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Purchase an iPhone 4 here?

I broke the front glass on my iPhone 4 and am contemplating self-repair. Some sellers say the glass can’t be replaced separately, others say it can. Kits are $30 or so

On the other hand, is this site a place where I might buy someone else’s old phone and just swap out the SIM card?

Answer this question I have this problem too

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This question was migrated from https://meta.ifixit.com/Answers.

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@zanichbug " is this site a place where I might buy someone else’s old phone " nope. Sorry but there is no buy and sell around here.

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The problem with the iPhone 4 is a complete phone that works tends to cost as much as a screen. If it is more, it generally isn’t far off from the screen assembly. These phones are usually not worth repairing unless the problem is minor like a battery. You have to be careful it isn’t iCloud locked, but there’s a lot of them on the used market if you decide it isn’t worth going for the screen replacement.

This probably isn’t what you wanted to hear but I’d rather be upfront then suggest something that probably won’t make sense once you compare prices.

I personally wouldn’t fix it and would rather have a newer phone like the 6s, but it can be repaired as long as you can get the LCD assembly for a reasonable price compared to a used iPhone 4. Any upgrade beyond the 4 will cost more then a used phone of the same model. @ajcooke01 linked the guide in his answer, if you want to see how to do it. The A4 hasn't aged well and the 256MB RAM limitation crippled the phone within a few years. The 4s isn't much better.

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This ain’t it chief. You can only buy parts for your phone here. However, people who say that the screen can’t be replaced are just straight wrong or lying. You can replace the screen with the guide and part below.

iPhone 4 (GSM/AT&T) Screen Replacement

iPhone 4 (GSM/AT&T) Screen

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7 Comments:

@oldturkey03 is right, @ajcooke01. I had the 16GB AT&T White model and I kept it for 5 years, but after like 3 years it began to slow down unbearably.

I used it as an iPod until the battery began to fail. I didn't repair it because of how unusable those phones became but it can be done.

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The screen and the glass are fused. So technically, without all the right equipment, you can't replace the screen unless you replace the glass with it. Also, you don't know what carrier the OP's iPhone is so that may not be the correct screen.

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@pccheese The iPhone 4 only worked with AT&T for what I can remember. Some did work with T Mobile but those were very rare at the time.

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@ajcooke01 the GSM version was offered locked to AT&T and the CDMA version was offered locked to either Verizon or Sprint. Nothing rare about the CDMA version. The CDMA iPhone (aka Verizon iPhone) was launched in February 2011 and saw 2.2 million activations in the partial first quarter of its launch.

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@ajcooke01 Don't go on want you remember. Go on what is known. iFixit sells variants of iPhone 4 parts for a reason.

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Stephen Zanichkowsky will be eternally grateful.
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