I cracked my aria screen pretty much right after I got it, Managed to get my hands on a new digitizer and replaced it. I found a quick walkthrough on Android forums. It helped but had a few points that could have been more succinct.
Posting here in case anyone needs.
Took me about an 1hr 30min the first time trying to figure it out on my own.
My additional comments are indicated by **.
I put some addendums to @Jcawesome's steps...
( http://androidforums.com/1211507-post42.html )
1. Remove backcover
2. Remove Battery, sim chip, and memory card
3. Unscrew the top two screws (meaning the end farthest from the memory card.)
4. Using a flat plastic wedge, (I used the one that came from my ebay order, it looks like the blue tool in this pic )
5. Carefully pull off the parts at the top being very cautious not to break anything. (Do not pull the circuit board out, only lift the end closest to the edge of the phone)
** there are two pieces to pull off....with the phone laying flat (screen down and the top facing away from you) a larger yellow piece with an attached back speaker comes out towards you. a second piece pulls up (north as if on a map)... but becareful because there is a bunch of tape and tackiness all throughout this thing (literally I felt it was held together by tape). I actually pulled off the grill on front as well.
** the circuit board is kept attached near the top right. the element that is the power button snaps off. (there are two little dots just to the right of the speaker with what looks like blackish tape that connects to the circuit board... you can pop this off.
With that off, I could lift the circuit board about 30 degrees or so... I wasn't comfortable pulling it back any farther than that.
I did step 5 AFTER I got the screen off.
6. Using the flat plastic wedge again, push the wedge tool between the phone and the broken screen. (It will feel like you are breaking it but it is fine, it is held on by a sticky paste that will slowly give way)
** careful on this part... especially difficult depending on how your screen is cracked. but it is just a bunch of sticky tape that is keeping it attached.... I had to peel away the goo and connection near the top sensitive areas as my ear piece speaker came off with the goo.
7. Disconnect the connecter from the old digitizer to the new one and remove the old digitizer.
**I used a small little tweezer and sneaked it in underneath the circuit board to pull the digitizer connection out.... a little difficult to push back in, but just took some patience.
8. Being careful not to put fingerprints on any exposed surface of either the phone lcd or the replace screen, place the new digitizer in the exact spot of the old one.
** have some lint free microfiber cloth handy and perhaps some screen cleaner.... I spent about 15 minutes cleaning the lcd screen before laying the replacement digitizer back on.
I actually did step 9 before step 8.
9. Connect the connecter from the new digitizer to the board, be careful not to pull the circuit board out and do not scratch the board.
10. You may want to use some glue to hold the new screen on, hopefully this will not happen again. My phone still had enough of the sticky paste left to hold the new screen fine.
** I agree... the first time you replace it will be fine.... afterwards tho, I can see it running out of tackiness.....
11. Put the phone back together in reverse order.
12. Turn it one and everything should be working again.
** in a nut shell
1) take out two screws
2) detach two yellow shell pieces
3) unhook a latch that is the power button
4) pry off the screen
5) lift the circuit board approx 30 degrees.
6) detach digitizer connection from underneath using tweezer
7) replace digitizer connection, return circuit board flat
8)position digitizer and press down to adhere
9)replace two plastic yellow shell pieces
10) screw it back together
done.
let me know if you have any questions.=)
enjoy your "brand" new aria.
dude,, this is a PITA,, I did,, was about 1hour, the hardest part,, is to not put the fingers on the LCD and cleaning the new screen..... dust particles everywhere... and at the end still got one...
Sorry eortizr, If I made it seem easier than it was. I spent quite a while cleaning the lcd screen when I replaced the digitizer... I don't think it's possible to change the digitizer without getting fingerprints on it though. But with some diligence and working in a clean area, I was able to keep all dust and finger prints out of the final product.
My wife dropped hers. Cracked up pretty good but still functional. Think I might just go ahead and pay the $100 and have someone who does it for a living do it.
I can totally see me trying DIY concentrating real hard dripping sweat all over it and ruining the MB. LOL
Replaced the screen today. Half way in I thought I definitely bit off more than I could chew. I got it done though. A couple of things I learned:
The digitizer unplugs away from you or toward the screen with the phone laying flat (screen down and the top facing away from you). I kept thinking i had to unplug it by pulling it north, toward the top of the phone.
I dropped and threw away both the front speaker and the very small rubber piece that covers the proximity sensor so... when I turned the phone on everything looked good, until I answered my phone. The screen went blank and I couldn't hear anything. I found the speaker and the proximity sensor cover and replaced them.
I would do it again, its worth saving $50 or so.
Thanks for the tutorial dreamflux.
I found the whole kit including the adhesive here: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=180643624141
This is the seller in case the sale ends and the link breaks: http://myworld.ebay.com/chinaphoneaccessories/?_trksid=p4340.l2559
I found a replacement digitizer from tmart dot com for $55, free shipping. Just search Aria on their site, you'll find it. Sorry, I can't seem to post links yet.
