Dead Screen, touch works on Droid. Creative repurposement?

February 15, 2014 9:20 PM

So walking the dogs the other day, Lady zigged while I was trying to text, and my leash hand punched my texting hand, and the phone broke the screen (but not touch sensing). I got a replacement phone (I was due for an upgrade) but it seems ridiculous to have this hardware lying dormant due to one component being borked.

So: Perfectly cromulent Droid RAZR MAXX with no video on screen. HDMI output works - that's how the Verizon guys changed the settings so I could transfer my contacts. Touch sensing works. I can mount it as storage. I even answered a couple calls before I upgraded via muscle memory.

What the hell can I do with this?

posted by notsnot to Technology (5 answers total)

Tear it apart to see what it looks like inside. Take photos and post them to your blog.
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 9:27 PM on February 15, 2014

Can you find a kit on Ebay to replace the screen? My other half replaced a Galaxy screen recently, and it was involved but he didn't go into this with any special skills. It was a resounding success.
posted by DarlingBri at 4:00 AM on February 16, 2014

Need a low power server? Try the Ultimate App I have several old phones running various tasks just because.
posted by emjay at 4:27 AM on February 16, 2014

Since it has a working hdmi output, you could get a Bluetooth remote and use it as a media center. Xbox, Netflix, Hulu, etc, all work on android.
posted by BenevolentActor at 6:10 AM on February 16, 2014 [1 favorite]

Take it to the screen-replacement store on the East Loop or even the screen-replacement kiosk at the Galleria and see what they say about it. I know you're mechanically inclined, but it might be worth talking to people who replace phone screens all the time just to get their opinion on how to proceed.
posted by limeonaire at 9:40 AM on February 16, 2014