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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?
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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?

Replacement rear stickers and copper plate

Hey guys
After trawling through Google, eBay and XDA I haven't been successful in finding anywhere that sells replacements for the black panel/sticker things that have to be ripped off in order to take the phone apart. I might be getting a Milestone with a broken digitizer in a few weeks and, judging from disassembly guides, you have to be pretty rough with these bits to get them off.
I'm talking about the copper bit, the top bit and the bit with the Google logo, all on the rear of the phone.
Any help would be much appreciated!
One more thing: would I be right in thinking that the 855 and 853 digitizers are interchangeable?

In the states I have seen these things from one seller on ebay, quite expensive though. If caution is exercised, all can be removed with little or no destruction to them. If you have a hot air gun. that also helps to soften the glue.
The only one that may get a little bent is the metallic grille. Careful on this with the heat gun if you use one, my first droid I accidentally set it to high heat, and the grille shriveled up as if it were plastic. I would use a razor flush with the grill and slowly work it under, if you start at one end and pull like in the guides I've seen, it will definitely bend.
The other two can be removed with a soft plastic splunger tool, just start at one end and take your time freeing it from the glue, the one with the google logo is brittle and can crack, also if you are too ruff, the black will scratch off the back of it. The top piece is pretty sturdy and a piece of cake, I had a skin on one Droid and the two top pieces came up together.
If you do mess them up and can't find replacements, and the phone is yours, who cares? rock it out with an ugly back

bitz_dv said:
In the states I have seen these things from one seller on ebay, quite expensive though. If caution is exercised, all can be removed with little or no destruction to them. If you have a hot air gun. that also helps to soften the glue.
The only one that may get a little bent is the metallic grille. Careful on this with the heat gun if you use one, my first droid I accidentally set it to high heat, and the grille shriveled up as if it were plastic. I would use a razor flush with the grill and slowly work it under, if you start at one end and pull like in the guides I've seen, it will definitely bend.
The other two can be removed with a soft plastic splunger tool, just start at one end and take your time freeing it from the glue, the one with the google logo is brittle and can crack, also if you are too ruff, the black will scratch off the back of it. The top piece is pretty sturdy and a piece of cake, I had a skin on one Droid and the two top pieces came up together.
If you do mess them up and can't find replacements, and the phone is yours, who cares? rock it out with an ugly back
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Click to collapse
Thanks By chance I bought a heat gun to fix something else the other week... Unfortunately it seems like the one I won on eBay has been tampered with already as the copper is 'disturbed'. Oh well... Like you said, I guess it'll just be unique I could buy a vinyl instead.
PS If you ever find that eBay listing, please tell me
Edit Again: Yay, finally found the mesh on eBay. If anyone else needs a replacement it's here.

Replacing Front Housing on i9020T

So i picked up a Nexus S i9020T for a price that was steal in any working condition. The screen on it is great, no scratches and I've read the thread regarding the battery door and I'm going to order the rear door from Samsung under a warranty replacement for $16.
That leaves me with the front housing ring around the screen... I see that iFixit's tear down shows them using a heat gun at that step. Is the display connected to the front housing ring with adhesive? For showing a picture of using a heat gun they were mum on exactly what it was needed to pull apart. If it is the ring connecting to the screen, will I lose all adhesive to the old ring by pulling these two apart?
Here's a link to the part below on Global Parts Direct. I'm probably going to replace the back plate with the camera lense too but that seemed self explanatory.
http://www.globaldirectparts.com/Samsung-Nexus-S-GT-I9020T-Front-Housing-p/smsng6098620.htm
I could avoid all of this via a case but I'm just not a case type of guy...

I can't really help with your question but where can you find the back piece with camera lense? I've scratched the ring around the camera lense and was trying to find a replacement.

daisun said:
where can you find the back piece with camera lense?
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Check the link to the website above, Global Direct parts has the midplate with and without the lense. I didn't look close enough to see if they had just the lense. They seem to be on some sort of holiday and aren't shipping right now but judging from the verbage on their website they'll be back up and running in a few weeks.
Keep the answers coming folks... Surely I'm not the only person that has "refurbed" a scratched front housing ring.

Well I ordered the back from Samsung as a "warranty" replacement. So does anyone know if theres another place other than Global Direct Parts that has the front ring? I don't see any parts available at CNN.CN or Truesupplier.com
And again if anyone knows what the glue situation is going to be like, I'd love to get some feedback on that.

