
9. Now for the antennae cover. There are two more screws to remove, a Torx and a Philips (Orange circles). These screws are going in the second bowl. After the screws are out, gently lift up on the bottom of that cover and it should remove easily. Be very careful not to damage the circuit board during removal.
10. Next to come out is the logic board. there are two more very tiny screws to remove (White circles). Into the third bowl with those. Next you need to disconnect three connections (purple circles). Then carefully go around the perimeter of it with your pry tool and VERY CAREFULLY remove all the little tabs holding it in place. Then simply push up form the bottom of the logic board and slide it out. Set it somewhere very safe.
11. Now onto the actual case of the Nexus. Remove the six Philips screws, 1 at the top and 5 at the bottom . Again there are a series of little clips, five of em, around the perimeter that need to be undone and then the case very easily separates from the screen. Set the case aside.
12. Very simply pry the LCD screen away form the glass digitizer. There it is... the broken glass.
13. Now take your pry tool and from the back of the glass (not the side you would touch if you were using the phone) wedge it between the frame and the glass to separate to adhesive. Once the pry tool is in you can just slide it around the edge of the glass to separate the whole thing. TA-DA your broken glass is forever gone.
Note: The glass is broken and very sharp. Take extreme caution not to cut yourself.
14. Now we just have to put the whole thing back together. Start with the new glass/digitizer. Peel off the plastic protector to expose the adhesive and very carefully put it in place.
15. Wrap the connector that is part of the digitizer around and secure it in place with its adhesive.
16. Take the whole screen assembly and slide it back into the case. Push to secure the clips then replace the six screws that you removed.
17. Slide the logic board carefully back into place. You may have to hold down/more out of the way a few of the connectors. Take it a little at a time and see where it is getting caught up. You got this far don't lose your patience.
18. Snap the back antennae cover back in and replace its screws.
19. Slide the battery tray into place and replace its screws.
20. Snap the gray antennae cover back on.
21. Replace Micro SD card, battery, and battery cover.
22. Enjoy the beauty of your Nexus without a broken screen.
23. Place Nexus in Otterbox Defender case so this never happens again.
I have pictures that document each step but need to be approved by a moderator before it lets me post em... sorry guys
Hey, awesome job on fixing your screen. I would love to see them, my Nexus just went through the same thing 30 min ago. I had it on my lap, and upon stepping out of the car, SMACK, is all I heard. It landed face down and this is the aftermath. It's much worse than it looks in the picture.
Man, that sucks. I know that feeling.
I'll try to put the pictures up to help you out. Or at least a link to my photobucket.
Sent from my Nexus One using Tapatalk
thanks! I just cracked mine yesterday after the phone fell out of my pocket onto a concrete floor. Ouch. I'm giving this a whirl.
Nice, I'll keep this in mind for the day I accidentally break my n1.
I just wish we could somehow jury-rig the Incredible digitizer to our phones =/
I just recently converted to the n1, bought the phone for cheap off craigslists, but notice burn in on the screen, will changing the digitizier also fix the burn in?
Thank you so much for taking the time to do this write up. I just dropped my phone and smashed the screen on concrete 30 mins ago. All is working but the glass is cracked. I've ordered a new Digitizer/Glass from ebay for £30, I just hope it comes by tomorrow.
you can post picture after 5 posts so it should be good now you have 8 posts
I've just completed the work of replacing the broken glass.
I used your guide throughout, it's a shame you haven't been able to post the pictures as it definitely would have helped. I managed to google some dismantling pictures to help with your talk through as it was hard going some times.
Many thanks again.
Another useful tip: run an air purifier aimed at your work station to minimize the risk of getting dust in the glass.
blueboymj: Any chance you can edit your original post and add your pictures so others can use them? I searched quite a lot for a specific procedure to change the digitizer on my poor N1; This was the best, most accurate guide I found. I've done digitizers on a few iPhones (sorry for the profanity) using the ifixit guides, but alas, the ifixit guides were better for them than they are for the N1.
On a side note: The end cap that gives people so much trouble fell off of my N1 in the initial drop. I pushed it back on, and continued using the phone even though the glass was shattered. Removing it the first time was not so hard, I think it was not back on as well as it should have been. Removing it the second time (another story) was much harder. There are two little plastic "bars" on the end cap (step 4 above) that fit into small grooves on the "antenna cover". (step 7) I think the trick may be to possibly pinch the edges of the end cap, while sliding it toward the bottom of the phone. I looked at it after it was open, to see why it was so hard to remove, and realized I had been inadvertently helping it hold itself closed while trying to pry it open. Maybe one of the videos addresses this; I did not watch them.
Thank you to the OP and the responders for this post!
So where exactly did u order the new digitizier and parts from?
Sent from my Nexus One using XDA App
This thread should be added to the N1 wiki. Thanks for the instructions.
DrewOntheMYT said:
I just recently converted to the n1, bought the phone for cheap off craigslists, but notice burn in on the screen, will changing the digitizier also fix the burn in?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Burn in? Like shadowing on the LCD? Nope.
Thats the LCD, and is completely different than the digitizer. The digitizer is just a clear plastic/glass layer that goes OVER the lcd to detect touch.
I had the digitizer and a new case and was going to have a local phone store replace this for me. However, they just gave me some BS story about how you cannot replace the digitizer without also replacing the LCD screen, which I did not provide.
So I've been without a phone (since they have it) for no reason and have to drive out of my way to retrieve it.
Hey crappy phone store, if you're too scared to do the job just say so, don't try to make up a bunch of manure and say it can't be done.
Anyway, I just ordered the required tools that I don't have and am going to give this a whirl.
OP, if you can't post your pics, can you email them to me?
does it fix the multitouch problem?

Great, cracked the screen of my Z3 Compact

This morning I was cleaning my phone (getting rid of the finger prints/smudges) while standing up when it slipped out of my hand and hit the tiled floor. Everything is fine except the screen (which is cracked). Screen works fine but is unresponsive no matter where I press or touch the screen. How much does a Z3 Compact replacement screen cost? I searched around and it seems it is about $100?
Screen replacement costs in Poland +/- 135$
(authorised sony service)
Yes' it's hard to get original one cheaper than 100-120$. You can search for some Chinese replacement cause sometimes it looks quite similar to original one but You must check it before buying. Last time I had a client with Z1c replacement screen which he bought for 40$ and there was no white color, everything what should be white was purple.
Voids warranty, cheap replacement
Got mine from here replacebase dot co dot uk (can not post links ), of course you void your warranty if you do it yourself.
Parts are good quality till now. I advice to order a back glass too, I broke mine when taking it out and had to reorder again (costs approx 6 pound).
Next time just heat up back glass with hair dryer and You wont break it.
Chamelleon said:
Next time just heat up back glass with hair dryer and You wont break it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the input
The problem was a small crack which did not matter until you have to remove it, you can not pull on it when its cracked. Anyway I will use a hair dryer to put it back together (assemble, heat up, press with books).
Thanks for the replies.
I'll be getting the repair done from the official Sony shop/distributor I bought the phone from. Just wanted to get an idea of how much it "should" cost before I approach them.
m4mbax said:
Thanks for the input
The problem was a small crack which did not matter until you have to remove it, you can not pull on it when its cracked. Anyway I will use a hair dryer to put it back together (assemble, heat up, press with books).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello
I have tried to change my backglass 3 times but after a few hours the glass falls off... (Yes, I cleaned the phone removing all the old adhesive - and yes, I had pressure on it over night ) But all the instructions I have found on the internet never mentioned anything about putting the glass on, and HEATING it up, and the putting pressure on it... Where have you found that advice? You could imagine that heating up would ruin the adhesive/making it thinner and thereby not waterproof...? But on the other hand your succesrate probably beats mine...
Foxhunter123 said:
Hello
I have tried to change my backglass 3 times but after a few hours the glass falls off... (Yes, I cleaned the phone removing all the old adhesive - and yes, I had pressure on it over night ) But all the instructions I have found on the internet never mentioned anything about putting the glass on, and HEATING it up, and the putting pressure on it... Where have you found that advice? You could imagine that heating up would ruin the adhesive/making it thinner and thereby not waterproof...? But on the other hand your succesrate probably beats mine...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think it was a comment below the iFixit tutorial. But one big warning here, I did extra maximally stupid and put it to 'press' under my table (with books around it). The table was too heavy and cracked my front screen once again :crying:
+ The rear glass sits fixed and has not loosened.
