Hey.
Today again about repairs. Or rather, about repairing displays on Samsung devices, about which they write that it is very expensive and often unprofitable. Well, let's try to confirm or deny this statement. And the inexpensive Galaxy J7 2017 will help us with this, which was brought to me with a complaint that part of the display darkened after unknown manipulations that the children of the owner of the device carried out with the phone.
The malfunction can be seen in the photo. And if it were IPS, then one would assume that moisture got into the backlight layer and it is enough just to open the device, disassemble the display sandwich and clean the reflector, diffuser and inverter. But in this case, the phone has an Amoled display, and such a number will not work. Most likely, a matrix for replacement, and hence the entire display module.
The protective glass did not save …
Well, first, let's decide on the spare parts.
So, at the moment, to replace the display module, Chinese craftsmen, together with the manufacturer himself, offer us three ways: simple and at the same time thorny, average in all respects and expensive, but at the same time the simplest.
The first way
Economical. Install an adapted cheap Chinese TFT module (1200 – 1600 rubles). As a 'bonus' we get a lot of thickness (layers of lighting and everything else), which is why it may not sit in the frame as it should. Another consequence of maximum savings is the lack of backlight adjustment. The module will always work with the same brightness, without the possibility to decrease or increase it. But it is very cheap. However, the main problem of such a module is the need to rollback the firmware to Android 7 and below, as well as freeze the possibility of updates, otherwise the TFT will not work. Thanks to Samsung, who cares about the authenticity of their products.
Second way
Rational. Put Chinese OLED – a module, yes, yes, it is OLED, and not Amoled, as they write on Aliexpress, which will differ from the original in a different color rendering due to the use of an old generation matrix and the absence calibrations and quality control that original parts have. The color rendition will most likely be the very poisonous colors for which Amoled was scolded at the dawn of its appearance and before winning the title of the best display in the world. At the same time, due to the fact that it is still OLED, we get a thin module that should fall into place as a native one. And also brightness control will work on this display. From the unobvious risks – protective glass of unknown origin, which may turn out to be fragile and break at the first drop. And yet, again, the need to roll back the firmware due to the fact that the touch layer does not work on new versions of Samsung software on such matrices. Moreover, the peculiarity is that if the smartphone software is updated after installing such a module, then even after the subsequent firmware rollback, the touchscreen of this module will never work. But the savings (2300 – 2600 rubles).
The third way
Rich. This path can be chosen either by a perfectionist, or by someone who has an immense love for his apparatus and at the same time does not experience financial difficulties. This is because the original matrix costs as much as two-thirds of the same phone in the secondary market (5000-5500 rubles). But it will be 100% original, with the correct matrix and real tempered glass that will not crack at the first drop or strong pressure on it.
In fact, the third way is the most correct, since the result of the repair will be a device that will not differ much from the one you took out of the box after buying in the store. However, I repeat, this pleasure is not cheap.
Which path you choose is up to you. The owner of the apparatus, after the announced risks, without thinking twice, chose the fourth way – not to repair the apparatus at all, arguing this … but, however, it does not matter what she argued for it. Each argument can be different.
The device was given as it is. However, there are nuances in the repair that I must tell you about. Like many devices of the budget series of Samsung, J7 2017 can be disassembled through the display.
Disassembly nuance
At the same time, in many disassembly videos, it is shown how easily and simply the master pries the display along the edges and opens it like the lid of a cardboard box. Don't believe in these videos. Most likely, the foreman had already opened the phone before filming the video and simply put the module back in place for subsequent shooting of how masterly and easily he opens the phone. In fact, the display sits on a sturdy adhesive tape, and it won't work that easily.
Source: channel 'Tyzhprogrammer'.
Beforehand, it will have to be heated and peeled off gradually, preferably using a suction cup at the bottom of the module, since there is a wide ribbon cable of the display module from above, which is easy to damage.
In the case of a repair, the purpose of which is to replace the display, it does not matter, since the old module is still under replacement, but if you are going to open the device to repair something else, for example, a speaker, keep this in mind.
But after removing the display, in fact, everything is simple – you don't even have to untwist the phone, since the display connector is at the very top.
We just unfasten it, fasten a new one, stick an adhesive tape on it and close the phone.
Conclusion
Today, most spare parts have inexpensive counterparts, and the choice depends on the client's desire and the tightness of his wallet. Moreover, this applies even to such spare parts, the question of whose analogues yesterday could only cause bewilderment or a smile from the master or the seller of spare parts.
Time goes by, and changes are taking place both for the better and for the worse, which actually happened to this model after a software update, in which it seems that the display driver has changed.
It seems that in the case of Samsung, the stereotype that replacing the display on it is an expensive pleasure has come true.
What the Chinese factories will be able to answer, and whether they will be able, only time will tell, we just have to keep such a nuance in our head and wait.