iPhone 3G Dock Connector

My Problem

My wife's iPhone had a hard life from our 18 month and four year old granddaughters constantly watching Sesame Street videos or playing educational apps. It was in an OtterBox which had protected it from dozens of falls, but the speaker audio finally quit. It was a blessing of sorts, ("Sorry sweetie, Elmo lost his voice" ;-( ) but it then became useless as my wife's phone because it couldn't ring, either.

My Fix

I eliminated an open speaker by ohming that out, then tried every trick on the web to bring the speaker audio back. I was able to rule out a stuck headphone indication (by the lack of the screen indication when adjusting the volume with phones plugged in,) but not a short in the dock connector creating a permanently docked condition. The connector was full of crud, slobber, and food particles and no doubt had a few thousand mate/unmate cycles on it. I cleared it with compressed air, then alcohol on a small swab but to no avail. The price of the replacement part on iFixit was right, so I replaced it on speculation. The replacement connector was new and worked just fine, but didn't bring Elmo's voice or the ringer back.

My Advice

Never throw an old iPhone away. My iPhone 4 was eligible for an upgrade so AT&T re-provisioned it to my wife's number and it became hers (no value in letting the kids play with a new iPhone 5.) The silent iPhone 3 was one of our original two that had suffered a cracked screen and been replaced by an earlier upgrade but which I had kept for parts. Its logic board followed the new dock connector into the silent phone and voila!, sound. The phone went back into the OtterBox. Even without a SIM card, it still runs the educational apps and Elmo videos as long as it has a WiFi connection - better yet, the girls can't burn through the cellular data plan when with Grandma in the car! I further disabled the GSM antenna lest the younger one accidentally dial 911, at least unless she's right beneath a cell site. The 4-year old knows how and when to do that, but will have to be told to find Mom or Grandma's phone first. Hopefully, she'll never need to.

My Problem

My 8 yr old is using the old iPhone 3G for games and music and broke the 30-pin connector which smashed a few of the pins. It would charge (sometimes), but the final straw was when the phone became disabled when he forgot his passcode, which I could not get around with a broken connector.

My Fix

Went well. I replaced the connector assembly and battery (while I was in there anyway). The guides were easy to follow and helped prevent me from making any big mistakes. Battery adhesive was tricky and the rubber microphone cover on the connector module was not straight, which made it a trick to get in, but I was pleased at how easy the process was. I'm emboldened to repair the next iPhone that breaks around here.

My Advice

Just closely follow the guides and you won't have any problems, unless you have fat fingers which make it hard to get those tiny connectors reattached. My one piece of real advice is to go slow and easy when re-inserting the logic board. Make sure everything is out of the way that needs to be and don't force it. Slow and steady wins the race for this project.

My Problem

Bought a used 3g iphone for my wife after hers was not repairable from being dropped. The mike didn't work on the used phone so no one could hear her talking, otherwise the phone worked great. Found IFIX on the web and shazam, I had a way of tinkering with a repair.

My Fix

The repair was fairly simple. It was just a matter of taking a few screws loose, popping some parts out and reversing the order in which I started. Except for dropping ONE of the screws. Took awhile but I found it and everyone can hear us NOW!

My Advice

Use the videos because they SHOW you how to do the repair or replacement of the parts. If you can't follow the guides or videos, then you should wrap some C-4 to your device and buy another one. If you're like me you have a tool for everything, but if not their tool kits are GREAT!

Thank you Ifix for saving the world.

My Problem

My daughters dog stepped on her Phone with the charger was plugged in, ruining the Dock Connector. This accidental damage was not covered under our Apple Care Insurance Plan.

My Fix

I found this web site while doing a search for a phone replacement. Being a DIY person, I researched your site & found the Dock Replacement instructions & figured I could do it. I have done my own computers but nothing on the scale this small. The instructions were very well layed out, step by step. Also the videos were alot of help. I ordered the Dock Connector which came in a couple of days. Again, I followed the instructions step by step to take the Dock out & then reversed the steps to put the phone back together. My daughter & I were very pleased with the out come, especially her, the phone works fine. This site is very good & now I know what repairs can by made at home if our warranty doesn't cover certain damage. I have recommended this site to friends & family who like to do there own repairs.

My Advice

I had all the necessary tools needed. 00 screw drivers, Magnifying glasses, magnets, eye loops, toothpick etc. So if you don't have this stuff you will need to purshase them from a Hardware store. You need a good set of eyes, which I don't, so make sure you have magnifying glasses, I can't believe they can make screws that small!! The magnet was used so I didn't lose any screws, if you drop one on a rug forget about it! Sorry I didn't take any pictures. I wasn't expecting to write a review but I was so impressed by this web site & the info they made available, that I had to write something. Also, the shipping was very fast so her Phone was not down that long, only 3-4 days & that included the time to repair it. I can't say enough about the quaility of this web site. Thanks

PS I didn't even mention the $100.00 I saved by doing this myself. Apple wanted $100.00 for the updated Apple Care Plan to cover Accidental Damage & $50.00 to replace the phone. This repair cost me a total of $46.73

Thanks Very Much...John