HTC Arrive.. disassembly
 

Ah.. you don't really know someone until you've seen them naked. This applies to the Arrive as well!

Long story short -- goofed up an invisible shield install and moisture got under the screen and shorted the touch screen capacitor. Weird considering I've done so many of those invisible shield installs on other devices... anyway, I bought the phone used on ebay so I didn't have the warranty or the Sprint insurance. I took it apart to try to fix it but it needs parts replaced. I ordered a phone that was new but had a bad ESN (about $150 bucks, ugh) with the intent to swap the screen half with my broken one, thus making a like-new phone.

I figured my misfortune can help others.. I should be getting the new phone next week so I can do the surgery. I'll post pictures of the guts, but in the meantime I'll tell you what I found today --

--There are a TON of tiny screws. I'd say about two dozen when I took it all apart. The big screw on the back of the phone is a real screw in case you were wondering.

--The internal memory card is literally a SanDisk microSD that says "16GB" inserted into a slot that's hidden in the chasis. All that stops someone from switching it out is taking the back two layers off.

--I strongly recommend that if you ever have issues with the LCD/capacitor, to just use the insurance (if you have it), the warranty, then if all else fails get a used Arrive or bad ESN Arrive and use the slide out half as a swap-out. I'll do a walkthrough of this surgery later this week as this is exactly what I am doing.

--There are about four moisture indicators hidden throughout the phone. One in each layer of the chasis.

Until I do the surgery, feel free to ask questions!

Re: HTC Arrive.. disassembly
 

guacala invisible shield, that shit sucks! not mention its expensive and hard as hell to install, I sent mine for the tp2 back. if that wasn't enough they also spam u with email even after u hit unsubscribe ,I had to mark them as junk mail to stop it, anyway good luck with the operation

Re: HTC Arrive.. disassembly
 

pbanky, to each his own. Good luck with the operation, looking forward to the complexities of it.

Re: HTC Arrive.. disassembly
 

WARNING: This should NOT be done if you don't know what you're doing. This WILL void your warranty, so use this as a last resort!

What you will need: Small Phillip's head screwdriver, plastic wedge (I used a guitar pick), ESD wrist strap (highly recommended); PATIENCE!


http://img36.imageshack.us/img36/6607/layer1g.jpg

Step 1: Remove the back cover and battery. There are 5 screws on the outer shell which will need to be removed using a very small Phillip's head screwdriver. I used a glasses screwdriver for this. There is one screw that is "hidden" underneath a black film. You can access this screw easily, just gently scrap away the top of the screw head and it will peel away.




http://img195.imageshack.us/img195/5216/layer2t.jpg

Step 2: Use a plastic wedge to gently pry away the outer shell from the back of the phone. Make sure to go slowly and gently as to not break or damage any of the parts that snap the back shell together.



http://img861.imageshack.us/img861/2441/layer3.jpg


Note above -- the outer shell separated.


http://img199.imageshack.us/img199/5632/layer4c.jpg

Step 3: Note the locations of the screws and the moisture indicator. Unscrew all of them accordingly and you should be able to lift this second layer away without much prying with the wedge, remember to go slow and gently!


http://img705.imageshack.us/img705/4486/layer5.jpg


The outer shell, the second layer, and then the guts separated.


http://img847.imageshack.us/img847/7913/layer6.jpg

Step 4: There are 4 regular screws and 2 smaller screws for the guts. The small screws are indicated above -- the heads are the same size but the thread length is about half of the other screws. Note the location these go in for when you put the phone back together. Remove all screws and set aside.


http://img195.imageshack.us/img195/29/layer7.jpg

Step 5: There is a copper metallic tape that covers the LCD ribbon connection as well as part of the MicroSD slot. Gently peel away the metallic tape as shown above to reveal yellow tape covering the ribbon connection and the MicroSD port.


http://img87.imageshack.us/img87/9454/layer8.jpg


(Optional) Step 6: If you would like to replace the MicroSD card, now's your chance. Peel back the yellow tape and slide the card out of the slot and replace accordingly. WARNING: I have not tried this, so I cannot verify that you can upgrade the memory just by sliding in a new card.


http://img811.imageshack.us/img811/7887/layer9.jpg


Step 7: This is the trick part. You need to disconnect the LCD ribbon from the port without tearing or damaging the ribbon. What I recommend doing is using the edge of a flat head and gently tugging outwards on the ends of the connector on each side. Remember to do this gently and slowly, working each end out a bit at a time until it disconnects. Once it's disconnected, you can remove that whole half of the phone.

If you were like me and wanted to replace the whole screen half of the phone, simply do all of the included steps with the phone you want to replace the screen with and swap it out. Reverse the disassembly steps to reassemble the phone. Don't forget to put all of the screws back!

http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/4163/layer10.jpg

The two halves of the phone separated, ready to be switched.




That's what I have right now to share -- I will post later this week going deeper into the screen half in case anyone is interested. I have to warn though, I strongly DO NOT recommend doing this. You'll most likely break the capacitor or the LCD, break the dust seal, and have a ruined phone.


By the way, feel free to email me with questions. I'm always happy to help someone with phone issues like this! pm me for email address (mod edit)

Re: HTC Arrive.. disassembly
 

Amazing job!

Re: HTC Arrive.. disassembly
 

+1 and op its a really bad idea to post email addy so i edited it and just have users pm you for addy.

Re: HTC Arrive.. disassembly
 

You not only posted your surgery, you made a step by step breakdown guide. :headbang:

Thanks - this may come in handy some day.

Re: HTC Arrive.. disassembly
 

Could the placement of the micro SD card be made such that it would be any harder to replace? Whew!

