Help Dismantling HTC One for repairs, screen/battery replacements, etc

TheSuper · Mar 28, 2013

Website iFixit have dismembered and torn apart the HTC One apart after a struggle and yes it actually was a lengthy struggle and as an overall result have given it a 1/10 repairability score! Ouch! So no DIY repairs on this beauty.

HTC One Teardown - iFixit

Considering its sleek, primarily aluminum construction we never thought the HTC One was going be easy to crack open. But, it seems not even iFixit was completely prepared for the challenge of picking one apart. Since there are no screws used in the construction of the body, the fearless hackers needed to turn to a heat gun, a suction cup and a metal spudger to gain access to the internals. Underneath the swaths of aluminum and glass it turns out most of the components are covered in foil-like copper shielding that is quite difficult to deal with. There are a few screws inside, however, like the pair of fasteners that connect the 2,300mAh battery's cable to the motherboard. In the end, iFixit handed the One its namesake on the repairability scale -- meaning this sucker is practically impossible to pull apart and reassemble. To see the complete and careful destruction of HTC's latest flagship hit up the source.

Our diligent spudgering appears to have permanently mangled the plastic bezel surrounding the aluminum case. It's possible that prying at a snail's pace while applying heat could minimize this damage, but we're not too hopeful. This phone was not made with open-ability in mind.

Something to think about for everyone! I have no doubt this phone needs a case ASAP! Lol.

Drop test video.

HTC One vs iPhone 5 drop test! (video)

KOLIO · Mar 28, 2013

No surprises here,with the sealed construction & no visible fasteners to access the innards.

Some no doubt will be put off by this,I'm definitely NOT one of them.I'm confident this is a well-built phone that will last long after the warranty expires.

Insurance &/or warranty should alleviate any misgivings concerning durability/repairs.

Abird! · Mar 28, 2013

here's another link as well I got from xda
Inside the HTC One | Recent Teardowns

andyacecandy · Apr 24, 2013

Is this an easy fix on this phone? With its build quality and the whole '4 hours to make just one unit' thing, I feel like it could be an issue.. but wanted to confirm with anyone who would know better than me.

If it's an easy fix, then $100 for the phone plus maybe another $50-$75 to fix would be a pretty good deal right? Or is replacing a screen a big no-no in regards to just never being the same phone again

qu4ttro · Apr 24, 2013

iFixIt did a tear down and said it's basically not possible to take this phone apart without breaking something.

oldpalmguy · Apr 24, 2013

Ifixit.com did a teardown on HTC One. Conclusion was it was not repairable. Get a firm quote from HTC if you can and tell us about it.

AngelArs · Jul 10, 2013

Want to open up your HTC One and see it guts in all their glory? iFixIt claims that the One is hard to open, but appearently that's not true. HTC has developed a special tool that easily opens the One up for repair. More details on the link below;

HTC One Special Tool

KOLIO · Jul 10, 2013

During a recent telephone conversation w/an HTC CSR, they mentioned an authorized repair facility when discussing my still-open ticket w/my phone. I just chalked it up as misinformation & put it out of mind, being skeptical of any attempts to actually open this phone up for repairs.

After seeing this bit of information, I suppose a repair facility does indeed exist, no doubt a necessity to keep replacement costs on warranty claims to a minimum.

milksnatcher · Jul 24, 2013

Is the HTC one hard to take apart? I found a screen replacement+ tool kit on amazon for 17 dollars. I would prefer this over paying 200 dollars to loose everything I've done with this phone.

Tlicious1020 · Jul 24, 2013

milksnatcher said:
Is the HTC one hard to take apart? I found a screen replacement+ tool kit on amazon for 17 dollars. I would prefer this over paying 200 dollars to loose everything I've done with this phone.

Yes, it's very difficult to take apart. Did you not purchase insurance?

milksnatcher · Jul 24, 2013

Yes, I pay 5 dollars a month to pay 200 dollars for a new phone

MartinS · Jul 24, 2013

I suggest you use the insurance, no sense in paying $5 a month if not..?

I've seen reports that HTC have a "special" tool to take this phone apart. Ifixit gave the HTC one a 1/10 for repair-ability. It's unlikely you'd get it back together without damage.

HTC One Teardown - iFixit

craftycarper · Jul 24, 2013

This guy seems to think it's fairly easy....http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2353895

phonebuddy · Jul 24, 2013

craftycarper said:
This guy seems to think it's fairly easy....http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2353895

"Good job!! By the way you left you jar of weed in the photos, LOL BLAZE ON!!!!!!!!!"

^LOL best reply on that thread.

I work for a cell phone repair company. I'll let you guys know if someone sends in an HTC One for repair, I'm super curious how the techs are going to take one apart. Even our repair page for the HTC One warns about taking it apart yourself.

But it seems like a solid device. Not a lot of issues!

Tlicious1020 · Jul 24, 2013

phonebuddy said:
"Good job!! By the way you left you jar of weed in the photos, LOL BLAZE ON!!!!!!!!!"

^LOL best reply on that thread.

I work for a cell phone repair company. I'll let you guys know if someone sends in an HTC One for repair, I'm super curious how the techs are going to take one apart. Even our repair page for the HTC One warns about taking it apart yourself.

But it seems like a solid device. Not a lot of issues!

