Hello!
The idea for today's article has been in my head for a long time, but there was no opportunity. And literally a couple of days ago, life made its own adjustments. The opportunity literally fell at my feet – my main phone, the Galaxy S7 Edge, crashed.
This is a great opportunity to talk about how Samsung's curved display works and how it can be removed and replaced.
I will not spread my thoughts along the tree, but I will go straight to the point.
In my case, the phone was originally purchased in the United States and was an operator's one. It was released for the operator Verizon. The advantage of this solution is that the GSM-module is not blocked in Verizon devices. This means that there is no need to go through the tedious and often expensive unlock procedure.
The flip side of the coin is partial compatibility with spare parts from European versions. This is exactly the problem I faced when I decided to replace the display. To replace it, I bought a European drowned man with a working display (G935F).
The display for S7 edge is sold in two types.
- A separate display module, which then needs to be glued into the frame.
- The module is assembled with a frame, a cooling system and that very bottom board.
The second option is easier and more convenient if you have the same model of the device. In this case, it is enough just to transfer all the insides to a new part and close it with a lid. There is only one drawback of this option – you cannot be sure that the module was properly glued to the frame, which means that you cannot be sure of the waterproofness of such a solution.
The first option is more time consuming in terms of the amount of required actions, and at the same time, more reliable in terms of compatibility and the final result. In this case, you yourself will install exactly the loop that you need and it is you who will glue the module into the frame yourself, which means you can do it in such a way as to be sure that the finished solution is waterproof.
Coming back to the problem I faced – after parsing and cleaning, a motherboard from my broken American was installed in a new module. And … the network didn't work. That is, the phone did not see the network at all. The case turned out to be in the lower cable with audio and charging connectors.
The fact is that in the American and European versions, the revision of these very lower boards is different. And for this very reason, if for an American you buy a module assembled from a European, everything will be fine, but the network will not work. Alas.
In my case, I had no choice, since the module was purchased in the form of a donor device, which cost me very inexpensively. But a new original module would cost about 15-20 thousand rubles.
Now you have to transplant the new module onto the old frame, along the way putting the bottom board from your device.
Let's get started
First you need to disassemble the phone and get all the insides out of it. There are tons of instructions and step-by-step guides on how to do this on the Internet. We will not dwell on this. It can be 'googled' very quickly and easily if desired.
After the phone is disassembled, you need to make sure that there are as few electronic components as possible on it. The less iron remains on the module, the better. The point is that I'm going to weld a module. Yes, just boil in water.
The thing is, Samsung is very, very fond of glue. They simply cannot live without it and pour it wherever possible. The module is glued to the frame very securely. And the most offensive thing is that it is glued almost over the entire area. That is why removing the module from the frame without damaging it is practically aerobatics.
This is why I will cook it. Hot water will warm up the module much more reliably over the entire area, which means there will be more chances to remove the module without damaging it.
In fact, this module is no longer a tenant, and it can be removed without thinking about safety. But let's not forget that I will have exactly the same procedure with a working module. Why not practice on a non-working day?
By the way, I will use distilled water. This will avoid corrosion. Don't use plain water. ?
Alcohol will not work due to its low boiling point.
First, we heat the water. I heat to a boil. And let the module float freely. A couple of minutes will be enough for it to warm up properly.
After the module has warmed up, take it out and begin to separate it from the frame. We do this from the inside. It is best to do this with thin, hard plastic. But, I do not have this, so I use good old blades (blunt side). Walking around the perimeter of the inner cutout provides a gap for the plastic sheeting.
Gently, periodically warming up the module in water, I peel off the display from the frame. Our task is to ensure that the corner of the tape appears from under the edge of the matrix.
You need to be careful at the top, where the main display cable is located. If you act too harshly, you can damage it. After the corner has appeared, we grab it and slowly pull it out. After that, we slowly move around the perimeter, as if sawing the adhesive layer.
After the matrix area is separated from the frame, it's time to start peeling off the glass from the top and bottom.
Warm up the module again, and pry it on top with a thin spatula or blade. From above you need to be careful. On the left is the touchscreen cable, which is very easy to damage.
If we did everything correctly, it will turn out to bend the upper part, then carefully peel off the lower one, where the loops of the touch buttons are located, which we need to save.
After removing the module from the frame, it will be possible to remove the very bottom train, due to which this whole quest. Pay attention to the tape that went along the perimeter. Very very tacky and very durable. It is this tape that ensures a tight connection between the display module and the frame. which excludes moisture penetration.
Here he is, the culprit of the analysis in comparison with his European counterpart.
Now that the module has been removed, let's see how Samsung engineers managed to bend the display.
Display
In fact, it was clear even at the stage of unsticking the module. The edges of the matrix free from glass bent suspiciously easily.
The secret is that, unlike previous generations of Galaxy smartphones, where the matrix was glass and extremely fragile, the matrix in Edge is flexible. The module consists of several layers. Immediately under the protective glass is a thick film on which a layer of paint is applied. In my case, the paint is silvery.
There is another film under the film, which is actually a touchscreen.
The touchscreen is not completely transparent, but tinted. Under the touchscreen is a reflective layer in the form of a very thin film, vaguely reminiscent of foil.
And only then, under this film, is the flexible matrix itself. Unfortunately, the phone did not fall very well (from a great height), and the matrix stopped working.
But the very fact that, despite the damage, it continues to display some kind of picture, is indicative. In previous generations, with any damage to the matrix, the screen most often just turned black and stopped displaying any picture.
The matrix can be bent in different directions. In fact, it is just a thick film that contains OLEDs.
I don’t know about you, but I am very impressed by this technology. On the back of the matrix, under the copper foil, there is a cushioning layer in the form of a rubber-like foam.
If you peel off this layer, you can see how thin this matrix is.
Here is a photo of the matrix compared to the tip of a conventional small sewing needle.
If you think about it, the entire huge volume of luminous dots (25601440) with a density of 534ppi is in this thin flexible film. Still, some 5 years ago it was difficult to imagine, but now it is a reality that is around us.
After that, it becomes clear how Samsung is going to make (or have already made) a flexible phone that can be folded in half.
Conclusion
Now, knowing the G7 Edge is flexible, it will be much easier to repair these phones. Compared to the same S6, the risk of damaging the matrix when removing is much lower.
That's all for today. I still have to remove the working matrix from the donor without damaging it, so that I can then re-glue it onto a frame with a loop, with which the network will work on my 'American'. But that is another story. Hopefully I will succeed and use my Galaxy S7 Edge again. In the meantime, we will have to return to the usual seven.
However, you can benefit from everything. Thanks to the fall of the phone, I now know more about how the S7 Edge module attaches to the frame, which means I can better glue it on occasion. Also, I now have a home button gasket that makes it a lot easier for me to waterproof my Galaxy S6.