Query: now that you have it apart, have you been able to put it back together and get it work? What you describe is certainly not for the noob or for the faint of heart!

Re: HTC Arrive.. disassembly
 

post pics when u have it up and running but great insight . i might be tempted to try this as well ...

Re: HTC Arrive.. disassembly
 

Hey folks, thanks for all the great comments! Yup, the phone works great post-surgery and works like a brand new phone.

It's definitely not something I would recommend people do if they have other options on getting their phone fixed or replaced. Use your warranty if you have it, or insurance. Unfortunately I had neither so I had to roll my sleeves up.

The chassis snaps together along the edges and then screws just reinforce the hold. To get to the guts layer, it's really just a matter of unscrewing and gently unsnapping the layers of the case. I don't have a 32GB SD card otherwise I would have tested what would happen if I upgraded the memory.

RE: The Screen

Like I mentioned in the post I made before, I strongly don't recommend going inside the LCD/touch screen half of the phone if at all possible. There is a lot of adhesive that holds those parts together and a tight seal around the LCD underneath the front plastic cover that will let dust creep in under the screen if broken. That's why instead of buying a new LCD screen, I just replaced that whole half of the phone.

Re: HTC Arrive.. disassembly
 

Also wanted to mention that if you find that sliding out your phone is too hard or easy, you can adjust that by tightening or loosening the screws in the guts layer (not the small screws). They essentially bind the slide out rack to the phone, so if they are too tight then it will mean it's hard to slide out he keyboard, vise versa if too loose.

Re: HTC Arrive.. disassembly
 

If you decide to change the sd card, I used a Sandisk 32GBoem card and works great! Haven't had any problems. Glad I splurged for it.

Re: HTC Arrive.. disassembly
 

So I take it the SD card is extra storage and the actual OS doesn't reside there? That's cool, it just reloads and re-sets it up from ROM?

Re: HTC Arrive.. disassembly
 

When I bought my Arrive I asked the Sprint rep about sdcard (http://forum.ppcgeeks.com/htc-arrive...o-sd-card.html) I was told it was all internal memory like the Iphone (probably to prevent me from messing w/it since they said they couldn't transfer my contacts due to the custom shark ROM, "sharkies" from my TP2). Followed this post to change sdcard Memory Upgrade Sprint HTC Arrive (HD7 Pro) - xda-developers and some extra help from DR.8820 for the correct sdcard, reset, think I had to press vol and power button for hard reset and evreything has been golden since.

Re: HTC Arrive.. disassembly
 

..BTW thanks to OP for a great photorific tear down to help out others. This will be very helpful for those that want to change their sdcards. Great work! FYI..it really is an easy process

Re: HTC Arrive.. disassembly
 

ya this thread is "sticky worthy"

done

Re: HTC Arrive.. disassembly
 

Did you happen to find a way to stop the "auto-tilt" on the screen by removing a spring, screws, etc...???

Re: HTC Arrive.. disassembly
 

Sweet hell. I saw the OP and wondered for a second if I blacked out and created a new thread or something.

The exact same thing happened to me - I goofed on the protector application, moisture got under the screen, attempted a disassembly. I got you beat though, because I'm the idiot who went in from the wrong side.

I didn't go the route of installing a new screen either - I was hoping to separate some film somewhere and dry out visible moisture spots. I got it separated from the body, but I never got the screen itself disassembled. Anyway, I have permanent drying spots on my brand new HTC Arrive screen, and I think generally it's not as bright as when I first got it. My gf tells me I'm an @$$, but what else is new?

Thanks for taking the pics. I just have a simple text file with the order/location of the screws. Nice work. Misery loves company.

Re: HTC Arrive.. disassembly
 

Thanks a million OP for creating this with lots of detailed pictures. I used the one of XDA a while ago and it got me by to change my SD with a 32gb I had from my TP2. Not anywhere as good as yours though=D>

I bought an Arrive for my brother and he didn't want to change his 16gb out with his 32gb in his TP2 for some reason. If he changes his mind I'll know where to return to:headbang:

As far as screen protectors, I always use Zagg full body and I always pay for them to install it. It's worth the $10 or so they charge to install it to me because I'm afraid of &#&!^'n up the phone and spending my time to do it.

Anyways, glad to hear everything is back to normal!

Re: HTC Arrive.. disassembly
 

Great tutorial, I just used it to switch out the screen. I was planning on taking pics for anyone else who wanted to do the same thing, but I just got too involved in the process and forgot all about taking pictures. However, if anyone needs any help doing the same thing, just ask an i'll answer the best i can.

Re: HTC Arrive.. disassembly
 

3rd times a charm (hopefully) i had to switch to chrome to see if i could post this. New to the site and was using IE9 in my earlier attempts. any way i work at a sprint service and repair location and use an HTC Arrive, recently we had a customer bring in an Arrive that was hit by an errant golf ball, we replaced it under his insurance and i had the chance to play with it before we sent it back. it was still working (except the external speaker and volume buttons and some housing damage) so when we opened it up and saw the 16 gig SD i thought "sweat i can take mine to 32gb" we tried the swap on that one with an 8gb SD that was laying around and the phone would only boot to the dialer. when we placed the 16gb SD in a usb adapter in an XP machine the computer only recognized there was a drive, it wouldn't even read the capacity. with this i can say that it will take more than a "simple" swap to make mine 32 gigs. i haven't given up yet and will keep you all posted.

Re: HTC Arrive.. disassembly
 

sorry didn't see the next page in the thread...

Re: HTC Arrive.. disassembly
 

I can't see the pictures,can you send the lcd screen display picture to me ? Thanks.