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Question About Loose Back Covers

Hello all!
I've been very pleased with my new Nexus so far, but yesterday I noticed the back cover was loose and and had a bit of a gap near the volume buttons. Some quick googling informed me this was a known issue, and is easily RMA'd. I have also discovered there are some very nice skins from Slickwraps and from Toast which can be used in place of the back cover. I find these to be very beautiful, and will most likely use one. Knowing this, is there any useful reason to send my phone in to be replaced? Has anyone discovered a flawed battery causing the cover to lift? If so, was it obvious before removing the cover?

I would be afraid that if I didn't get the phone replaced, it would leak if you ever got around water. I think I would send it back because if you ever decide to sell it you won't get much for a phone that doesn't have a tight fitting backup cover.
Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

dalegg said:
I would be afraid that if I didn't get the phone replaced, it would leak if you ever got around water. I think I would send it back because if you ever decide to sell it you won't get much for a phone that doesn't have a tight fitting backup cover.
Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk
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Those are both good points, but they are somewhat nullified by my plans. I'm going to be removing the back cover to use an aftermarket back. I will, of course, be fully responsible for protecting it from water, and for the damage if I don't. I tend to treat any device, water resistant or not, as if it were the Wicked Witch of the West and will melt upon contact with a drop of water. I also don't sell my old phones. They are way to useful to keep around for projects and such. I still have a couple of Blackberry Storms acting as desk clocks and a Galaxy Nexus doing tattle-tail duty for my home alarm system.
Basically what I'm looking for is any indication as to an actual malfunction being the cause of the back coming unstuck. As it stands, the loose back is a head start on getting it off for an aftermarket.

I say go for it as long as the new back cover fits tight. I am a snob about having a perfect phone.
Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

Most the skins cover the back cover so need an intact backcover or have the same problem. Will see when remove back cover if it is battery related but then most likely can't RMA as you opened the device. It a catch 22 situation.

prdog1 said:
Most the skins cover the back cover so need an intact backcover or have the same problem. Will see when remove back cover if it is battery related but then most likely can't RMA as you opened the device. It a catch 22 situation.
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I'm looking at the wooden covers. They're a bit thicker then the vinyl skins, and can sit flush with the frame when used without the back. They're rigid enough to do the job, though not advertised as backs, folk are reporting having success.
I am tempted to open it up and have a peek at the battery, but doing so would definitely void the warranty. That's why I was looking for any examples where a battery actually has gone bad. Though, it looks like the battery is pretty simple to replace anyway...

hawkjm73 said:
I'm looking at the wooden covers. They're a bit thicker then the vinyl skins, and can sit flush with the frame when used without the back. They're rigid enough to do the job, though not advertised as backs, folk are reporting having success.
I am tempted to open it up and have a peek at the battery, but doing so would definitely void the warranty. That's why I was looking for any examples where a battery actually has gone bad. Though, it looks like the battery is pretty simple to replace anyway...
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Usually swells up in the middle and starts raising the back at the mid points.

prdog1 said:
Usually swells up in the middle and starts raising the back at the mid points.
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Does it feel swollen? Can you tell by eye? The only ones I've witnessed having a dying battery had removable battery covers, like the Storm and the old Razr flip phones. My cover is only loose on one edge, and feels very firmly stuck the rest of the way around. The phone itself is functioning beautifully, not at all like the few I've seen the the grow-a-battery of death. They usually sputtered and gave up until I replaced the battery.

hawkjm73 said:
Does it feel swollen? Can you tell by eye? The only ones I've witnessed having a dying battery had removable battery covers, like the Storm and the old Razr flip phones. My cover is only loose on one edge, and feels very firmly stuck the rest of the way around. The phone itself is functioning beautifully, not at all like the few I've seen the the grow-a-battery of death. They usually sputtered and gave up until I replaced the battery.
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If it's the battery will do the same. Will start acting up and then die. There is a thread somewhere in General I think with pics of expanding battery. Some just the backs come unglued. It is definitely a RMA situation anyway.

A few questions on display repairs/replacement and waterproofness

So I had an incident with my beloved Z3c (D5803) and now I find myself in need to repair it. I don't really want to share the details of such incident and to be honest they are not that important. What's important is that I decided to replace the whole LCD/digitizer assembly.
What would you recommend in terms of better achievable waterproofing, just the LCD/digitizer with the adhesive tape or the whole midframe with the display attached already? The one with the midframe attached already costs about 33% more, but I'm willing to pay the premium if that means that the phone will still be waterproof after the repair.
The same question goes for the back cover, should I just buy new adhesive and re-use the current one (which is in almost mint condition) or just buy a new cover with the tape pre-attached?
And lastly, I'm planning on buying this stuff on eBay, and I'd like to know what you think about these listings. I must note that I have a 20% site wide discount coupon, so if you recommend another site because it's cheaper keep that in mind.
With midframe
Without

Just yesterday I replaced my back panel with one found on witrigs, OEM I believe. Because it was already cracked it came off really easy and I didn't need to preheat the adhesive. There was very little residue which I removed and after that plopped the new one on. The new glass back panel came with adhesive already on it, I would advice that. The whole process was very easy and took about 10 minutes. Look around for repair/disassembly tutorials and good luck!

XclusionNL said:
Just yesterday I replaced my back panel with one found on witrigs, OEM I believe. Because it was already cracked it came off really easy and I didn't need to preheat the adhesive. There was very little residue which I removed and after that plopped the new one on. The new glass back panel came with adhesive already on it, I would advice that. The whole process was very easy and took about 10 minutes. Look around for repair/disassembly tutorials and good luck!
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Thank you for your advice, I've already seen a couple of disassembly guides and I think I've got a good idea on how to fix this myself (or in the worst case scenario I could go to one of the hundreds of repair shops in the downtown, here in Mexico City, and pay the guy a couple of bucks to install the parts I'm going to buy).
What I'm most worried about is the waterproofing; have you tested your phone in this regard? I still don't know which part to buy, the whole assembly or just the LCD/digitizer.
As for the back cover... I might as well buy both the adhesive and the back cover, it would be like 7-8 bucks for both.

jhonyrod said:
Thank you for your advice, I've already seen a couple of disassembly guides and I think I've got a good idea on how to fix this myself (or in the worst case scenario I could go to one of the hundreds of repair shops in the downtown, here in Mexico City, and pay the guy a couple of bucks to install the parts I'm going to buy).
What I'm most worried about is the waterproofing; have you tested your phone in this regard? I still don't know which part to buy, the whole assembly or just the LCD/digitizer.
As for the back cover... I might as well buy both the adhesive and the back cover, it would be like 7-8 bucks for both.
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I have not tested if it is water proof because I am not sure it will survive the test As for your second question: if the primary concern is waterproofness you might as well go for the whole assembly, that seems saver to me

XclusionNL said:
I have not tested if it is water proof because I am not sure it will survive the test As for your second question: if the primary concern is waterproofness you might as well go for the whole assembly, that seems saver to me
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Yeah, I bought the full assembly, as well as 2 sets of adhesives and a back cover. I thought that I might be able to re-stick my current display (the only issue it has is a couple of dead lines in the bottom left edge; like 10 by 5 lines) and have it as a back up or maybe even sell it as scrap.
BTW, you can test if your phone is air tight in the service menu, if it is air tight it most likely is water tight as well. Dial #*#*SERVICE*#* #, then tests and then peressure sensor, squeeze the phone and you should see the pressure rise.
Mine, when brand new, rose a bit and then it slowly decreased... Now with the nature of the damage of the display I think that it wasn't entirely waterproof to begin with. Who knows? Maybe after the repair it will end up 'more' waterproof than before.

I just used that service menu, it shows me about 1020 millibar and goes slightly up when I firmly press the phone, so.... this means my repair was a success as far as air-tightness goes?

If it stays up for as long as you press it I reckon it still is waterproof (but then again, don't go swim with it based on this, even Sony doesn't recommend doing this anymore). If it goes down maybe it has a leak, but as I've said before, mine had such a leak since I bought it, so go figure.

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.
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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).
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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...
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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
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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?
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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...
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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...
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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

Has anyone replaced the battery on their note5 yet?

I'm not satisfied with the performance of my battery. I tried everything from greenify to factory reset. I think its time to replace the battery of my note5. Has anyone replaced their battery? What was the cost? And how should i make sure I am getting the original battery from the service center. I am in india so if anyone has replaced the bettery of s6, note5, s7 etc please let me know

I replaced my n5's battery in RMA service. No cost

I've replaced my note 5 battery a couple times... not too hard. You will may or may not crack the back glass when pulling it off of device... ymmv.
You basically just take a blow dryer, heat he back, peal glass back off, unscrew like 15 little screws, push phone guts and screen out of metal outer shell, remove old battery and ribbon connector (old battery may be glued in), replace battery, put guts and screen back in metal shell, replaces screw, put back glass back on.
All said in done, back glass cost me $10, and battery was about the same, so $20 in total to swap. I've done a couple times now, can prob do it in under 5 minutes. First time took me almost 30... godspeed

Sampson0420 said:
I've replaced my note 5 battery a couple times... not too hard. You will may or may not crack the back glass when pulling it off of device... ymmv.
You basically just take a blow dryer, heat he back, peal glass back off, unscrew like 15 little screws, push phone guts and screen out of metal outer shell, remove old battery and ribbon connector (old battery may be glued in), replace battery, put guts and screen back in metal shell, replaces screw, put back glass back on.
All said in done, back glass cost me $10, and battery was about the same, so $20 in total to swap. I've done a couple times now, can prob do it in under 5 minutes. First time took me almost 30... godspeed
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cool, i am into electronics and i have all the tools to do it, just wanted to know if it is worth doing ourselves or going to the official service center. how is the after market battery performing? is it supporting the quick charge?