Replacing Your iPhone Screen

In case something like this happens to your iPhone, you may need to salvage your content and repair your screen.



I thought I'd share a few observations. First, obviously the iPhone was recording video at 1080p 60 fps when it was dropped about 5 and a half feet, falling face first, without any kind of protective cover, onto concrete. Despite the impact, it kept recording until I pressed stop. Second, in addition to saving the entirety of the video (3 minutes and 26 seconds, although video players incorrectly mark the duration as 6 minutes and 38 seconds), the phone seems to have saved 4 photos in 2720 x 1532 (16 x 9) resolution. I wonder if these snapshots are taken and discarded under normal circumstances but preserved in case of impact? Or maybe my wife (who was recording the video) unknowingly pressed the shutter release while recording...

I took my iPhone to the Apple Store at Fashion Valley in San Diego. Fortunately I came into the store early enough so that they were able to service my phone that same day before closing. The first thing they told me to do was to back up my contents (for me, this just means synchronizing my photos and videos from that day to Google Photos), as they will try their best to replace the screen, and if unsuccessful, they would provide me with a new phone, thus rendering my contents lost. The second thing they told me to do was to turn off Find My iPhone, otherwise they would not be able to repair the screen. I did not understand their explanation for why that was the case, so I don't remember exactly what the reason was. Since you need to enter your Apple ID password to turn off Find My iPhone, maybe they were trying to verify that I did not have a stolen phone in my possession.

I was told that a typical repair is estimated to require about 30 minutes (plus any time spent in the wait queue). Upon returning when I was told to check back, I was told that the replacement screen failed calibration, so they had to try a 2nd replacement screen. Eventually I got my phone back with a shiny new screen. Here are my itemized costs:

Display, Gray, iPhone 6 Plus   $149.00
   Part Number 661-00159
   Item Warranty Code: OW
   No Returns
Tax @ 7.75%                     $11.55
Total                          $160.55

Steep price to pay for a replacement screen, but I didn't feel like shopping around.