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Tips for Digitizer Screen Replacement?

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00AHTFNEM
This is the one I bought, for a reference. I'm just curious if anyone else has done it and what problems they ran into. I'm no stranger to electronics, so I'm not afraid to take it apart, I'm just worried that I'm going to end up doing something wrong.
For example, the glass and digitizer are fused together, right?
And do you go around the front or the sides with the heat gun? 750w or 1300w?

Here's a good DIY video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_70-W9JjVjg&feature=youtube_gdata_player
A hair dryer should suffice so I don't think you need such a powerful heat gun.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk 4 Beta

wrathofnero said:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00AHTFNEM
This is the one I bought, for a reference. I'm just curious if anyone else has done it and what problems they ran into. I'm no stranger to electronics, so I'm not afraid to take it apart, I'm just worried that I'm going to end up doing something wrong.
For example, the glass and digitizer are fused together, right?
And do you go around the front or the sides with the heat gun? 750w or 1300w?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I posted this thread a few days ago after replacing the digitizer myself. The video referred to by another member was for a phone, and personally I doubt a hairdryer would suffice for the job 'cause cell phones usually use light double-sided tape to hold the almost weightless glass. The tape on the Tab 2, on the other hand, is quite strong. You can use sheer force except there's no gap at the edge, front or back, and you might damage the LCD display in the process. I used a dryer for a few minutes and it did nothing to loosen the adhesive. Good luck.

That is an awesome tutorial. You're right about it giving confidence, as well as answering many of the questions I had. I guess I'm more concerned now over just various tips and tricks.
Is there any fine science to lining it up? How easily can it be fingerprinted and what would you use? Also, I've heard of WD-40 to remove the glue left over. What should I use if this one doesn't include any adhesive?
As you can see, I'm clearly a worrier. Got it honest.

wrathofnero said:
That is an awesome tutorial. You're right about it giving confidence, as well as answering many of the questions I had. I guess I'm more concerned now over just various tips and tricks.
Is there any fine science to lining it up? How easily can it be fingerprinted and what would you use? Also, I've heard of WD-40 to remove the glue left over. What should I use if this one doesn't include any adhesive?
As you can see, I'm clearly a worrier. Got it honest.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lining it up is a no-brainer since the glass fits snugly into the frame. The lcd is a non-issue since it is separated from the touchscreen. As far as finger prints,I use a 50/50 white vinegar/water solution. Be sure to wipe it off with a microfiber cloth while it's still wet. For left-over glue,I use either Goo-gone and 91% alcohol afterwards, or acetone. WD40 is fine though I am not sure it would not leave any residue after drying out. In case the new one has no adhesive, the better choice would be the outdoor double-sided tape for 5 lbs at Home Depot, or failing that, loctite outdoor epoxy though this one could get messy.

[Teardown] What is the material on the shielding covers ?

Dear all,
I have spent some time disassembling my Nexus 5 and I found that the shielding cover that faces the die-casting has a strange "gold" tape on it (cf. picture enclosed).
I am curious, does anyone know what is it ? Is it a "high" thermal conductivity material that send the heat to the die-casting ? Or is is electrically non-conductive material that avoid leakage ?
I am a bit concerned because if it is for heat transfer, why not putting something on the CPU too ?
Thx for your feedbacks.

fredo490 said:
Dear all,
I have spent some time disassembling my Nexus 5 and I found that the shielding cover that faces the die-casting has a strange "gold" tape on it (cf. picture enclosed).
I am curious, does anyone know what is it ? Is it a "high" thermal conductivity material that send the heat to the die-casting ? Or is is electrically non-conductive material that avoid leakage ?
I am a bit concerned because if it is for heat transfer, why not putting something on the CPU too ?
Thx for your feedbacks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In the service manual it descripted as "Can Assembly,Shield" and the clips of it named as "SMT Boss / Screw / Shield can frame"

The best person to ask would be @AdamOutler. Can you give any insight?

