Alright today I’m going to show you how to fix a cracked screen on a Galaxy S3.
This is the same process that you would use on any of the newer Galaxy phones or any of
the new Samsung phones.
First of all we’re going to take out the battery.
You don’t need to take apart the phone for this because the glass is actually not connected
to anything on the phone it’s just glued on there.
So we’re going to take a heat gun and heat up the glue that is separating that is holding
together the glass screen to the phone.
It’s sitting right above the digitizer so we’re heating that glue up enough so that
it will let the glass separate away from the rest of the phone.
The temperature you want to get it at is the point where it’s almost too hot to touch.
If you heat it up too much you’ll damage the LCD underneath and I made another video
you can check out here that will teach you some of the…what not to do when you’re
separating the glass from the rest of the phone.
So I’ve taken my little razor blade and I’ve inserted it between the screen and
the frame.
And you can see the glue start to separate and move downward into the phone.
I’m going to let that sit for just a second and pop one of my other tools in here to hold
its place.
And while I’m doing this the phone is cooling down and the glue is going to start to harden
again.
So periodically during this whole process I have to bust out the heat gun and heat up
the phone again.
So I’m going to keep it warm so that the glue stays liquid enough for me to work around
the outsides.
What’s nice about this is that normally when you crack your screen you have to replace
the whole thing as a unit and this can cost anywhere from 100 to 250 bucks depending on
what kind of phone you have and how new it is.
The glass pieces for these phones only cost about 10 bucks.
So I will list those in the video description below but 10 dollars is a whole lot better
than 250.
So here I am separating the glue again.
Coming out from the other side after I was done reheating the phone.
And you can use plastic tools, I prefer metal tools myself.
You just have to be really careful not to damage the frame but everyone has their own
personal preferences.
I always find that metal tools are a little more…have more structural integrity so they
don’t bend around or fluctuate as much and I have more control over what I’m doing.
So I’m heating up the phone again making sure the glue stays nice and hot, touching
it periodically making sure not to heat it up too much.
Now I’m going to take both of my tools and kind of slide it down the sides separating
them.
I need to be really careful not to touch the digitizer underneath the glass screen; the
digitizer is the next layer, because it is incredibly fragile.
Pretty much if you put any pressure whatsoever on it, it will crack.
And you can check out the tips and tricks video that I made that will show you a little
more about that.
I’m going to heat up the phone again making sure that the glue stays nice and warm.
Now the tips and tricks video that I made actually shows me breaking the phone in three
different ways so it’s a pretty useful video showing what not to do when replacing the
glass on your phone.
Definitely check that out before you attempt to do this operation.
Now if I was smart I would have done this step a little bit sooner because the top of
the screen has started to reattach itself so I should have propped something in there
like a little guitar pick or another razor blade to kind of keep the top of the screen
separate from the rest of the phone so I wouldn’t have to pry it back up again.
Now that I have my red tool in there it will hold the screen far enough up that the glue
will start to separate on its own going down towards the bottom.
You can see the glue as the screen separates from the rest of the phone.
Keeping that heat gun moving.
I’m going to keep on sliding my tools all the way down just prying the screen up ever
so gently.
If you end up cracking your digitizer you will think to yourself, man, that was so easy
to crack, I can’t believe how easy that was.
Your best bet is to just not touch it at all.
I’m being really careful down around the bottom of the phone cuz that’s where the
touch sensitive buttons are.
And there is a little cable connecting those that you will have to detach from the back
of the glass and I’ll show you how to do that in just a second.
There’s one little bit that’s still holding the phone together so I’m going to heat
it up and you’ll see it move and detach itself just like that.
It’s all about having the right amount of heat.
That’s what makes this job…that’s what makes fixing the phone easy or hard; just
finding that perfect balance.
So right here is the double sided sticky tape that’s holding the screen down.
You want to reuse as much of this as possible.
Unfortunately for this phone most of that that I just got off is not going to be able
to be reused.
So I’ll show you how to fix that in a second.
Now these are the buttons I was talking about before.
I’m going to switch to my plastic tool and pry those gently away from the glass screen
cuz I do have to reuse these.
They have to connect to the new piece of glass otherwise you’ll lose your Menu and your
Back buttons.
Now if you end up ripping this cable – that’s it.
You only have one shot at this.