HTC has taken their phones to the level of Apple. Next are we going to see an HTC bar popping up in every major city? Probably not (sarcasm). For the most part, I believe most buyers take really good care of their $200+ smartphones so they do not need to be taken in for repair. I have never had to take in my HTC Touch, HTC EVO 4G, HTC EVO 3D for repair (knock on wood).

thedoctor4815 · Jul 7, 2014

Hi, I have a HTC One M7 with a cracked screen and I want to replace it myself. I've ordered a replacement screen and I want to test it first to see if it is working before I replace it completely. So my question is, is there any way to test the new screen without removing the old screen?

Thanks

marctronixx · Jul 7, 2014

if the screen is not connected to the phone, no.

if you dont have specialized test equipment the you can connect the screen to, then no.

i think the battery has to be removed to replace the screen, so it may not be possible.

there are videos on youtube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVUAr5hLiEE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-0167hTPfU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31mmQ0lQHZM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0zrP882u2GI

these were just random ones i picked. if you focus your search more you may find others.

the digitizer is the main piece you need to be concerned about wen digging into these.

my question: why do you need to test before installing? are you concerned the screen is defective? is it a used screen and you want to verify it?

if this is the case, and its a used screen, be watchful for stuck/dead pixels and color issues. early screens had some issues with color/hue.

thedoctor4815 · Jul 7, 2014

marctronixx said:
my question: why do you need to test before installing? are you concerned the screen is defective? is it a used screen and you want to verify it?

if this is the case, and its a used screen, be watchful for stuck/dead pixels and color issues. early screens had some issues with color/hue.

The screen was probably bought from unreliable source and it could very well be used and sold as new. So that is why I want to test it first.

This is what I did:
I've managed to open just the back of the phone, and I've connected the phone on the charger (the phone was turned off) and on the screen appeared just the battery indicator showing that the battery is charging, then I removed the charger and disconnected the two connectors of the old screen (without removing the old screen) and then plugged the connectors of the new screen, and then I plugged the charger back in, but the new screen didn't show the battery indicator as was the case with the old screen. So, do I need to replace the old screen completely for the new one to work or does this means that the new screen is defective?

marctronixx · Jul 7, 2014

tough call. someone with knowledge of replacing screens will know for sure.

all of these digitizer screens are basically the same. reach out to one of those authors on the videos i linked, so search on this sire in other forums for "screen replacement" and see if anyone has dont this on other htc devices. then ask them a good troubleshooting test.

check out the evo forum too! lots of teardown/test info on that device.

onlyTurbo · Jul 20, 2014

Back round: Had this phone for just over a year now, worked great without issues. A few weeks ago we went camping and the battery completely run out. When came home it charged and worked fine, but after that seems that the battery did not last as long.

Last week the battery was at 7%, so I plugged it in the HTC wall charger, two hours later I unplugged it and tried to use it and it was completely dead

.

Over the last week I tried to charge it multiple times but no response, when I plug it into the computer USB the computer makes a sound recognizing a new device but nothing happens after. I tried the various reset options, holding the power and volume for several minutes and different combinations and light with nothing happening.

The phone was never dropped in water or abused, was well taken care of!

I would appreciate if anyone could help here, I am to the point of giving up on this thing :thinking:

i VTAK · Jul 20, 2014

onlyTurbo said:
Back round: Had this phone for just over a year now, worked great without issues. A few weeks ago we went camping and the battery completely run out. When came home it charged and worked fine, but after that seems that the battery did not last as long.

Last week the battery was at 7%, so I plugged it in the HTC wall charger, two hours later I unplugged it and tried to use it and it was completely dead .

Over the last week I tried to charge it multiple times but no response, when I plug it into the computer USB the computer makes a sound recognizing a new device but nothing happens after. I tried the various reset options, holding the power and volume for several minutes and different combinations and light with nothing happening.

The phone was never dropped in water or abused, was well taken care of!

I would appreciate if anyone could help here, I am to the point of giving up on this thing

It seems you may need to dismantle it.

onlyTurbo · Jul 20, 2014

i VTAK said:
It seems you may need to dismantle it.

Well, that is what I was afraid of... I ordered the tools two days ago just in case, I just hope it won't damage after I open it.

What should I do after it is open? Should I disconnect and reconnect the battery?

Thanks!

UPDATE:

I opened the back cover, not an easy task. The best tools was actually guitar picks I bought, I bought a bunch light to medium gauge and started with the light and then used the medium to "crack' it open.

I removed the battery connection to the phone waited a few minutes then reconnected it, still not turning on! The phone is dead!

Does anyone know if the phone will turn on with the wall USB only and the battery disconnected? I tried that and still no response.

marctronixx · Aug 14, 2014

i think you need the batter to be in line with the power circuit. scanning a few vids on video hosting sites (vimeo, youtube, etc) may prove or disprove this..

onlyTurbo · Aug 15, 2014

marctronixx said:
i think you need the batter to be in line with the power circuit. scanning a few vids on video hosting sites (vimeo, youtube, etc) may prove or disprove this..

I could not find anything about this! Not sure what to do at this point

. How could a perfectly working phone suddenly die, all symptoms indicate a battery problem but how can I test this?

Thanks!

marctronixx · Aug 15, 2014

thats not something that can be answered over the internet without any of us being able to test the unit.

at this point, your situation may be unique, and you should reach out to HTC for warranty support or your carriers shop for support.

your answer just may not be lying in wait over the internet and it may need soem dedicated in person help.

much success on this...

Help Dismantling HTC One for repairs, screen/battery replacements, etc

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