Difficulty
Moderate
Steps
14
Time Required
- Broken Glass 1 step
- Display 12 steps
- Front Panel Assembly 1 step
Featured Guide
This guide has been found to be exceptionally cool by the iFixit staff.
Introduction
The front panel assembly, including the digitizer, ear speaker, and home button, can be replaced on the iPhone 3GS.
Parts
No parts specified.
Video Overview
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If your display glass is cracked, keep further breakage contained and prevent bodily harm during your repair by taping the glass.
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Lay overlapping strips of clear packing tape over the iPhone's display until the whole face is covered.
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Continue to hold the display assembly with one hand, and use your other hand and a spudger to disconnect the black ribbon cable labeled "1."
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Ribbon cable "1" is connected with a plug style connector. The block at the end of the cable is the plug which is simply pushed into a socket on the circuit board. No other locking mechanism is used.
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8 Comments
The hardest parts are separating the glass from the plastics and then re-attaching it. It would do you well to buy the 'custom' double sided sticky tape they sell here at ifixit. I used regular double sided tape and it took a long time to cut and fit properly so all sensors would remain working and the screen would be held in place.
Be careful putting the new screen back in. I got almost all the way to done and everything was working perfectly - then I had trouble getting the bottom portion of the assembly (near the home button) back in.
I forced it a bit thinking I had squeeze it in and cracked the new screen. Doh.
Ok, I misunderstood the video. When she said that the display kit came with everything that we would need to do the replacement she pointed at the kit in front of the display which was the screwdriver and the plastic spludgers. So, I am assuming that comes with the Display Kit which is the cheapest kit, it must therefore be included in the Front Panel Assembly kit. I assumed that as the kits got more expensive they included the lower kit plus whatever caused the price to go up. Well, I received my Front Panel Assembly kit and all I got was the Front Panel Assembly. No screwdrivers, no spludger no suction cup.
Luckily, I had some small electronic screwdrivers on hand and I used some packing tape in place of the suction cup. So instead of being a 15 minute job it took more like 30.
Guide is great.
I just think that it needs to be more clear what you are getting in each kit when you order it. I wondered why on the side it was telling you to add those tools to my order for more money.