Woven copper tape is both thermally and electrically conductive. Its been a while since I looked inside mine, so I don't really remember it.
Those schematics are funny though.. Ground connected to pin 1... 25 times

AdamOutler said:
Woven copper tape is both thermally and electrically conductive. Its been a while since I looked inside mine, so I don't really remember it.
Those schematics are funny though.. Ground connected to pin 1... 25 times
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks!

AdamOutler said:
Woven copper tape is both thermally and electrically conductive. Its been a while since I looked inside mine, so I don't really remember it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So it is a copper tape, thanks for the info. But why is the color so "yellow"? It doesn't actually look like copper.
There is still a thing that I don't understand: the hot spot should be the CPU, why not contacting it to the die casting instead of the shielding cover ?! To me, there is something that doesn't really make sense in this design.
Edit: interesting enough, it seems that the LG G3 uses the same concept (cf. enclosed). Die casting in the middle with this "gold" tape on the shielding cover. It seems to be a reference design for LG.

AdamOutler said:
Woven copper tape is both thermally and electrically conductive. Its been a while since I looked inside mine, so I don't really remember it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
We use this stuff at work for RF gaskets for EMC. Here's an example: LeaderTech SF030PCU-CA
My guess is that it's to complete the EMI shield around the cutouts for the SoC and the couple of other parts poking through. Look at the mill-out where the PCB sits on the chassis for the SoC. By doing this, they can shave off a mm or two on the phone.
Those schematics are funny though.. Ground connected to pin 1... 25 times
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Those are all the ground points on the board that aren't part of components. Like screw holes, friction ground contacts, and the shield can. Standard stuff to throw odds and ends that don't make sense elsewhere in the schematic on a single page. On some of the stuff I work on, with hundreds of 11x17 pages for a single board, it's not uncommon to have pages dedicated to holes, bypass caps, and mechanical stuff, all with no regard to pin numbers.
fredo490 said:
So it is a copper tape, thanks for the info. But why is the color so "yellow"? It doesn't actually look like copper.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Probably some sort of alloy, nickel/copper. See the link above. Pure copper would corrode too easily.
There is still a thing that I don't understand: the hot spot should be the CPU, why not contacting it to the die casting instead of the shielding cover ?! To me, there is something that doesn't really make sense in this design..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ah, a common misconception about chip packaging.
High power chips like PC CPUs need a lot of heat pulled away from them quickly, and the most efficient way is by facing the back of the die away from the package PCB so a heatsink can be slapped on top. These always are left open-top or have a heat spreader of some sort.
But for most chips, the back of the die is bonded to the package PCB (or leadframe) and bond wires used to jumper the die to the package. For chips that need to be cooled, there are dozens or hundreds of vias in the package PCB (metal plated holes through the PCB) and BGA pads on the other sides of the vias. These are called thermals, and conduct heat from the chip die to pads on the BGA. If you look at the back of a typical BGA, these show up as a separated square array of pads in the middle.
The designer of the PCB that uses this chip will design in thermals between the BGA thermal pads and the ground layer(s). The ground layers are nearly solid sheets of copper, and the thermal vias let it act as a heat spreader.
Also, the SoC in the N5 is a multi-chip package (MCP) and has a second BGA with the DRAM sitting on top of the Snapdragon BGA. The Snapdragon BGA PCB has solder balls on top that make contact with the DRAM BGA. It's all covered in rich creamy epoxy, which isn't all that good at conducting heat.
All this leads up to the top of the Snapdragon 800 package being the least useful place to try pulling away heat.

pokey9000 said:
Those are all the ground points on the board that aren't part of components. Like screw holes, friction ground contacts, and the shield can. Standard stuff to throw odds and ends that don't make sense elsewhere in the schematic on a single page. On some of the stuff I work on, with hundreds of 11x17 pages for a single board, it's not uncommon to have pages dedicated to holes, bypass caps, and mechanical stuff, all with no regard to pin numbers.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Believe me, I've worked with plenty of schematics before. I just find it funny that they would label chasis ground as pin 1. Generally that's just ground. Someone obviously had too much time on their hands, considering its an EM shield being called pin 1.

AdamOutler said:
Believe me, I've worked with plenty of schematics before. I just find it funny that they would label chasis ground as pin 1. Generally that's just ground. Someone obviously had too much time on their hands, considering its an EM shield being called pin 1.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think it depends on the EDA tool and the whim of the library maintainer. From the little symbol creation I've done in KiCAD I think pin number visibility can be turned off for a symbol. I'm looking right now at one of our designs, and half the page is plated drill holes, each numbered pin 1. What's better, on the same page is a single high current screw terminal with 4 leads holding it to the board. It's one solid piece of metal, but the symbol shows pins 1-4.

fredo490 said:
Dear all,
I have spent some time disassembling my Nexus 5 and I found that the shielding cover that faces the die-casting has a strange "gold" tape on it (cf. picture enclosed).
I am curious, does anyone know what is it ? Is it a "high" thermal conductivity material that send the heat to the die-casting ? Or is is electrically non-conductive material that avoid leakage ?
I am a bit concerned because if it is for heat transfer, why not putting something on the CPU too ?
Thx for your feedbacks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Going slightly off topic, but could you say if there's something such as a warranty sticker when you open your Nexus to tell that it has been opened?
Thanks in advanced.

ImSoBored said:
Going slightly off topic, but could you say if there's something such as a warranty sticker when you open your Nexus to tell that it has been opened?
Thanks in advanced.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I didn't find any warranty sticker in mine. However, it is quite obvious to find if the device has been opened because of the tape holding the back cover. It is almost impossible to open and close it without "damaging" the tape.

fredo490 said:
I didn't find any warranty sticker in mine. However, it is quite obvious to find if the device has been opened because of the tape holding the back cover. It is almost impossible to open and close it without "damaging" the tape.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oh, guess I'll have to wait till my warranty is gone. Still more than one year to go... Thanks btw

Anyone changed the housing/bezel

Just got the s5 from a family member..great phone..the bezel is chipped quite heavily .. the replacement part seems cheap enough but I don't know if it's worth the risk..maybe just case it up and be done with it..

russy23 said:
Just got the s5 from a family member..great phone..the bezel is chipped quite heavily .. the replacement part seems cheap enough but I don't know if it's worth the risk..maybe just case it up and be done with it..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Your best bet for a guide to follow that also has images is on the following link.
https://www.ifixit.com/Device/Samsung_Galaxy_S5
Good Luck!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I DO NOT PROVIDE SUPPORT VIA PM UNLESS ASKED/REQUESTED BY MYSELF.
PLEASE KEEP IT IN THE THREADS WHERE EVERYONE CAN SHARE

russy23 said:
Just got the s5 from a family member..great phone..the bezel is chipped quite heavily .. the replacement part seems cheap enough but I don't know if it's worth the risk..maybe just case it up and be done with it..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, it isn't if you've never done this before.
Reasons are the next:
1. The risk to damage LCD-assembly is very high.
2. The risk to buy a non-suitable bezel (middle frame, or "rear case" how Samsung calls this part) is very high. They are different for different variants of S5 and contain different main antennas inside gray plastic.

Your best bet is to wait for a crack in the screen. You're also gonna screw up the adhesive around the screen and you could literally break keys underneath (no backlight anymore)
Unless you can pop in a nail and try to lift up the screen yourself... as it happens when device is old.
As of now new Original screen is around 100€, which is one of the best display today.

I'll just stick a case on and be done with it..just get a new charge port cover and that'll do..haha

I just installed a new charger port cover. Cost me $3.50 and took 5 minutes to install.. If you really want to change the bezel do a google search on how to do it.. There are plenty of videos which will show you the steps..

russy23 said:
Just got the s5 from a family member..great phone..the bezel is chipped quite heavily .. the replacement part seems cheap enough but I don't know if it's worth the risk..maybe just case it up and be done with it..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
after watching several instructional videos on how to disassemble my s5, i realized its not worth it. they water-proofed the crap out of it with multiple layers of adhesive. using a heat gun to soften the glue is a pain, and can also damage the components.

if you use some kind of very soft heat gun and a "sucker" while sliding in a small credit card, you can do it. it is all about being delicate...

