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So, I was shoveling snow the other day, with my iTouch 3g in my "iPod pocket" of my winter coat sleeve, when the shovel handle caught the headphone cord and whipped the iTouch to the ground. I've dropped the poor thing many times in the last year. But this is the one that really did it. It was smashed. Everything still worked, but the glass on the front was smashed.
Well, I taped it up with box tape, and decided to live with it. For about an hour. Then I decided I didn't really want to live with it like that. There was no telling what circuits those shards of glass would cut inside the phone if pressed on the wrong way. So I searched Google, and discovered maybe 100+ sites about how to fix this exact problem. Including some handy YouTube videos (which I include at the end, because I'm sure my description alone will suck). I ordered the parts for about $60, including shipping. Probably not the best price I could have gotten; I didn't shop around much. The place I ordered them from claimed they'd e-mail me instructions on how to replace it (but they didn't). They also neglected a crucial step in their video (which was otherwise quite good, hence the reason I bought the parts from them). They *DID* sent me a convenient "safe pry tool" which I destroyed nearly immediately because it wasn't clear enough where I should be prying. Hopefully this page will help others stop from making the same mistakes.
These tools were great, and I highly recommend them. You can't scratch the LCD screen under the glass as easily with them. But first, let's recap what I needed. I had smashed the glass. Obviously this needs to be replaced. It turns out that it's not called the "iPhone Glass" but actually "touch screen digitizer" Apple part number 821-0856-A. This digitizer is nearly all glass, with a ribbon cable attached. It's glued to a black plastic frame called the "mid section." This midsection is what clips to the chrome back of the iTouch 3g.
If you smash the digitizer, the midsection might be OK. I thought I could see broken black plastic through the cracks above, so I decided (and I was correct) that the midsection was probably not OK. So I ordered both the digitizer and the midsection. If you DON'T order the midsection, you need to carefully remove the midsection from the old digitizer to put it on the new, uncracked one. This sounds simple enough, and they'll tell you to use a hairdryer or heat gun, etc, to loosen the adhesive that is gluing the two together. However, you need to realize that there's parts of it along the edges that are VERY thin. If you're clumsy, it breaks very easily. You might be able to fix it with good diligence and some epoxy, though. I decided to save myself the trouble and order this midsection. The way the video put it, that way you can just toss the old midsection and glue the new one on. However, the home button is ALSO part of the midsection, and it didn't come with it (it wasn't represented in the pictures, but I had assumed that it would come assembled, anyway. Whoops). First I carefully used their "safe pry tools" to pry the digitizer and midsection from the iTouch. The iTouch has clips all around the inner edge that keep the midsection (with the digitizer glued to it) in place. Unfortunately, I was prying in the wrong spot. I was apparently trying to pry the glass digitizer from the midsection. And the glass quickly cut the plastic tool to shreds. You need to get that pry tool between the plastic and the chrome, not the glass and the plastic. :-( After they were toast, I had to use an eye-glass screwdriver, which could seriously damage stuff if you slip. I managed it successfully, though (with two small scratches on the LCD, unfortunately. Luckily it didn't ruin or even impede performance, phew!).
Leave the top clip for last. You need to be very careful of the upper left-hand corner because that's where the ribbon cable is. Since you're replacing it, you don't care about the cable, but you don't want to accidentally rip it out of it's plug in the wrong way, either. Take your time, and do it carefully, and you'll be fine. Kind of like picking a lock. Remember, the tool goes between the plastic and the chrome, not the glass and the plastic. (and on the sides, the plastic is VERY thin and hard to see, but it's there, trust me) (I can't say this too many times). Once you get it off, you need to slide the pry tool in and pop the ribbon cable from it's connector. Here is a view of the connector after the ribbon cable is popped off. If you slip a small flat (hopefully plastic) tool underneath and give it a little pry, it comes right off. (sorry there's no picture of the before, I couldn't get the camera in there)(see the videos for this part).
Here's another shot of my broken screen, after it's been pried off (and after the ribbon cable was disconnected)
Finally the digitizer is fully separated from the phone body. This is about the time I said "oh CRAP! I need to get the home button circuitry off of the old midsection." This is a better view of the cracks, too. The home button:
I took the time (after I took this picture) to clean all the crap off the edges of the home button with a toothpick. Lots of human skin and other type dust caused a white film around the edge. (sort of visible in this picture) Yuck! Note the little side tabs, they help you realign the button. There's matching slots in the bottom of the midsection plate. Now on to the home button circuitry. As it turns out, it needs to be transferred over to the midsection. It is a silver colored plate at the bottom of the midsection. Note it's orientation, too, so you can put it on the new midsection correctly (luckily there's pegs that are keyed, so there's only one way to put it on). The process is similar to switching the midsection from one digitizer to another. Heat it with a hairdryer, (or heat gun) and (very, very carefully) pry it off with a tool. It bends REALLY easily, so be very careful with this. Also be careful you don't blow it out the window with a hairdryer, because a hairdryer has a LOT more window power than a heat gun. :-)
The little black pegs have been crimped down on the original, but they pop right off, and don't really present a problem. Just keep heating and gently prying until the adhesive gives way. Once this is off, it can be placed on the new midsection with a little epoxy. Although people say you can reheat the adhesive in these and use it again, I wouldn't trust the button to it. Now it's time to finally place the new midsection on the digitizer. Hopefully you purchased a midsection with the adhesive already on it. Place the digitizer face down on a soft surface, and make sure you remember to put the home button in (and make sure the tabs are parallel to the screen, not skewed or perpendicular). You have to make sure that you get the ribbon cable through the slot on the midsection (so the ribbon cable is on TOP of the midsection, not buried beneath it). You need to do this BEFORE you adhere the two parts together, obviously. The adhesive will grip the digitizer at the slightest touch, so be careful with this step (duh! be careful with ALL the steps, haha). Here's the diagram above for reference again:
The ribbon cable, once the two parts are glued together, will be folded backwards on itself in order to fit into it's socket (see socket picture above). Once completed, you should have something that looks like this:
The last step, before snapping the digitizer assembly into place is reconnecting the ribbon cable to the iTouch body. I tried a bunch of unsuccessful methods, but the method that worked for me was to hold one on top of the other and slip my finger in between the two and press it down. It will "click" slightly. Once this is done, you can turn the thing on to check it. It should all work, and you can test the home button, etc before you seal it all up. Then, simple realign the digitizer section with the phone body and snap it back it. Voila! Fixed phone:
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