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50% of people worldwide have experienced a cracked smartphone screen at least once.
If you’re one of those, you may be wondering what your options are to fix it without breaking the wallet or needing to buy a new phone.
To help you save some cash, we’ve gathered a list of seven smartphone repair tips.
Keep reading to learn more about the procedures to fix a smartphone.
1. Check Your Warranty
The first thing you should do when anything goes wrong with your smartphone is to pull out that warranty and start reading. It won’t be exciting but it could lead to you getting your phone fixed or replaced for free.
Carefully read the warranty and see if what happened to your phone is covered by it. In most cases, only manufacturers defects are covered. So, if your phone randomly stops working, it may qualify.
If, on the other hand, you dropped your phone or it got wet, then you’re most likely not going to be able to use your warranty since that was damage you caused to your phone.
2. Use Insurance Wisely
Having your phone insured is a great way to save money if your phone does have an unfortunate accident. However, you need to be careful about how often you use your insurance.
Using it too often could raise your rates, or prevent you from being able to make claims. Consider if it would be better to pay for the repair yourself and save your insurance claims for a bigger problem.
For example, a shattered screen may be something you can fix yourself but a fried motherboard will require professional replacement.
3. Document Everything
When something is happening with your phone, you need to gather as much information about it as possible. Be sure to take pictures or screenshots, and write everything you can think of.
This is particularly important when dealing with a software issue so the repair shop can more easily identify what may be causing the problem.
4. Be Prepared for Extra Costs
Often, when you get a quote from a repair shop, you’re only quoted for what they believe the problem is. Once they get your phone open, they may find there are more parts affected than they first thought.
This can drive up the price in the end, so be prepared to pay more than what you’re initially quoted.
5. Don’t Be Afraid to Bargain
Although it won’t work everywhere, you may be able to talk your way into getting a better deal on a smartphone repair. If you have several devices that need to be fixed at once, you may be able to get some fees waived or combined.
6. Double Check Everything Works
Before and after going to the repair shop, check every part of your phone to see how well it’s working. Make sure it charges like it’s supposed to, that the camera is taking clear images, and that your system is working well.
These are some of what you should document. Then, after you get your phone back, double-check that everything is still working as well as it was before and that the problem has been completely resolved.
7. Have a Repair Budget
When you know how much you are willing to spend on your smart phone’s repairs, it will make the decision to fix it or replace it easier. You may consider using a percentage of the phone’s value to decide if it’s worth it.
For example, be willing to pay up to 50% of the value of the phone for a repair. You’ll also want to consider that replacing your phone will be more expensive if you get an update at the same time.
Making Repairs Yourself
There are some simple repairs you can do yourself which can help you save even more money since all you have to do is buy the replacement parts. However, if you go this route, you’ll need to keep these things in mind:
1. Work at Your Own Risk
If you damage your own phone while repairing it, that’s something you may end up paying someone else to fix. Or, you may end up damaging it beyond repair. Either way, you need to understand that you’re working at your own risk.
2. Prepare a Clean Space
Phones have tiny parts and can be easily damaged by dirt and dust getting inside of them. For that reason, you need to use a clean area for any repairs to prevent pieces from getting lost or dirty.
3. Use the Right Tools
One of the reasons people take their phones to repair shops is that the shop has all the right tools for the job. Having these tools can be the difference between fixing and destroying delicate phone parts.
If you don’t have the right tools, you’ll be much better off taking your device to someone that does.
4. Ask for Help
Speaking of getting outside help, don’t be afraid to ask for help as you work on fixing your own smartphone. If you have a friend who’s done their own repairs, get them to come and walk you through it.
You can also use the internet as a resource, but keep in mind not everybody you find on YouTube doing phone repairs is an actual expert. Many of these are also self-taught.
5. Take Out SIM Card and Battery if Possible
When working on your phone, you’ll first want to turn it off. Then, remove the SIM card and battery if you can. This will remove all power sources from your phone which could cause electric shock or damage to the phone.
6. Take Pictures for Reassembly
Taking a phone apart is easy since you just keep removing screws and parts. However, remembering how it all went together can be a bit more difficult.
As you disassemble your device, take a picture every step of the way. This will help guide you to put everything back where it belongs when you complete your repairs.
Looking for Smartphone Repair?
Now you have seven smartphone repair tips to help you choose the best course of action when faced with a broken device.
If you’re looking for experienced professionals to fix your smartphone, contact us today for a free quote. We’d be more than happy to assist you and answer all your repair questions.