What was peculiar, was that it has only the HTC logo in the center, and no ATT logo. Looks nice and clean. They included plastic separator tools and torx drivers, though nothing in this phone uses torx. The site is a little shady, and while their headquartered in Hong Kong, it shipped from Brooklyn NY about 5 days after purchase, priority mail. The swap wasn't bad, but my only complaint is that the lights from the softkeys seem to shine up onto the screen, but you get used to it. It's probably because I didn't transfer the stickers over on the bottom of the digitizer.
Thanks for the directions ... I just replaced my digitizer. I had 2 major problems: 1) my power button doesn't work any longer (I'm going to take it apart and try to put it back together and see if that fixes it), and 2) you HAVE to use BLACK sticky stuff to seat the bottom of the digitizer - I used the clear stuff that came with the digitizer, and now I have tons of light bleeding into the LCD from the button backlights. I'm not sure what to do about the bleed ... I guess I'll have to tear it down again and put black stuff in ... damn.
That's the deal with that excess backlighting! I thought it was just a matter of the screen being misaligned. Terrible that I have to replace that black foam, it got shredded while I was dismantling the thing to replace the digitizer.
eortizr said:
dude,, this is a PITA,, I did,, was about 1hour, the hardest part,, is to not put the fingers on the LCD and cleaning the new screen..... dust particles everywhere... and at the end still got one...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
its always suggested to work in a dust-free space but we all know that's virtually impossible.
I had a bit of fun with dust & fingerprints when replacing my LCD after getting my Aria, After a time or two of taking apart and being unsuccessful, I left it as is with one visible flake.
If you take a hot shower the steam in the air sticks to dust particles leaving no dust
Sent from my Liberty using XDA App
aria
use electrical tape to cover up the lighting that comes through the digitizer
use 3m double sided tape to hold digitizer to lcd
use rubber gloves to change screen to not get finger prints on it
dust906 said:
use electrical tape to cover up the lighting that comes through the digitizer
use 3m double sided tape to hold digitizer to lcd
use rubber gloves to change screen to not get finger prints on it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
*Just to make sure I'm putting the electrical tape on correctly*
put the double sided tape on and then put the electrical tap (sticky side facing up) on top of the ds tape then apply the screen to the lcd
Thanks for the explanation dreamflux.. This, along with some youtube videos helped me out to change the digitizer, but patience is THE key...
Brought my phone with me to Cedar Point the other day. Survived the entire day....until I stopped at the bars on the way home. Got out of the car, forgetting I had my phone on my lap---shattered right by the track pad.
Just got my digitizer today for $22 on ebay (not bad) After 2 hours and a migraine later, everything came out great.
The only 2 things wrong now are the light from the softkeys bleeding onto the screen and out the sides (I'm just going to shut those lights off), and the trackpad sits a little lower than the screen now. Either I didn't align it right, or the glue isn't holding well. It's weird, if you press on the glass anound the trackpad, it wakes the phone (cm7 trackpad wake).
I only plan on using the phone for a few more months, so I'm happy with the results.
Uhhggg, did the replacement on my son's Aria. It wasn't so bad, but now the LCD screen doesn't light.
I get the vibration when you first hit the power button. Is this correct? I'm not too familiar with the phone.
Rececked the connector for the LCD and it seems to be snapped in.
brivette007 said:
Brought my phone with me to Cedar Point the other day. Survived the entire day....until I stopped at the bars on the way home. Got out of the car, forgetting I had my phone on my lap---shattered right by the track pad.
Just got my digitizer today for $22 on ebay (not bad) After 2 hours and a migraine later, everything came out great.
The only 2 things wrong now are the light from the softkeys bleeding onto the screen and out the sides (I'm just going to shut those lights off), and the trackpad sits a little lower than the screen now. Either I didn't align it right, or the glue isn't holding well. It's weird, if you press on the glass anound the trackpad, it wakes the phone (cm7 trackpad wake).
I only plan on using the phone for a few more months, so I'm happy with the results.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
did you have any problems with the digitizer responsivenes or something like that? I'm need one and curious about the quality of the cheap digitizers in ebay.
so I replaced my friends screen and now the phone turns on, has sound, vibrates, but just doesnt turn the screen on... the light sensor works and all, and if I call it, it rings and everything, just the screen won't turn on it stays black... I've checked the 2 ribbons and everything is fine, anyone have a suggestion..??
jdmsohc22 said:
so I replaced my friends screen and now the phone turns on, has sound, vibrates, but just doesnt turn the screen on... the light sensor works and all, and if I call it, it rings and everything, just the screen won't turn on it stays black... I've checked the 2 ribbons and everything is fine, anyone have a suggestion..??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
so what I meant was the digitizer turns on, but it is just a dark lit screen, no visual anything going on.. If i call it from another phone it will ring, but when i swipe right to left to answer and press around where the answer button is it doesn't respond either, just rings and rings... anyways just wanted to elaborate a little more..
