Replacing the screen of a broken mobile phone can be a costly operation in a professional repair shop so if the device is cheap it is often not worth the cost.

However, doing the replacement at home is an option that many can take, and with a little bit of patience, it is an easy thing to do too.

The trick lies in buying the replacement screen together with the frame so the phone motherboard, battery, and frame-mounted components can be easily moved to the new frame without too much hustle or handling the difficult screen glue process.

In this Instructable, I'm demonstrating how I replaced the screen on a Remi 9A phone but the steps will be more or less similar with any phone. You can search for your specific model on YouTube before attempting anything and you will for sure find the correct procedure for the disassembly of your model.

Supplies

Redmi 9A Screen with frame - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DD6OQ8r
Screen repair toolkit - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DeHlXsj
Precision screwdrivers - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DCYcPRZ
Hot Air Station - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DntZdnZ
Antistatic Tweezers - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_Dlqxw0r
Magnetic plate - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_Dl5Aju7

Step 1: Remove the Back Cover

To start the replacement, you first need to open up the back phone cover with a little plastic prying tool.

The start is always the hardest, but once you have a section open, then you can continue with the pry tool along the perimeter and the cover should pop out.

Make sure to also remove The expansion tray as that is most often sitting inside the cover.

Around the camera there is usually a bit of glue that will come out easily.

Step 2: Unscrew and Remove the Main Board

With the cover open, we get access to all of the screws holding the main board and cover. You can start removing them and it is nice to have a magnetic plate to put them on so you don't lose them as they are super tiny.

When the screws are removed you need to disconnect the ribbon cables from the board by gently lifting them out with a plastic pry tool.

Step 3: Unscrew and Remove the Charger Board and Speaker

The same procedure can be repeated on the bottom section of the board where we now disconnect the screen and touch ribbon cables and we can remove the speaker and the charger board.

Step 4: Transfer Frame Mounted Components

When the PCBs are removed, there will be some frame-mounted components that will need to be transferred over to the new frame.

These include the earpiece, the vibration motor, the side buttons, and others but the entire step depends on the frame that you will buy and what will be already pre-installed on it so you need to carefully compare the two.

Step 5: Re-Mount the Charger Board and Speaker

To start mounting components in the new frame, we just follow the same steps as for taking them out but in reverse.

Step 6: Transfer the Battery in the New Frame

The battery is usually held in place with some glue so depending on the phone model there are different ways of taking it out. In my phone, the battery was held with two strips of glue that can be easily removed by pulling them from the top of the battery and they come out as silicone rubber.

To secure the battery in the new frame, I've added two strips of double-sided tape so it is held nicely in place.

If a different type of glue is used, it can usually be loosened up with isopropyl alcohol.

Step 7: Transfer the Side Buttons

This is one of the trickiest things to move from the old frame to the new one. I used a bit of hot air to soften the adhesive on the back and I then gently lift it up with my tweezers.

If you don't have access to hot air (you can use a hair dryer!) you can also add a drop of isopropyl alcohol to release the glue from behind.

In the new frame, I secured the board with some double-sided tape.

Step 8: Re-Mount the Main Board and Connect Cables

The final piece to install is the main board. Make sure to pay attention to the camera modules and align them with the holes and add all of the flat cables that we disconnected in the beginning.

Once everything is laying nicely and all cables are connected you can start adding the screws back in.

Step 9: Add the Back Cover

The back cover is just press-fitted in the frame and it should be firmly pushed on all sides so all of the clips get closed.

Step 10: Enjoy!

The final step is to test your work and turn on the phone to see if everything works as expected. On mine, the battery was completely empty as the phone sat uncharged while I was waiting for the screen but as soon as I plugged in a charger, the screen turned on and after a while, the phone was back in operation.

Overall, there are many reasons why someone may want to replace their phone screen at home. Whether it's for cost savings, convenience, or a sense of accomplishment, it's a task that can be easily done with minimal tools and a bit of patience.

If you liked this Instructable, then I have many more that you can check and if you are interested in electronics or coding then you can also check out my YouTube channel.