If you end up damaging the digitizer or ripping the cable you just have to buy a new screen.
There’s no fixing it.
So there is a little bit of a risk involved but at the same time you end up saving a lot
of money if it works.
Alright, getting rid of the old glass.
Now I’m going to go around the edge and make sure there are no little shards of glass
anywhere.
It is very important you get every single little shard.
Take as much time as you need and pick out every little bit cuz any bit that’s stuck
down still inside of the phone will keep the new screen away from the phone body and won’t
let it sit flush against the phone itself.
So I just cut away some of the old sticky tape; the stuff that was bunched up because
I want my screen to sit flush against the phone and if there are any bubbles or ripples
or anything like that it won’t sit flush.
Now usually this adhesive comes off with the glass screen but in this case the adhesive
was stuck down on the digitizer so I’m just very gently just kind of rubbing that back
and peeling it away which is strangely satisfying.
You see adhesive isn’t super important to the phone, it just helped the old screen stay
on and stay in place.
We have a new way of attaching the glass and I’ll show you that in just a second.
Put some new tape down.
So this roll of tape, this whole thing, costs about 3 or 4 bucks on Amazon.
I’ll link that in the description below as well.
It’s enough tape to last a lifetime.
Basically what I’m doing is I’m just unpeeling it from the roll and building kind of a frame
work around the actual screen itself.
And this does two things: one, it helps hold the new piece of glass in place as well as
it creates a barrier from dust.
So you want the square of the screen to be 100 percent sealed.
Make a solid square or rectangle around the LCD so that when the glass sits on top of
it there’s no way for dust to get between the glass and the digitizer.
Making sure there are no gaps anywhere.
You can see right here I’m just meeting up with the piece of sticky tape that I was
able to save on that top left side.
And I’m also making sure that I’m not covering up any of the cameras or the speakers.
Just putting the tape around those so I can still use them.
Alright here I’m being super super careful and taking a clean cloth and just rubbing
the outside to get any dust that fell onto the digitizer while we were working.
Being very gentle.
Now if you crack the digitizer there is no solution, you just got to replace the whole
screen.
Gently picking up all the dust making sure there are no glass fragments anywhere.
Now it is time to remove the upper side of the sticky tape.
Just taking my little razor blade and separating the two layers so the sticky tape is now stuck
to the phone as well as the other side is ready for the screen to be placed down on
top of it.
Making sure all the dust is gone.
You only have one shot at this so make sure the dust is gone.
Now I’m taking the screen and lining it up with the buttons down below; the Back button
and the Menu button.
Pressing them into place, lining the screen up and then making sure that the buttons are
stuck to the screen before I actually set the screen down into place.
Once again you can get these glass pieces for super cheap on Amazon, anywhere from 5
to 10 bucks.
I’ll link those in the video description below.
Then I’m lining the Home button up first cuz that does have a little bit of play in
it.
You can wiggle it around and make sure it sits tight.
And then you make sure that the ear piece is also lined up with the hole in the upper
side of the glass.
Once you have those two pieces lined up you can just press it into place.
Now this…right now it’s good to go.
You can use the phone it’s working 100 percent.
I like to take the heat gun and just one more time just heat up the phone just enough so
that it’s hot to the touch and that kind of seals the double sided sticky tape to the
glass.
It makes a stronger bond than it would be without the heat.
Holding it about 6 to 7 inches away from the phone.
It also just depends on, you know, how powerful your heat gun is.
It’s almost too hot to touch and we’re good to go.
Once again I’ll put all the parts you’ll need for this project in the video description
below.
It’s kind of fun, kind of satisfying.
The whole thing only took me about 30 minutes.
I do have a little bit of practice you know, but the most important thing is take your
time, go slow and try not to break anything.
Anyway, pop the battery back in, didn’t want that overheating.
And then I’m just running through the tests just making sure everything is working still.
If you have any questions make sure to leave them in the comments below.
Don’t forget to “like” if this video helped you and don’t forget to subscribe.
I do put up videos fairly often.
I get new technology pretty quick.
I just made a Galaxy Gear video, you can check that out.
You can also hit me up on Twitter @ZacksJerryRig or on Facebook: Jerry Rig Everything.
And everything on the screen is working perfect.
Another success.
Thank you for watching I hope to see you around.
Don’t forget to subscribe.