Get ready for the pain of a lifetime. I replaced the front bezel on a galaxy s (they're glued the exact same way) and it is an absolutely terrible experience. I wish you the best of luck because I've seen many people crack the screen while doing so.

danboard said:
Get ready for the pain of a lifetime. I replaced the front bezel on a galaxy s (they're glued the exact same way) and it is an absolutely terrible experience. I wish you the best of luck because I've seen many people crack the screen while doing so.
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So how did those people reattach the screen to the bezel?

Yeah I also been wondering the same thing and from my reseach I think that its not a strong glue but rather a adhesive thats not very strong. A hair dryer on a low setting will do the samething in helping to separating the parts. You can always contact the people at ifixit to find out how it is really attach.

You can always contact the people at ifixit to find out how it is really attach.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
...and when they told you, you tell us .-)
please, please with sugar on top
anyway - I wanna replace the bezel too...but havent found anything. let's keep eachother up to date here.

I work at a service and repair store and already tore mine open. The bezel around the screen is the scariest part. Its easy tho, just use a guitar pick and go all the way around the ring. It just snaps in. may help to take the back of the phone off while your doing it.
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using Tapatalk

Its attached with a fairly mild adhesive, I got the screen/bezel apart on my i9023 without using any heat just leveraging it off a little at a time. If I was going to do it again I would use a little heat.
When I replaced my screen all the adhesive stuck to the screen not the bezel. I used a heat gun on low heat to transfer it over to the new screen. It worked but I couldnt get it all over. If you are going to heat it I would recommend it being fairly low, not hot enough to burn your hand.
I bought a replacement front bezel for an i9020T from global direct a few months ago hoping that it would fit my i9023. It doesn't. All yours if you pay postage, Im in Australia.

aygriffith said:
So i picked up a Nexus S i9020T for a price that was steal in any working condition. The screen on it is great, no scratches and I've read the thread regarding the battery door and I'm going to order the rear door from Samsung under a warranty replacement for $16.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you received the battery door already? Is it the NFC version?

Hi, do you still have this part of Nexus S 9020?
---------- Post added at 05:00 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:53 PM ----------
execsupport said:
Its attached with a fairly mild adhesive, I got the screen/bezel apart on my i9023 without using any heat just leveraging it off a little at a time. If I was going to do it again I would use a little heat.
When I replaced my screen all the adhesive stuck to the screen not the bezel. I used a heat gun on low heat to transfer it over to the new screen. It worked but I couldnt get it all over. If you are going to heat it I would recommend it being fairly low, not hot enough to burn your hand.
I bought a replacement front bezel for an i9020T from global direct a few months ago hoping that it would fit my i9023. It doesn't. All yours if you pay postage, Im in Australia.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi, do you still have this part of Nexus S 9020?

My back cover won't snap on properly

I've owned other samsung phones and didn't have a problem snapping those on. For some reason however, three of the snap points on the side with the notch opening will not snap into place no matter how much I push down. I attached a photo. There are six snap points. The top two around the notch opening and the bottom one snaps on easily, but the three in-between do not, causing a nice hump. I've tried fiddling with the snaps on the back cover, but honestly you can't really move them from what I can tell, since there's nothing to move. Tried pushing them one way or another with pliers, but its really wishful thinking that it changed anything. So what am I doing wrong? I'm not 100% sure if the back cover was snapped on completely when I took it off the back for the first time, but I have never been able to snap those three points, ever. Also tried to take a picture of the back cover snaps but all my pics are blurry.

katamari201, I would suggest you refrain from toying around with the back cover thus avoiding a possible physical damage. I also suggest you take it to your nearest authorized Samsung service centre. If your device is still within the warranty period, you can get a replacement cover without bearing any charge.

YLNdroid said:
katamari201, I would suggest you refrain from toying around with the back cover thus avoiding a possible physical damage. I also suggest you take it to your nearest authorized Samsung service centre. If your device is still within the warranty period, you can get a replacement cover without bearing any charge.
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It's an import so I don't have that luxury. I could send it back to expansys for warranty...but just for this? I can live with it, but want to fix it somehow.

katamari201 said:
It's an import so I don't have that luxury. I could send it back to expansys for warranty...but just for this? I can live with it, but want to fix it somehow.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Buy a battery cover It would be faster to buy it then to write this post. I did buy one because my was scratched. 8euros no shipping fee.
Sent from my GT-N7000 using Tapatalk 2

Braxos said:
Buy a battery cover It would be faster to buy it then to write this post. I did buy one because my was scratched. 8euros no shipping fee.
Sent from my GT-N7000 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I bought a couple of TPU cases only $1.40 a pop. I think I'll just put the phone in it and remove the back cover altogether.

katamari201 said:
I bought a couple of TPU cases only $1.40 a pop. I think I'll just put the phone in it and remove the back cover altogether.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Tpu I would never use one. Even my phone got groped last week on the floor with 3 spots ....ed on the sides no scratch on the screen even it ended up face down on the street.
Sent from my GT-N7000 using Tapatalk 2

Took me this long to finally figure out how to snap the two clips in. Yes the design is defective, liable for improper finishes to screw it all up. LIke I said, I never had too many issues with previous galaxy snap on back covers, but this one was a doozy. Had two clips un-snapped for the longest time using original cover. Bought a metallic blue cover that won't snap on properly period, goes in and pops right back out, on all but the bottom side, which I didn't snap into place I just tucked into the holes.
Decided to try properly snapping all the clips on the original cover again. Lots of pushing down and thinking the phone will break. I finally did it, and it was REALLY LOUD snap for those two or three clips. They were not normal. Had to put the phone face down on my palm, insert the cover at an angle pushing heavily down on the side where the unsnappable clips were, and pushing the side heavily down while bending the rest of it upwards, forcing it at an angle. THe usual snap on bottom and move upwards on both sides all the way to the top did not apply for those two clips, whereas everything else snapped on easily, so I had to do those two clips first, and do them at an angle and bend the cover upward to make a large angle, because just pushing down on it when the cover is flat on the back will do absolutely nothing and basically be on the road to breaking the phone. The aftermarket metallic cover wouldn't even stay in any of the holes, just popped right back out. I really hate this snap on design. Samsung needs to learn to make deeper snaps or use a slide on design, and there is plenty of room for that since the chrome sides are so thick anyway.
Ugh I am so tired of poor samsung build quality. The note uses the same scratchable chrome sides as the S2, same cheap back and weak snap-on design. There's a reason why all the Samsung phones at my local AT&T have tape on the back along the battery seam.

Broken front glass (& usb port) - replacement?

Hi guys,
has anyone of you tried changing the front glass without digitizer and display?
In disassembly videos I can only see people changing the whole thing.
Also, do you think I can manage to repair the front glas as well as the USB port with just an iron instead of a hot air blower (and the usual tools made of plastic)?
Thanks in advance!

kadofl said:
Hi guys,
has anyone of you tried changing the front glass without digitizer and display?
In disassembly videos I can only see people changing the whole thing.
Also, do you think I can manage to repair the front glas as well as the USB port with just an iron instead of a hot air blower (and the usual tools made of plastic)?
Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I haven't done the front glass on mine yet, but my understanding is that in general you're really better off replacing front glass as an entire unit with digitizer and display. An iron on pretty low through a cloth/towel might well work. It's not just glue that melts, it's a thin strip of rubber gasket material with adhesive (okay, maybe it's thick glue, but it looked pre-formed to me) holding the glass back cover on.
Heating probably helps a bit with softening the stuff, but after the first time you peel it up you won't really need to do that again. I'd recommend picking a corner (say, bottom left as you're looking at the back) and just plan on prying from there every time, so you only have one spot where the plastic gets marred.
Don't spend too much time heating, worry more about having a suction cup tool that you can lift with while you try to work a guitar pick or hobby knife or something in under the corner. Have at least two ready, so you can wedge one in, and work your way around without it just dropping back down on you. You'll probably tear the material a bit but that's okay, just spread it back out evenly around the edge on the glass before you put the cover back on. Also, you definitely should be using a case to make sure it doesn't just fall off in your pocket once you've opened it up a couple times.
USB cable replacement isn't awful, just time consuming. The biggest gotcha is to keep all three of the little gold clips on the plastic "mid frame" ring (that's the first thing you remove that requires screws after getting the back glass up) from fallling and getting lost.
You can PM me if you have any questions about this, I've replaced my USB cable/port assembly a couple times (first replacement was defective). And I'm about to attempt replacing the screen as a whole unit with glass & digitizer on my wife's Z2 Plus, so I'll let you know how that goes.