vB Easy Archive - Nokia 6126 LCD replacement

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Nokia 6126 LCD replacement
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Posted by: bikergeek

I am six months into a two-year AT&T contract and recently dropped my phone, a Nokia 6126. The display still mostly works but there is a big ugly crack visible across the interior LCD display. It's most visible when the display is black--i.e. when you first turn the phone on, or when you first open the flip before the wallpaper picture becomes visible. There's a bit of green color-bleeding around the crack, and the bleeding appears to be getting worse.

If I replace the phone I have to do so at full retail

so DIY repair looks like the most attractive alternative. Several questions:

Am I correct in concluding that the LCD display needs to be replaced? If it's not the LCD display, then what else could it be?
Based on some disassembly instructions I found in this forum the job appears doable if fiddly. How doable is it for someone who's never attempted this kind of repair before but is reasonably adept at things like assembling a PC from parts?
How reputable are the eBay vendors selling replacement LCDs plus the case-opening tools for USD30-ish?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Posted by: jecates

If there is color bleeding, I don't know of anything it could be other than a cracked LCD. I just replaced my LCD today, using one I purchased on eBay from e2_shop for about $35 shipped. I chose this particular vendor because they include a manual.

When I got the package today, I popped the manual CD in, and found that, even though this was an LCD for a 6126/6131/6133, the CD didn't have a manual for any of those models. There are about 100 manuals on the CD, varying from a series of images for some models, to word documents with embedded images, to video clips. I emailed them to find out if they have the manual for the 6126, but didn't wait to hear back.

There are two visible screws under the battery cover near the flip, so I took those out. They sent me a T-6 driver, and these are T-5 screws, so I had to use a T-5 driver that I already had. Those were the only two I needed to remove (and I actually think I only needed to remove the one on the side where the push-to-open button is).

A couple things to take note of. When you start to separate the top and bottom of the clamshell, the post that holds the push-to-open button will come free, and the button will fall out of the center of it. Make sure you don't lose it, I almost did because I wasn't expecting it to fall loose. Also, as with all flip phones, you can't just pull it apart. The non-PTO (push-to-open) side has a flex cable that connects the electronics in the top and bottom. Until you disconnect the flex cable, you have a very small amount of moving room.

Once those screws are out, use a pry tool (I got one with my purchase, but an eyeglasses flat-head screwdriver works fine, as would a pair of tweezers, I think). Start at the seam right next to the PTO button, and start separating the black and silver sections of the top of the clamshell. Go all the way around to the opposite side, by the flex cable. At this point, the cover should lift off, and you can see the guts.

Now you can disconnect the flex cable (using the screwdriver). There is another connector right next to the flex cable, and another near the earpiece. When you separate all those, you should be able to kind of slide out the piece they were connect to, which lies on top of the LCD. At this point, the flex cable is disconnected, so you can put the bottom half of the phone down and work on just the top.

Getting the LCD itself out was a little tricky for me, because I wasn't expecting it to be held in by clips (two on each side). I had to use the screwdriver to push each clip out, and it took some jiggling to get it out. Be careful not to force it, or you'll break some of the casing. Also, pay attention to the little piece attached to the LCD that is near the earpiece, because it's clipped in separately (but very easy to pull out of the clips).

Put in the new LCD and the piece that goes over it (that everything connects to). Reconnect everything carefully (flex cable last, and make sure it's positioned correctly). Snap the cover back on, starting with the clips near the earpiece working your way back along each side toward the fold. The trickiest part for me was getting the PTO button back in place. After a couple tries, I figured out that I had to have the phone open while I put the button back in place, and then I slid the cover/post over it slowly. Put the screws back in, tested everything, and threw out the old cracked LCD.

The whole process took me about an hour and fifteen minutes, which included trying to find information on how to do it, which I never found. I'm pretty confident if I had to do it again, I could do it in under 20 minutes. Hopefully this walkthrough of my experience will help you (or others who run across it) get it done more quickly than it took me.

Good luck!

