How to get a new facia - it's easy!

[Guest mqarkcambie]

I think this has been mentioned before - but I'll say it again because I did it this lunchtime and I'm now the proud owner of a new (unscratched) SPV facia. :)

It really is as simple as going into an Orange shop, asking them if they have any SPV dummy phones. If they do, ask if you can have one explaining that your screen / case is scratched and depending upon how nice the sales person is (opps - sorry TRAINER he he) they will give it to you for nothing. After all if they have a dummy already on display and a box full out the back then they won't miss one or two. I'd inspect the one they give you while you're there and ask to swap it if it's scratched or chipped etc.

The dummy phone's case is EXACTLY the same as the real one, and has all of the clips, screw holes etc in the same places - it just has a fake display and a solid lump of black plastic to fill it out inside and a big lump of metal in the battery compartment to give it some weight.

I took my dummy phone back to my workplace, took it apart and carefully took my spv appart (note there is one screw you have to unscrew near the arial inside the phone, so you have to remove the dark grey back cover of the phone to be able to get to the screw - then you can fully seperate the front from the electronics of the phone.

Replace the facia, click it all back in place and you're laughing. Now just buy a nice leather case with a plastic screen window to stop accidental scratches again and you're sorted.

This really does work - I did it, it cost me nothing and I'm sure I could wander into any orange store and get another replacement anytime if I really wanted.

Mark.

[Guest nickcornaglia]

And they are on sale on ebay every once in awhile too for relatively cheap. I thought about using it for that but couldn't confirm that it was the very same body. Now I guess it's confirmed!

[Guest mqarkcambie]

Yep - it sure is, I guess they just manufacture a few hundred thousand of extra cases for all the stores around the world and stick some fake innards into them.

I know that while I was on holiday in japan recently they were selling dummy phones in akihabara for a couple of quid each. (now those ARE nice phones! Clam shells with colour LCD's for photo caller id on the outside seem to be the fashion at the moment...)

I personally wouldn't trust anyone on ebay selling a facia - for starters, why have they got a spare if the facias are next to impossible to buy? and secondally, can you be sure from their description and / or photo's that they are in good enough condition?

[Guest rashah]

oops

[Guest rashah]

I had a look at a dummy phone - the "battery" is glued to the main unit very firmly. How did you remove it? :?:

thanks

[Guest Paul [MVP]]

Wonder if we can buy these from HTC?

P

[Guest rashah]

Erm...how do you take off the dark grey back cover?

note there is one screw you have to unscrew near the arial inside the phone, so you have to remove the dark grey back cover of the phone to be able to get to the screw - then you can fully seperate the front from the electronics of the phone.

[Guest dude55]

Would you mind making a guide on how to dismantle the phone? I've tried using the guide on another site but haven't managed to do so. Thanks.

[Guest squall]

i will get to work, we need one for the faq anyways.

[Guest squall]

could someone send me a picture of the area around the sim card holder, and under the battery holder?

[Guest kyrkesmith]

Anyone know what the status is on your warranty after opening up your phone?

[Guest awarner [MVP]]

VOID :)

[Guest Hax]

VOID :)

That's curious as there's no "warranty void is seal is broken" stickers on the phones.

And besides, I dropped mine a while back, and it bounced nicely just before the case split in two and came off.... Now that can't possibly be a cause for voiding a warranty - or should I have left it and claimed on Orange care for accidental damage? :wink:

Hax

[Guest awarner [MVP]]

If they can prove you have taken the phone apart......

It's standard practice for manufacturers to void the warranty on disassembly of their

product if it is not designed to be opened by non service personel.

If the case had come apart with accidental damage Orange should have been calledAdvised

so that the problem has been logged (making sure you explain, NO_it's_not_like_a_Nokia_case_ :roll: :) )

[Guest kyrkesmith]

Yeah. I sent my phone off to Hays to have the headset profile thingy fixed. However, I'd opened my phone to try to remove the dust prior to this, and made the mistake of using Lens Cleaner on the screen (as below)

jlowap:  

when i put it back togeter i used a tissue with FE10 solvent cleaner on my screen to cleen it!!! ARRRRR! it did not like that! see pic. the dark patches are caused by the solvent eating away at the plastic inner screen (i thought it was glass but is has a plastic layer over it)  

Hays obviously noticed this, and sent me a bill for £108.10, because "the warranty doesn't cover the screen", with the usual option of paying £17.63 to have the phone back unrepaired, or do nothing for a month, and it will "be environmentally disposed of". I phoned them, and after much effort, they said that it would be possible to just repair the headset, and not the screen, but that it would cost me £56.75, because the phone wasn't covered by the warranty any more.

Anyway, I'm holding off paying them, as I'm interested in an E100.