---------- Post added at 02:28 AM ---------- Previous post was at 02:08 AM ----------
msailer said:
Uhhggg, did the replacement on my son's Aria. It wasn't so bad, but now the LCD screen doesn't light.
I get the vibration when you first hit the power button. Is this correct? I'm not too familiar with the phone.
Rececked the connector for the LCD and it seems to be snapped in.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
same thing is happening with me as well..
^^^^ Soooooo.....I got the same thing on my wife phone, the BLACK SCREEN. I did my homework and read and watched videos on how to replace the digitizer. I was in a steamy room with all my tools from work with pre-cut electrical and .005" double sticky tape. im a mechanical assembler. I did everything to the tee and was very carefull. i think i got a bunk one from china. I bought mine for $19 from china. It had at&t logo and everything. you get what you pay for? So I've got to pay now $50 for a replacement phone through ins. Not bad because before i made the claim i thought the replacement was $150. Anyways just a heads up. Now i got a phone of spare parts Whats cool is that i get to root her phone all over again. So if anyone here has had the black screen. let me know what happened next with your situation. Did you fix it? replaced it with another one? thanks
OK guys looking for community experience. My defy took a tumble and cracked the screen, the only thing holding the glass was a screen protector. I bought a screen from eBay and replaced it myself. All went well till I started getting complaints that callers to me just hear themselves back, now the complaints started first call after replacement screen and with every call since. Anyone got any ideas what might be wrong?
The only logical reason i can think for this is that somehow you managed to put something out of place when you assembly the phone back... did you try to disassemble and try again?
Sorry that a don't have technical skills to give a proper answer, but that looks logical!
Good luck!
It might be echo cancellation mic, maybe contacts aren't set properly on the board. Try to call with headset, it should be no echo.
When i'm holdnig my phone on my ear with my shoulder people are telling me that they hear themselves...didn't investigated that to find culprit, but it is surely because echo cancellation mic.
P.S. And don't call me Shirley
Hello,
I have exactly the same problem. This was my second replacement. The first time i just replaced the glass digitizer leaving my old cover along with the original buzzer. No problems there. The second time though i decided to order the whole thing all together (cover, digitizer, buzzer) in order to same myself the trouble of unsticking the glass and removing all that adhesive glue.
Unfortunately since my second replacement every time i make a call, the person i 'm calling complains about echo and hearing himself. I 'll try to replace the buzzer with the older original one i have and i hope everything turns out good.
Do you have any tips for me, have you solved your problem @rydroid?
any resolution
Hi, did anyone get a resolution to this problem? I have also replaced teh entire front cover and digitizer and am noww getting the same problem. I have double checked everything is installed properly which it seems to be. i think that maybe the noise cancellation mic is being pushed too hard onto the back cover or something.
Anyoen get it sorted?
Cheers
Chris
Guys,
Here comes the solution for my particular echo problem:
I got the same trouble with my girlfriend's phone. Few days ago I replaced the digitizer and since then when I was calling her phone I heard my own voice in my phone back with a nice echo effect. I took the phone apart again to separate the voice of the speaker from the microphone somehow and in the meantime I accidentally lost one of the yellow rubber rings. It fall down to the floor. When I was looking for it on the floor I just found it and I also found another yellow part that I was most probably lost few days ago at the first round. When I put back all the yellow parts and tested the phone again this time the problem just gone. So the solution for me was putting back the yellow part that is located around the bottom of the phone that seems to be isolating the voice that is coming from the speaker. This part is only visible if you take the phone apart in a way the only the LCD and the screen is together in your hand. The mentioned yellow rubber can be seen on this picture (which I just picked by google-ing some random picture): LINK. It is the one seen on the part that is on the bottom left corner, under the LCD, on the left side.
I hope this helps other to resolve the echo issue.
Cheers,
Adam
end of my woes.
I had the same thing as adam in the end. its the little orange silicon bit that shields the microphone. it fits into the fornt cover near the microphone hole. I accidentally threw it away with the old cover and then had the problem. I had to buy a complete new casing in the edn but it is working fine now.
Chris
Hello,
I had the same echo issue.
I have to thank you very much Adam, because I also lost mic seal when I changed touch screen. And I had a big luck, because I found it on the floor after 1 week!
Once again thank you
I am happy to read that it helped you, Hark33. That was the exact reason why I wrote it down. :good:
Cheers,
Adam
hi guys
same problem here, i have a second hand defy plus (maybe previous owner replaced the screen and forget the yellow rings),
so where i can buy this yellow rongs??
really thank you
Hello,
same here, thanks very much Adam!!! :good: