Your ipod is grounded!

February 16, 2012 8:12 AM

Cracked ipod touch repair - have you done it?

I got an ipod touch for my almost 7 year old kid - probably not the greatest idea but I did and she loves it. So much so that she snuck it outside where it got hit with a basketball. We'll visit the genius bar this weekend but chances are that they won't repair it. I'm not willing to pay $100 to get it fixed either. So that leaves me repairing it. My question is this - have you done it and is it as easy at it seems on the videos? And, what did it look like when you were done? Could you tell that it had been repaired? Do the clips clip back ok or is it wonky forever after that?

I realized this will void the warranty so thoughts on that risk would be helpful too.

posted by dawkins_7 to technology (7 answers total)

I watched a guy repair my iPhone 3g. Depending on the generation of iPod, there may be a little wonkiness with the adhesive they use to adhere a gasket to the back of the screen, but once it was done (he was very careful about dust) you couldn't tell that it had been repaired.

Don't drink coffee the morning you do this.
posted by straw at 8:27 AM on February 16, 2012

I've done this for several iPhone 3G/S's, and have had great results. But, as I understand it, the iPod touch is a whole different beast. Everything about it is thinner and smaller, and therefore more difficult.

If they refuse to replace it for free (there's actually a good chance they will if it's in warranty, despite the fact that this type of damage isn't supposed to be covered) and you're ABSOLUTELY against paying for repairs, I'd suggest going for it, anyway. Worst case you completely screw it up, but a shattered screen isn't something a 7 year old should be using at all, anyway.
posted by Patbon at 8:57 AM on February 16, 2012

there's actually a good chance they will if it's in warranty, despite the fact that this type of damage isn't supposed to be covered

Yes, this. One month after getting mine, I dropped it on the sidewalk and shattered the screen. I brought it in and didn't even have a chance to ask if they would be willing to repair it; since it was still under warranty, they handed me a new one on the spot, no questions asked.

Good luck!
posted by anderjen at 9:41 AM on February 16, 2012

The Touch fits together very tightly and is difficult to open with one of those online repair kits. I tried to open mine up to replace the earphone jack and it cracked the screen. Had I done it without cracking the screen, the sides of the silver casing would have been slightly bent, although not too noticeably. I imagine putting in a new screen will be just as hard as removing an intact screen. Previously, I had repaired an old iPod Mini that was significantly easier to open. The Touch is just so solidly closed.
posted by Durin's Bane at 10:30 AM on February 16, 2012

If this is not the new fourth-gen model that's held together with glue, it's pretty straightforward. I did my first in about an hour because I had never done it before and took it really slow. Now, I can do it in ten minutes. In this case, buy the whole front assembly [for illustration, might not be yours]. Don't bother saving the $5 and buying just the glass. That way, when some plastic bits break while you're taking the old one off, you won't care. Also, you won't have to deal with replacing the adhesive.

If this is a fourth-gen, I've got nothing. I have never fixed one of those [though my son has one, so maybe this is in my future], but they do seem more fussy with no way to avoid futzing with the glue.

If Apple doesn't replace it, and the screen is just cracked rather than shattered, perhaps cover it with Invisible Shield or something like that. That'll keep the cracks from spreading rapidly and will protect little fingers from any sharps.
posted by chazlarson at 10:45 AM on February 16, 2012

I've replaced the screen on two 4th Gen Ipod Touches. First one worked pretty well (except the camera no longer works right), second one is totally screwed. YMMV I'm pretty handy with tools, pretty tech savvy. But it's all glued together inside, and the connectors are TINY TINY TINY and a bitch to deal with. Very hard to get it to work right. (First one took me two attempts to make it work. Second one is now a very expensive paperweight.)
posted by johngumbo at 4:10 PM on February 16, 2012

I ended up leaving it as-is and it works fine for now. She's about to lose it due to poor school performance anyway so I'm not going to worry about it anymore!
posted by dawkins_7 at 7:12 AM on March 27, 2012