iPhone 5 Battery Replacement (slightly damaged the screen)

Mijn probleem

The phone had taken a swim in a hot tub.... everything worked fine but the battery life was noticeably short.

Mijn oplossing

I've taken the phone apart several times (in the process of drying it out) but i did not previously have the tools. This meant that the first few times i used a tiny flat head to pry the screen from the case, in the process dinging it up a bit.

I was excited that this time i would have the right tools (suction cup) to do the job right. The repair went smoothly, though it was still very difficult to separate the screen while using the suction cup. The most difficult part was prying the old battery from the phone... Apple's glue is STRONG. We had to use a hair dryer to try to loosen it.

Upon putting the phone back together I noticed that the top side was not correctly in place. I grabbed the suction cup once more and began prying. Unfortunately, this time the screen decided to pop off rather suddenly, tugging on the cables a bit. Hoping nothing was damaged, I detached and reattached the screen cables and got everything back together the way it should be. Upon turning on the phone, there were two vertical stripes down the right side of the screen. Not dead pixels, but definitely distorted in some way. There was also a slight discoloration blob on the left hand side. We decided that it might be some overheated components from the hair dryer and let it sit for a while.

Upon turning it back on, the stripes and coloration were gone! However there is now a strange crack that seems to be spreading a bit where the discoloration was before. It is not the glass that is cracked. I think it may be the digitizer, or some other component of the screen that is cracking and delamination is following the cracks (they are wide, look like ant tunnels, that follow a crack pattern). The phone is certainly still useable but its a little disappointing that the repair wasn't perfectly smooth.

Mijn advies

Be VERY careful with the suction cup. I would almost recommend not using it and just dealing with the damage from a screwdriver. You have to pull very hard and if it decides to pop you might have some damage or even worse rip the cables right from the screen.

Removing the battery is very difficult, and heating with a hair dryer felt very sketchy. The battery will bend and mush a bit so be very very careful not to puncture it (it will catch on fire).