Your phone is busted, now what? How to get it fixed on a budget

Phone LCD Wholesale

It’s alarmingly easy to break your Smartphone. Drop it and you could end up with a cracked or shattered screen. If it falls in the toilet or you spill a drink on it then it could be lights out. Physical buttons can get stuck, chipped, or just worn out. Well-used headphone jacks might stop recognizing that cable. A scratched or cracked camera lens can spell the end of good photos. A lot can go wrong.

None of these things is cause to throw that Smartphone away. There’s a lively trade in broken smart phones and that’s because people in the know about repairs can snap them up for low prices, fix them cheaply, and sell them on for big profits. Even if you are getting rid of your phone, you could make more by fixing it up first than it’s going to cost you to do.

Check your coverage first

If you encounter a defect that you didn’t cause and your Smartphone is still under warranty then you may be able to go back to your retailer and get the manufacturer to fix it for free. It’s also possible that you have some form of coverage as part of your home insurance, credit card, or bank account. Some of you will have pulled the trigger on extended warranties or Smartphone insurance.

Take a look and see what the deductible is before you put in a claim. Sometimes the amount you’re expected to pay will actually exceed the cost of repairing it yourself or even going to a good repair service.

Fix it yourself

If you’re out of warranty or the damage isn’t covered then you might think about trying to fix it yourself. Before you begin, be aware that you’re almost certainly going to void your warranty by attempting a self-repair.You’re almost certainly going to void your warranty by attempting a self-repair.The golden age of the Internet means that a short video tutorial or a text and photo guide of just about anything you could ever want to know how to do is just a search away. If you’re confident in your abilities, or willing to have a go, then you shouldn’t have too much trouble finding a set of instructions to follow.YouTube is another obvious place to look for tutorial videos you can follow, and you’ll find lots of guides and a very helpful community at XDA Developers forum.

Getting tools and partsBefore you start you will need to secure the correct tools. Some manufacturers deliberately make strange fixings to discourage self-repair. If you don’t use the correct tools there’s a good chance you’re going to end up doing some damage. Make sure that you have a clean workspace with everything you need to do the repair before you start.Sometimes the iFixit tutorials will include links to buy the necessary parts or tools, though you’ll often get a better deal by shopping around. You can find reliable parts and tools at eTech Parts.Phone LCD Wholesale have lots of cheap repair kits and parts on offer. You have to be careful about the parts because there are some low cost options that might be shoddy quality. Do a bit of reading about what you need before you start and check the reputations of sellers and the reviews of specific kits and parts before you buy.

A word of warning

It can be tough forcing Smartphone components apart. The inside of most Smartphone's is messy and confusing. Sometimes it will feel like you’re going to break parts if you press any harder and sometimes you will break something. Some Smartphone's are much easier to take apart and fix than others. Certain repairs are not worth the bother of attempting and there are parts and tools that you simply can’t get at a reasonable price.You can generally find out how difficult it will be by checking the online guides and discussions. Consider the risk that you’ll botch the job, factor in your research, your tools and parts, and the time you are going to spend on it. A lot of people will be more comfortable getting someone else to do it. An experienced repair expert will know where to get the right parts, they’ll have the right tools, and they’ll be able to do the repair quickly and efficiently.

Hire someone or use a serviceIf you want the job done right it might be better to use a reputable repair service. They can still be cheaper than the deductible on an insurance claim in some cases. They’re also likely to be faster.

There are lots of big name chains that will do in-store repairs while you wait or within the day and you’ll find various online services where you can send your Smartphone and get the fixed handset sent back to you within a week.

Phone LCD Wholesale just started offering in-store repairs for Smartphone's and tablets and they have another service where you drop the phone off in-store and they return it to your door within 72 hours.

Official repairs are bestIt’s always worth checking with your retailer, carrier, or manufacturer as well. Generally, if you’re outside the warranty period, they’ll charge the most for repairs and they’ll take the longest, but there are exceptions. You never know until you ask.Shop around, get quotes, check reviews and reputations, and then make an informed decision. You might just find that your broken Smartphone is easier and cheaper to repair than you thought.

Remember privacyOne final word of warning we have to mention concerns your privacy. If you’re going to send your phone away or leave it in the repair shop for a few days then you should really consider making a complete back up and wiping your phone so there’s no private files or sensitive information left. It’s a hassle, but it’s the only way to be sure that someone won’t get their hands on your photos or emails.

Tools of the TradeNo matter what phone you're trying to take apart, there are a few tools you'll almost always need. Some devices are easier to take apart than others (and we'll get to that in a bit), but before you open up your hardware, you'll want to make sure you have a few things on hand:A screwdriver kit: It goes without saying that you'll need a set of screwdrivers, but the type you'll need may not be sitting in your garage. Your phone is filled with a myriad of tiny screws. iFixit sells a toolkit with many of the screw heads you'll need, but many PC repair toolkits will do.

Specialty screw heads: In addition to regular screwdrivers, certain Smartphone models—especially modern iPhones—use special screws that standards sets can't handle. While this is usually done to prevent unauthorized repairs, you can buy tools that can open up the hardware.

Screen pry tools: Perhaps the most important tool you'll likely need that you won't already own is a plastic pry tool. They're relatively cheap (here you can buy a pair of them for $3). The pry tool is used to separate parts that are pressed together like the plastic casing.

The Most Common Repairs

Broken Screen/DigitizerFixing a broken screen can be either fairly simple and cheap or extremely expensive depending on how it's built. In both cases, you'll need to disassemble your device (guides for many popular phones can be found below). In some cases, the glass and digitizer (the layer which translates taps into input) may be fused together which makes a replacement unit very expensive. If they are not, however, you can buy a replacement screen fairly cheap.

In cases where the display is not fused to the glass, you may be able to replace either the glass by itself or the glass and digitizer. Both are fairly simple repairs, but if the digitizer is connected to the glass, you'll need to connect a data cable, which varies by model. Here is a collection of guides for the most popular phones of the last couple years, but you can find others (see the next section below).

Headphone JacksAny time moving parts are introduced to a device, it can increase the failure rate. Headphone jacks may not be motorized, but they see a lot of action from headphones and stress can frequently be placed on the contact points if you it while working out or other heavy activity.

Once your device is opened, headphone jacks are relatively easy and cheap to replace, but this assumes you can get in. Devices with unibody designs like the HTC One are difficult to enter no matter what task you're trying to accomplish. Headphone jack units are usually self contained and plug directly into the motherboard, though they are sometimes attached to the speaker assembly. You can check out one of the guides below to see how easy it will be for your device.

Loose/Stuck ButtonsLike headphone jacks, buttons can be replaced roughly as easily as the phone itself is to open. You can buy replacements for most hardware buttons in a handset and swap them out without too many problems. However, if you're uncomfortable cracking open your phone, you can solve a lot of button problems with software.

Most buttons are attached via cables to the motherboard and they can be very delicate, so be careful when re-attaching new hardware. You can usually find out how to replace the various power and volume buttons by following the standard teardowns. Be sure to read ahead first before purchasing replacement components.

Camera ReplacementIt's rare for camera hardware to break outside of a cracked lens, however internally, camera sensors are relatively easy to replace (once again depending on how easy the handset is to open). The unit is usually attached by a single cable, but if the glass is cracked you can sometimes replace the exterior glass without actually removing the camera from the motherboard. Once again, here are some device specific guides, and you can find out how to locate more below.

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