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rawweb

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Aug 7, 2015
1,125
940
Arg. My kid just had some fun with my 2-yr old iPhone XS on some concrete. Some nice deep scratches on the back, including some glass near the light on the camera, though the lenses seem OK. Some damage on the front glass. I wasn’t quite ready to offload this phone as it’s been a great unit and still a lot of life left in it, imo. I know from reading online that the black glass is impossible to replace DIY. Does anyone know if Apple offers any kind of service or would they consider it beyond repair? I’ve never taken my phone anywhere else for service and usually have AppleCare but opted against it this time around! :(
 

JPack

macrumors G5
Mar 27, 2017
12,662
23,561
Apple will replace the entire device as it's not something they consider repairable.

However, many third party repair stores perform rear glass repair. It used to be very difficult and expensive 2-3 years ago, but it's more common today.
 

rawweb

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Aug 7, 2015
1,125
940
Apple will replace the entire device as it's not something they consider repairable.

However, many third party repair stores perform rear glass repair. It used to be very difficult and expensive 2-3 years ago, but it's more common today.
Thanks @JPack. With COVID-19, my local store doesn’t appear to be taking appointments. Apples website doesn’t seem to indicate what the back glass repair cost would be. Do you have any insight what the cost for back and front repair would be or did you mean they won’t repair it?

 

JPack

macrumors G5
Mar 27, 2017
12,662
23,561
Back glass repair at Apple is replacement of the whole device. $549

I don't believe Apple will repair your display (front glass) if your rear glass has damage. This is to prevent customers from claiming other hardware issues (that are unrelated to the display repair).
 
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BugeyeSTI

macrumors 604
Aug 19, 2017
6,870
8,727
Arizona/Illinois
Arg. My kid just had some fun with my 2-yr old iPhone XS on some concrete. Some nice deep scratches on the back, including some glass near the light on the camera, though the lenses seem OK. Some damage on the front glass. I wasn’t quite ready to offload this phone as it’s been a great unit and still a lot of life left in it, imo. I know from reading online that the black glass is impossible to replace DIY. Does anyone know if Apple offers any kind of service or would they consider it beyond repair? I’ve never taken my phone anywhere else for service and usually have AppleCare but opted against it this time around! :(
You might want to watch some YouTube videos on 3rd party rear glass replacement. It's not something I'd let someone do to my phone.. Loss of water resistance is guaranteed and damage to the wireless charging coil or debris in the camera lenses is a definite possibility during the glass removal process...
 

rawweb

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Aug 7, 2015
1,125
940
I took it to a local phone repair shop today, decided to just do the front glass, the back isn't too bad (and not worth the coin). My apple silicone case (which was on when the kid took off with it!) covers the breaks on the back as they're just cosmetic.
 

44267547

Cancelled
Jul 12, 2016
37,642
42,491
You might want to watch some YouTube videos on 3rd party rear glass replacement. It's not something I'd let someone do to my phone.. Loss of water resistance is guaranteed and damage to the wireless charging coil or debris in the camera lenses is a definite possibility during the glass removal process...

For example: UbreakiFix was exposed for claiming they could make repairs to the black glass, when in reality, they couldn’t and ultimately was causing customers to have experience over-heating and the wireless charging failures. When you’re reaching such technicality with repairs, consumers just don’t want to spend the money with Apple, but it’s really the only ‘safe bet’, given the false promises third-party repair shops can’t keep, because they don’t have the training standards that Apple does.
 
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maerz001

macrumors 68020
Nov 2, 2010
2,422
2,313
For example: UbreakiFix was exposed for claiming they could make repairs to the black glass, when in reality, they couldn’t and ultimately was causing customers to have experience over-heating and the wireless charging failures. When you’re reaching such technicality with repairs, consumers just don’t want to spend the money with Apple, but it’s really the only ‘safe bet’, given the false promises third-party repair shops can’t keep, because they don’t have the training standards that Apple does.
Apple also doesn’t repair the back glass They just give you a $550 Phone
 
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