iPad Display Clip Set

My Problem

The WiFi on my wife's iPad 1 suddenly died. No Wifi signal and no access points showed at all. I researched the repair and found a possible solution on the iFixit website, so I decided to give it a try and order the WiFi/Charging port part. I also learned that the display clips frequently break when opening the iPad, so I ordered a set and the Metal Spudger set too.

My Fix

I followed the repair guide and all-in-all, the repair went pretty smoothly. The disassembly went without a hitch but about half the display clips broke. I was just very careful not to crack the digitizer glass. During reassembly, one of the cable clips came off and the digitizer cable was not making a good connection and operated intermittently. I found another hint to slip a piece of mylar between the connector and cable and VOILA! Everything worked great. Thanks for the great guides, parts, and tools. The parts arrived VERY quickly too!!! Great service.

My Advice

Be careful with the cable clips.

My Problem

My iPad was not taking a charge, and the moment that it disconnected it would totally power off. The iPad's screen was working, but since the battery wasn't taking charge, the screen would only stay on for seconds at a time, then go blank, etc. To remedy the situation, I ordered a replacement battery, some metal spudgers and a bag of replacement clips.

My Fix

All went well except when I tried to remove the display cable from the back of the LCD. I pulled a little too hard, ripped the connector from the board and now my screen gives absolutely no images. I've once turned it on, powered it, and gotten feedback from the speaker that the touch panel was registering touches, but the LCD is useless. The instructional guide on iFixit doesn't mention removing this cable, but it seemed necessary at the time. Now I guess my next step is to buy another LCD screen? This was my first go at repairing an iPad, and is my first mistake repairing an i device. I'm kicking myself for not taking more time with checking out how the connector worked.

My Advice

Take your time, watch multiple videos online of the process. Don't be hasty like me :)

My Problem

My 7 year old fraternal twin sons finally got the mix of liquid and iPad just right to kill it.

Very ironically, it was Apple juice that was the liquid in question

My Fix

The opening of the 1st gen iPad was less daunting that I had feared that it would be. I broke about 1/2 of the clips while opening it, which at first I was worrying about until I discovered that I could buy replacement clips from iFixit.com

I cleaned the Apple juice out of the ipad with 91% isopropyl alcohol and waited for the clips to arrive.

The process to install the new clips was very easy with my iFixit.com tool set.

"Smooshing" the two halves of the iPad back together was an interesting experience, but as long as you got the non-clip side in the right place, the iPad went back together with a few creaks and snaps without a problem.

The iPad worked flawlessly after reassembly, which was a bit surprising to me -- I was certain it would be glitchy after exposure to Apple Juice, but so far so good.

My Advice

Only advice would be to make a note -- or a more apparent note if I missed it -- that you will probably break a lot of the clips while taking apart the iPad 1st generation and that it's not a big deal if you do, because you can order replacement clips.

My Problem

The digitizer (touch screen) on my WiFi iPad 1 would sometimes stop responding on the lower 1/3 of the screen.

My Fix

After looking around the internet, it appeared that the problem lay in how the digitizer cable and main board connect. The clip that secures the cable was intermittently coming loose. Other sites mentioned the use of mylar tape to secure the ribbon cable, so I purchased some from eBay. I used a 1/2" wide x (approx) 1.5" long strip of tape to hold the ribbon in place, securing it to the cable, clip, and main board together. I also used a smaller piece of mylar tape to secure the cable for the headphone jack, as it has the same design issue.

Siince I had already opened up this unit before, I knew what to expect, so I prepurchased a set of display clips from ifixit.com

My Advice

This repair was fairly easy to do, especially since I already had the Pro Toolkit and the display clips. If you are a DIY-kinda person like me, the Pro Toolkit will find a use all over your home and with your devices. It is well worth the upgrade over the basic toolkit.

My Problem

When my iPad was dropped, the rear aluminum cover was bent near the speaker output area. The lower 1/3 of the touchscreen was not recognized.

My Fix

This repair was moderate in difficulty. I followed the guide to replacing the battery, and then I needed to remove the two antennas, side and top buttons, and the headphone jack.

My Advice

I ended up using Elmer's rubber cement to reglue the central antrenna and battery back down. I also used the same glue to reattach all of the small rubber pads/nubs that had fallen off or had relocated themselves over the lifetime of the iPad. I glued a couple too close to the edge of the screen, so I had to nudge it back a bit when I reassembled the case.

I used several tools from the Pro Toolkit for this job. The bit driver with the small Torx bits was crucial. I could not find any bits this small at my local Big Box store. The large metal spudger to initially pry open the case, then the plastic opening tools to do the rest of the opening. I used the small and large metal spudgers to de-glue the battery from the back cover, as well as the rear antenna's foil enclosure. I used two of the tweezers to hold onto the tiny rubber pads for reglueing, without which my hands would have been covered in rubber cement.

My Problem

The video was not displaying but everything else seemed to work ok (syncing). $349 for a "fix" (actually, a new iPad) from Apple seemed to expensive. We *love* our iPad .. and would like it healthy again.

My Fix

Separated the screen from the shell - broke all the clips except one. Confirmed the video cable had come loose. Found iFixit and ordered the parts and tools. Super fast delivery and then ... voila ... a working iPad again.

My Advice

Don't drop your iPad. Doh! ... but if you do, look for iFixit to help!