- Don't put too much pressure or you destroy it yet again like stupid me
m4mbax said:
I think it was a comment below the iFixit tutorial. But one big warning here, I did extra maximally stupid and put it to 'press' under my table (with books around it). The table was too heavy and cracked my front screen once again :crying:
+ The rear glass sits fixed and has not loosened.
- Don't put too much pressure or you destroy it yet again like stupid me
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Doh!!! ? I have also read on Ifixit and can see there are different opinions about if it is nessesary to heat or not. But I think I will follow your advice and heat the new back before putting it under (less pressure) ?.
Another thing I read on Ifixit is that someone writes that you should put on an adhesive sticker - eventhough the new back comes with adhesive already on...? What is your advice on this?
Most pre-glued adhesive stickers on back are useless. Now everytime I change back in Xperia Z, Z1, Z2, Z3 and compacts I need to remove pre-glued sticker and change it to original one. Many times I had complaint on it from my clients saying that back glass came off. So it's better to order original back glass or just original adhesive.
Foxhunter123 said:
Doh!!! I have also read on Ifixit and can see there are different opinions about if it is nessesary to heat or not. But I think I will follow your advice and heat the new back before putting it under (less pressure) .
Another thing I read on Ifixit is that someone writes that you should put on an adhesive sticker - eventhough the new back comes with adhesive already on...? What is your advice on this?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good
Mine came with the adhesive ON the screen, I used that one, I didn't have a separate one. Be extra careful when 'placing' the adhesive where it belongs because you can not remove it once place (okay maybe slightly). Its important that it fits on the first to first and a half try. More adhesive means thicker layer --> glass will stick out
Anyway, most of the stories you read online are partially BS, the phone will work even when the glass is a tiny bit loose or when the adhesive rotated and is a bit thicker in one place. In my eyes, when you dared to order, you are very much capable of assemble the parts.
In btw, ordered new glasses today, hope my two left hands fix it this time.
PS: A lesson I learned on a friends Galaxy S2, do NEVER EVER try to use force when something sticks or is not as loose as in a video. Google or ask another person maybe you just dont do the trick. A connector didnt want to come off so we used a lever to lift it, CLICK, the place where the lever levered broke the board... :silly:
Edit 1: I think its not necessary to HEAT it, it just has to be a lil bit warmer than in your pocket or when calculating heavily. 30s under a hairdryer will be more than enough i guess.
Forgot to update this thread. I received my fixed phone last week. They replaced the screen and even the "bumpers" around the phone for $98. They even delivered the phone to my home free of charge. Looks brand new, all the minor dings I had on the phone are gone.
On another note, I also bought my first iPhone. Got an Space Gray iPhone 6s 128 GB with the official/Apple leather case for the 6s. Got it last Thursday. Been playing around with it a lot and, overall, I love it. Deciding on whether to keep my Z3 Compact as a back-up phone or just sell it. But geez, does the iPhone 6s load games and other apps fast (thanks to its NVMe storage).

My Z3 compact screen is falling out

So I like just about everything about the Sony Z compact line of phones but durability wise I have been unlucky. My first Z3 compact died from water damage and my 2nd one has a screen that is ready to fall off the device.
I choose to buy a HTC U11 to replace my Z3 compact as I have never owned a HTC phone before and thought I would try something different.
What I would like to ask here though is it worth trying to fix the Z3 compact to sell or not?
The only way to protect this phone:
The phone bends 0.1mm causes the phone screen to start opening. So it's not suitable for jeans pockets.
I remedied this by using an anodized aluminium bumper and tempered glass both sides.
Sony does a very bad repair of it's phones, and the issues will return, and their parts are expensive.
It is better to do it yourself and use B7000 glue, use plenty, easily removable for future repairs, no heat, clothes pegs, wait 48 hours before removing pegs or turning on the phone. And look for the best grade of screen with frame, Sony uses two manufacturers for its screens.