The bad thing to replace the bezel frame is that you have to unmount the whole phone, and at last remove the screen. It's glued to the frame with an adhesive band and it's very difficult to remove it without breaking it. And probably you'll need a new adhesive to mount it again to the frame, otherwise parts of the screen will remain elevated from the bezel.
And it's very easy to break the AMOLED screen connector between the mainboard and the screen if you don't know where it is. First, you'll have to watch several youtube vids to get to know how to disasemble the phone and where the connector is.
And if you dare to replace it and you fail, there're cheap alternatives like this: https://lltrader.com/collections/s5/products/samsung-galaxy-s5-display-assembly-no-frame but it's not an original AMOLED, it's a LCD and very fragile, keep it in mind.

Changing display

My display damaged and i wanna to ask you smth guys.
How difficulty is it to change it by myself?
I watch this video "
" and i concluded its pretty easy to change it. But the only tool i dont have is the heatgun the other tools i can buy.
Tell me your opinion. Is it easy to do?

Can't tell if it's easy, but in other situations that I needed a heat gun and didn't have one, I used a hair dryer, which is way more common to have at home, or at least easier to borrow from a neighbor or something like that

Watch tear down and repair vids.
If a repair shop will let you watch them do it.
ESD, learn and understand what it is. Discreet components ie the display and mobo are very susceptible to it out of circuit.
Bare minimum protection is a bare wood surface to work on and a relative room humidity of 50% or better. A earth grounded ESD mat and wrist strap is best
Disconnect the battery as soon as possible in the disassembly process. Discharge below 40% if possible before starting.
Have all the drivers, picks, fine precision tweezers, and tools needed. Excellent light and a 2X or so optical visor be nice.
Inspect for additional damage*.
Have a set of OEM seals and now's a good time to replace the battery if it's performance has noticably dropped.
Take pictures disassembling if needed. It must be put back together exactly as it was.
Do Not over torgue screws... less is better.
Be very careful not to damage the ribbon microconnectors.
Take your time, no rush.
*any impact that can break the display or bend the frame can damage the mobo. High G loads or direct impacts can damage chipsets internally, fracture solder joints and internally damaged multilayered mobo PCB internal traces.

I did it three days ago, bc my mix 3 had contact with water.
Its kind of easy to do with a hairdryer and a small plastic tool.
The hardest part is to glue it back together.
(But I have to say my screen didn't work afterwards. The expert in the phone repair store said its maybe a problem on the motherboard)

slowmotion11 said:
I did it three days ago, bc my mix 3 had contact with water.
Its kind of easy to do with a hairdryer and a small plastic tool.
The hardest part is to glue it back together.
(But I have to say my screen didn't work afterwards. The expert in the phone repair store said its maybe a problem on the motherboard)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If the battery isn't promptly removed and especially if it's not immediately powered down the current can cause corrosion and short out circuits. The power section is particularly vulnerable. Try again, inspect mobo and the ribbon connectors for signs of corrosion and moisture. Use bright light and magnification.
Is it completely dry? A good soaking with anhydrous isopropyl will help remove hidden water. Again dry completely afterwards. Getting the underside of BGA chipsets dry is imperative.
The micro connectors tend to trap moisture too.
Careful use of compressed air can be very useful but the key word here is careful. Don't stick a nozzle with 100 psi an inch or two from the mobo! Either use low pressure clean, dry air or back it up for high pressure air.
Use your best judgment... it's a bit of an art.
After you dry it as good as possible let it sit in a warm, dry room with a fan on it. Complete drying may take days without disassembly.

