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1 Reviving a water-dead iPhone 4
Hello dear community,
My cousin has gave me a water damaged iphone 4. I dont know the background but it fell into a pool and been in a box for like 2 months.
Okay i know this looks bad. However i had some progress, i guess.
At first when i plug it into charge or computer there was no answer. Screen is black, nothing on it. Just dead.
I've opened it up, clean the logic board with vinegar-alcohol and a toothbrush. (I've removed the metal plates)
There was no screen or anything when i use charger again.. And then i made it into the dfu mode which computer recognized as "apple mobile device dfu mode". Then i installed itunes and restored the device. -However there is no information about the device [(capacity-serial number etc.)(i used copytrans suite to see it's capacity is 16gb)-] It gave me a error 23 -hardware malfunction- . Then i plug in- plug out, played a little bit, hold keys etc. and restored again.
Then i had a simcard error not a 23, while there was a simcard in it actually. iTunes would not activate the phone because there is no simcard installed... And this is the last stop. I tried to clean it again, no luck. I'm thinking about using isopropil alcohol.
By the way, computer won't recognize the phone without entering the dfu mode and restoring it again. After restore, i need to wait for like a 10 mins to get computer recognize it and give me a simcard error.
Is there anything you can recommend to me? Is it repair-able with just changing some chips on the logic board? I don't think warranty is an option. Do you have an idea?
Thanks and sorry for the long post.
Is this a good question?
there are plenty of posts on forums regarding the sim recognition when updating to ios 5.. try contacting apple and asking them to check your details etc, if the phone isn't blocked they should be able to find a way to update details/location etc so that your sim works.
by pollytintop
Sim was not the only issue, there were no response from the keys before but i poked around with some softwares and not lock key is working, the phone is vibrating when i use that key.
Still no display, just black and simcard lock is still an issue. Is there a way to unlock it? Using jb or something?
Thanks
By the way polly thanks for answer but i really dont think that is the case.
by Onur
Actually, i can see something on the display i guess it's a backlight problem. But even i can solve it i guess there is problem with wi-fi (console logs says so) and there is a simcard problem continues. I can send files to iphone using itools though. Is that say something to you?
by Onur
Onur, just another couple of suggestions here. It does sounds like you have an accumulation of things going on here. First off, I would definitely clean the iPhone with high-grade isopropyl alcohol. Pay attention to all the connectors, cables and specially around the IC's. After that, make sure you also change the battery. I know it comes on and all that other good stuff, just have had weird experiences with iPhone batteries. Check the logic board for any missing SMD loose or burned capacitors, resistors etc. The original error 23 is usually caused by the baseband chip. Oh, and just in case I forgot to mention, change your battery too. Good Luck.
by oldturkey03
Hey Oldturkey, thank you for your reply and help. I tried to use isopropyl alcohol at 99.7 but no luck with that. Still no backlight and simcard error still exist. However touchpad is working, i can nagivate through the phone as i can see the display under a lamb. I'll go ahead and try another simcard. By the way, backlight IC is not looking good. Seems like it has lost one or two connections, i'm not sure about it. Using oven may help the problem. And i dont have another battery so i can't try that. I'll keep you updated, tell me if you have some other things on your mind.
by Onur
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