[Q] Cracked LCD - Need to unroot, go back to stock, etc.

I guess it was bound to happen, and I'm the first on this forum to fall victim to it. My phone slipped out of my pocket today getting out of the car and the top right corner of the LCD screen is smashed. Surprisingly everything else is perfectly fine, but this being the "fused LCD" and all that jazz, the whole touch panel is not working any longer though I can see everything fine (except for a hairline leak down the side). Anyway, so I was just looking for advice on how to go about this but first things first...

Unroot and Bootloader
Being development savvy, as soon as I got the phone I rooted it and later installed Project FreeGee to unlock the bootloader. I was wondering if it's safe to unroot the phone while the bootloader is still unlocked, or if I should go about doing this at all (considering this is hardware damage, not anything else).

I was also wondering what's the recommended course of action for replacements with this phone? I've taken apart and replaced the LCD/Digitizer/etc. many times for my friends' iPhones myself by just buying screens off Ebay. However, this Optimus G with its insanely expensive display and fused technology has some other problems..

Ebay cost for LCD/Digitizer assembly - $140 (incl. shipping and tax)

Ouch right? I was wondering if its better to just send the phone back to LG and pay them to repair it, maybe it'll be cheaper that way? Does anybody have experience with this sort of thing?

Honestly right now I'm willing to take any advice I can get, please help a fellow Optimus G lover out.

And please don't make the mistake I did, it's hard on the wallet.

bk175xt said:

I found this post and i was wondering if you had any progress on fixing your screen. This weekend, my phone fell off a counter and cracked the digitizer to the point of it not working, but the LCD is still working. I filed a claim with my credit card's accidental damage protection and they should be crediting my purchase price.

I found a store, locally, that repairs cell phones and they want $200 to replace the screen, otherwise I can buy the part for $160 online and do it myself. What did you end up doing?

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Wow you're lucky. I opened up the phone myself as I'm a technician (though not for LG) and I unfortunately found out that the LCD is fused/soldered/glued onto the chassis of the phone. It's impossible to get the LCD off unless you somehow manage to rip it off but I was unable to do so.

Check out the tear-down of the Nexus 4 (very similar to our Optimus G) http://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/Nexus+4+Teardown/11781/3.

I've contacted the local LG Service Provider but I highly doubt they'll be able to do anything for me. I'm glad that you were able to find someone to do it for you, even at the price of $200. I hope I can also. Let me know how it goes!

Tim4 said:

As i know, the gorilla on OG are laminated over display which has touch screen built in (I think thats the reason it so expensive), so i dont think you can do same thing by yourself without proper instruments.

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That's not the reason, as the assembly comes with glass laminated over the LCD without a problem. The problem is that that whole assembly (glass, LCD, digitizer) is all fused TO the frame. However, when you go to buy a part, they only sell you the LCD/glass/digitizer combo. That's my problem

avink said:

sorry to hear this bud. since this is a relatively new phone, i don't suppose you purchased it on a credit card did ya? sometimes you may be able to claim accidental damage for upto 90 days on a CC purchase. worth looking into if you havent already. saved me a few times.


edit: nm, person above me offered similar advice.

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Unfortunately the retailer didn't take my AMEX card so I had to use a debit card. That was my first thought too.

avink said:

Another thing to look into is to see whether or not its too late to purchase accidental damage coverage that some wireless providers sell. Rogers allows you to buy it within 15 days of purchasing the device. So depending on who you purchased the device from, maybe that is an option also (ignoring the moral issues with this)

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Haha, unfortunately I bought it factory OEM unlocked but wow that's a great idea for the future. Also, just to update everyone I have submitted it to a local repair shop for $150.00 including parts, labor and taxes. According to them, they will get the part in 2-3 days, and by as early as Saturday or as late as Monday, I will get my phone back.

Here's hoping to everything goes well.

It went a lot better than expected. They were able to successfully replace the screen in 3 days. I got it done from Oakville Tech for $150, but remember they'll have to order the part so it does take a few days. My friend also has the exact same phone and got it done at Tech Know Space (Toronto & Mississauga) and they have the screen in stock, takes 2 hours, costs $200.

Sent from my Optimus G using xda app-developers app