Thank you for the tips! I will try it like you described

The same is true with flooded cars, promptly pulling the battery can limit the damage even save the vehicle.
Be wary on flood damage vehicles for sale now, always check for water lines/marks
Most will suffer impossible electrical problems forever. Brine water always kills...

Building my own battery

New batteries for the XDA Exec/JasJar are not available anymore, so I want to try to equip my old battery with new cells.
I found a suitably thin pair of 3.7v Lipo batteries as a replacement.
I managed to open the old battery and remove the old cells without incident.
The question is now: should I remove the old battery management sysmte I found inside or use the new cells with their own BMS?
The old battery has four contacts, positive, negative, one thermistor and a status indicator.
The new cells I have only have two contacts, positive and negative.
Will the phone work with the middle contacts not being connected? If I remove the BMS of the new cells and connect them to the old BMS, the cells are a different capacity. Would that matter?

You want the thermistor to monitor battery temperature. The power controller may puke all over you without that input and go into default mode. Whatever that is.
Charge state is voltage based so if the cell voltage ratings are the same as the OEM ones it should work. If you solder to the cells you better be quick and proficient at soldering with a temp controlled iron 45-85 watts (I go for 650-720F) and 63/37 flux core solder. Pre-tin any wires...

I soldered the new cells to the old BMS and it's working fine.
The soldering wasn't quick though. The solder was very reluctant to sticking to the metal strips, despite me roughing them up with sand paper and using extra flux. Any suggestions of how to make solder stick more readily?
Is the cell potentially unsafe now? Is there a much higher risk that it will spontaneasly burst into flames?

You should pre tin it. I will aggressively rub the tinned iron tip* on the surface with lots of rosin flux to get it to tin. OK to use excess solder and allow it to drip off as it carries away the contaminants. Allow to cool. On problem surfaces I'll waste a lot of solder just to get them to tin. Got to go with the flow... did production soldering for decades
Once both surfaces are pre tinned then solder. 37/63 solder works best; lower melting point, flows better.
You're probably ok as long as there's no noticable or battery bulging. Maybe do a test cycle or two with the cover loose to test it and make sure the thermistor is still reasonably accurate.
*greatly reduces tip lifespan. Normally you avoid do this. I reccomend using at least a 65 watt iron to overcome the battery's heat sinking capacity. Lower btu's mean unwanted excessive heating of the battery due to excessive heating time. Sometimes bumping up the iron temperature yields a faster solder joint but speed is of essence. Loitering with the heat more then a few seconds is to be avoided. Using the right size/shape tip can increase the heat transfer and help to minimize contact time. Sanding is normally never used to clean solder surfaces in electronics. It may make it harder. Make sure the surface doesn't have a conformal coating, if so remove it first. Brillo pad to clean tips of burnt build up; they don't cut into the tip plating on the tinned zone (destroying them).
I use tips that have a large tinned zone as smaller zones (measured from tip back) will foul much quicker as the burst rosin accumulates no matter how often you wet sponge it and well you keep them tinned.
Get as much tip surface area on the zone to be solder as possible at the get. Soldering is a skill/art that requires practice to learn.

Even aluminum solders easily. Except aluminum oxide doesn't.
Apply oil, sandpaper it, solder through the oil.

Renate said:
Even aluminum solders easily. Except aluminum oxide doesn't.
Apply oil, sandpaper it, solder through the oil.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Interesting. Cool trick if it works.
Never had to play with that much. Cheap steel lead electronic components are a pain.
Apparently using a very high tin content solder helps, but any zinc chloride if used must be completely removed. Check its melting point first...
Also immediately after soldering quench the battery with a damp cloth to cool it more rapidly.

Any kind of oil? Sunflower oil?

naujoks said:
Any kind of oil? Sunflower oil?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lol, I just did a check of my assertion.
I used spray canola oil from the dollar store.

Renate said:
Lol, I just did a check of my assertion.
I used spray canola oil from the dollar store.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Rosin flux is the O2 sheild when soldering... and it won't permeate into the display. Just use liquid or paste rosin flux and Emery cloth, etc.