My Z3C has a screen that is lifting. This thread and others seem to indicate that fixing the screen is not hard but hardware is not my thing at all...
Would a phone repair place (in a shopping centre) be able to do this kind of repair? Is the phone much different to other phones that people would take in for screen replacements?
I don't care about the loss of waterproofing. The screen isn't even falling out, just lifted in the corner. I don't want to send the phone anywhere and be without it, or have it come back changed in unexpected ways...
a1291762 said:
My Z3C has a screen that is lifting. This thread and others seem to indicate that fixing the screen is not hard but hardware is not my thing at all...
Would a phone repair place (in a shopping centre) be able to do this kind of repair? Is the phone much different to other phones that people would take in for screen replacements?
I don't care about the loss of waterproofing. The screen isn't even falling out, just lifted in the corner. I don't want to send the phone anywhere and be without it, or have it come back changed in unexpected ways...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Phone shops including Sony themselves have difficulty in repairing this particular phone, I think any phone shop can do this repair, but, they must use the B7000 glue or similar, or silicone, and not the red tape they usually use, it's useless, as this phone can heat up, or the blue z3c ready cut tape is not so good either. And if you get the wrong screen (clone), the colours will not be as good.
Many phone repairers have the clone screens that are thicker than the original.
The screen sometimes is actually bent, along with the body, check on a flat surface.
Always buy a good screen together attached with the body, and never by itself.
So armed with this knowledge and or hardware, you could go talk with a phone repairer... The first 3 times, shop, but maybe the fourth repair, try doing it yourself, it's as easy as opening a PC, just smaller, just follow z3c repair guides and youtube, when you're ready. When attempting to repair the phone, for the very first time, do it over hours, maybe over the weekend, and not one sitting.
If you start loosing patience, leave it for a while etc.
[emoji12]
I got so comfortable with opening my phone, I put extra 0.3mm copper plates on the processor and gpu with Cooler Master Extreme Fusion paste etc. Lol.
But it's good to have an already damaged motherboard to work on.
Z3C LOS Omni Oreo
My screen is still working fine. Just lifting.
I do have some old phones I could practice on, assuming they have the same glass sandwich construction.
I will go look for some videos...
a1291762 said:
My screen is still working fine. Just lifting.
I do have some old phones I could practice on, assuming they have the same glass sandwich construction.
I will go look for some videos...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
?
Z3C LOS Omni Oreo
I put up with my screen for a long time but eventually the glue gave out and I had no choice. It was good, then bad, but ultimately ok.
I didn't have any trouble taking the glass off the first time because the glue was barely hanging on. I had a look and noticed that the headphone jack's glue was also failing. Probably why it was becoming unreliable. I glued that and reseated the screen cable and it worked fine while sitting there so I glued everything on again.
It was a poor first attempt. I had both too much glue (blobs that leaked out) and not enough to actually seal around much of the screen. No problem. I took the glass off again and glued it again. This time I followed the instructions closer and glued the front screen before connecting the ribbon.
The second gluing was good but something with the ribbon was wrong because it only worked when I pressed on the lower part of the screen. Sigh.
Taking the glass off after a good glue was much harder. I finally got the spudger under the glass but I moved it sideways before removing the suction thing. It was too much pressure for the glass. The good news is that it was the rear glass and only the bottom half shattered. I got the rest off and started on the front.
Now that I knew to be more careful, I got the front off OK. Reseat. Test and working. I glued the front on first again, without disconnecting the cable. Tested and working. I glued the half back I had on (covers the camera).
Its working!
I use a case so the back isn't even a problem, but I ordered a new back from China (cheap). The headphone Jack seems better. I put a new screen protector on. In some ways the phone is rejuvenated.
I was apparently not careful enough when taking off the screen though. I appear to have some marks on my screen now. It's minor, probably won't notice during normal use, but there if you look.
I'm so glad to have my phone back. I've been using an iPhone for the last 3 weeks.
Thanks for the tips.
Edit: The hands free speaker works again too. Bonus

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