An Easy Guide on Replacing The iPhone XS Max’s Screen

The iPhone Xs Max has a beautiful OLED screen which is very hard to take off but if you follow these easy guide then you can replace the iPhone Xs Max screen yourself

Damaging your phone’s screen can be heartbreaking, especially if it’s an iPhone since they are so expensive. Smartphone technology has come a long way in the past decade, but unfortunately, there hasn’t been a lot of effort in trying to make them more robust. Modern smartphones are fragile and require a lot of care when being handled. Fortunately, smartphones are also easy to repair. We have easy access to the right tools and parts needed to safely open a smartphone for repair work.

Today, we are going to looking at the process of replacing an iPhone XS Max’s screen. iPhone’s latest phones are notoriously hard to get into. The design choices made by Apple place a lot of emphasis on keeping people out of their phones. However, with patience and tact, even the most well-shut phones can be opened.

Replacing the screen on an iPhone XS Max can take 1 to 2 hours. But it is worth it since it will restore the functionality of your device. The replacement process involves disassembling the phone, swapping the old screen with a new one, and then reassembling it. The front speaker and Face ID module are mounted on the phone’s screen. This means that you will also have to take them off the old screen and mount them onto the new one.

Here’s what you will need in order to complete this replacement job:

Tools:

Pentalobe Screwdriver
A heat gun or hairdryer
Opening Picks
Suction Cup
A plastic pry tool
Tri-point Y000 Screwdriver

Parts:

iPhone XS Max screen part
iPhone XS Max Assembly Adhesive

The Replacement Process

Step 1

As always, start off by checking your phone’s battery. Its charge level should be below 25% in order to avoid combustion in case the battery gets punctured.
Shut off your phone and then move to its charging port. You will find two pentalobe screws on either side of the charging port. Take these out and store them somewhere safe.

Step 2

Now, prepare the phone for opening. If your phone’s screen is severely cracked, apply a layer of thick tape over it. This will prevent glass shards from flying at you. It will also increase the structural integrity of the screen, making the removal process easier.
Since your screen is already damaged, you don’t have to worry about its well-being while opening the phone.

Step 3

You will now want to heat up the adhesive holding the screen and phone together. In order to do this, take your heat gun and gradually apply heat to the edges of your phone. You will heat your phone till it becomes just hot enough to touch.
While heating the device, take care that you don’t apply too much heat.
Once the phone is heated up, the adhesive will begin to soften. At this point, you can begin getting into your phone.

Step 4

After softening the adhesive, take a suction cup and secure it onto your phone’s screen. Place the suction cup on the lower half of your phone’s screen.
With the suction cup in place, begin pulling on the cup slowly and firmly. The goal is to pull the screen away from the phone, creating a small gap between the phone’s body and screen.

If you are having a hard time during this part, you can try and heat the adhesive in order to soften it further.

Step 5

Once a gap becomes visible between the phone and its body, you can begin slicing away at the adhesive holding everything in place. Take your opening pick and gently insert it into the gap. Make sure that you don’t insert it too deep, otherwise, you could damage your phone’s internals.
With the pick in place, slide it around in order to cut through the adhesive.

Do this with all the lower edges of your phone.

You may have to re-heat the adhesive a few times during this process.

Step 6

After removing the adhesive from your phone’s bottom half, change the position of your suction cup. Place the suction cup on the upper half of your phone now.
While cutting away at the adhesive on the phone’s upper half, you will also have to deal with clips that are holding the screen in place. The top half of the screen has clips securing it to the phone’s body. In order to release these clips, you must pull the screen down towards the charging port. This motion needs to be done gently, otherwise, you could end up breaking the clips.
Once you have death with the clips and the adhesive, your phone’s screen is free from the phone’s body-almost free.

Step 7

Don’t pull the screen away from the phone’s body. There are a bunch of cables that connect the screen to the phone. These run along the right side of the phone’s screen.
Lift your phone’s screen from the left side. Your iPhone will open up like a book and you will get a first look at its internals.
You will now have to disconnect all the cables running between the phone and the screen in order to remove the screen.

Step 8

Near the upper right corner of the phone, you will find the logic board cover bracket. This is secured in place with 4 screws. Remove these screws in order to access all of the cable connectors.

Step 9

After removing the bracket, you will now find a bunch of flat connectors securing various cables to the phone’s motherboard.
The connectors will come off of the board quite easily, so make sure you apply very little pressure.
Each connecter has a silicone seal around its respective port. Make sure that you don’t damage these seals as they play a role in water resistance.

Step 10

The display connector is held in place with another, smaller bracket. This bracket has 3 screws that you will remove in order to access the display connector.
Now, disconnect the display connector with a plastic pry tool.

Then, remove the digitizer cable connector from the board as well.

Step 11

The cable that connects the front panel modules and sensors to the phone is set in place with a light adhesive. Grab the cable with a tweezer and gently lift it out of its place.
You have now fully disconnected the front panel of your phone from its body.

Step 12

Now, before installing the new screen, remove the sensors and modules attached to your old screen.
The speaker and sensor assembly are held in place with 3 screws, remove them and set them aside
Next, remove the earpiece speaker, which is secure in place with a light adhesive. Use your plastic pry tool to pry it out of place.
The rest of the sensors are secured in place with a stronger adhesive. You will have to heat the top of your front panel in order to remove them.
After heating the adhesive, use your opening pick. Slide it underneath the modules and give it a gentle twist. Be careful since you don’t want to damage any of the cables and components.