PS My experience level is very similar to yours. I'm a "build-my-own-computer" guy, and my only experience working on phones before was working on my Sony Ericsson z520a/z525a phones, replacing flex cables. Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on perspective) they were so problematic with flex cables (along with other problems) that I got pretty comfortable popping a phone apart and putting it back together. This is a very doable project for you, I think. Just be careful. Treat it the same way you would when installing a ram chip or cpu.

Posted by: bikergeek

Quote:

Originally Posted by jecates

If there is color bleeding, I don't know of anything it could be other than a cracked LCD. I just replaced my LCD today, using one I purchased on eBay from e2_shop for about $35 shipped. I chose this particular vendor because they include a manual.

Thank you for that lengthy and informative reply. My experience is similar to yours--I just bought an LCD off eBay that comes in a box with tools.

And yes, I remember upgrading my computer with individual RAM chips rather than SIMMs or DIMMs, and having to seat each chip carefully for fear of bending the pins--yes, I'm that old!

I've also got a local buddy or three to call on if I get really stuck.

Posted by: Paolo

you don't have to open any screws to change the LCD in this model, its all held in by clips.

Posted by: bikergeek

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paolo

you don't have to open any screws to change the LCD in this model, its all held in by clips.

That's what I gathered from the online instructions I found, which is why it baffles me that the kit I bought includes a T6 Torx driver in addition to the little plastic prybars to get the case open.

Posted by: dr_zero

Go to the ATT website and then look at the GO Phones sort them by model and you can get a Nokia 6126 for 19.99 as a GO phone with free shipping.
Just order like you would a normal Pre paid and when it comes in put your chip in the new phone and keep on trucking!

The sim that came with the Go Phone will expire in 60days no biggie you arent using it anyway and you have a whole phone for $20

http://www.wireless.att.com/cell-ph...891428724564350

Posted by: RogerPodacter

there is also a website called cnn.cn which has a lot of replacement parts for cell phones. the n95 8gb parts are there, along with tons of other stuff.

your kit probably included the T6 screwdriver just because its such a common tool needed to repair most cell phones. keep it, it could come in handy. i just had to buy a T6 3 days ago for my phone.

Posted by: bikergeek

Well, last night I replaced the LCD screen with the one I purchased off of eBay. The whole thing went smoothly. If I'd been diligent I'd've taken pictures, but the job was kind of fiddly

and it was my first time through and the distraction of working a camera might've been a bit much. Sorry about that.

Thanks to all who responded to this thread for all the help!

Posted by: bikergeek

Looks like I may have spoken too soon. There's a series of thin vertical bars along the left edge of the inside display, and the entire image on the display is shifted rightward by about one character. (Wish I could post a photo.)

I've checked the three flex connectors that go to the display and to the PC board behind it, they're all good, and disconnecting/reconnecting them doesn't help. Did I do something wrong, or did I get a bad display? Anybody seen this before?

Posted by: hzlmain

I have written an article on How to replace NOKIA 6121 LCD in accordance with the NOKIA specification, that may useful for some friends. Bikergeek,your LCD screens may has slightly different from the original screen, for example, screen initialization procedures. You may contact the buyer, whether they can provide the software to solve this problem.

Posted by: bikergeek

Quote:

Originally Posted by hzlmain

I have written an article on How to replace NOKIA 6121 LCD in accordance with the NOKIA specification, that may useful for some friends. Bikergeek,your LCD screens may has slightly different from the original screen, for example, screen initialization procedures. You may contact the buyer, whether they can provide the software to solve this problem.

Yup, that was what I used for instructions. Thanks.

I did in fact take a photo of the display and sent it to the vendor that sold me the screen. Click to embiggen:

Notice the vertical white lines on the left of the screen, and the fact that the right most digit in the time of day, and the "r" in the word "Calendar" are missing, indicating that the image has been pushed off the right edge of the screen.

They offered to exchange the screen or a partial refund, both of which I considered fair. I opted for the partial refund; I don't want to have to hassle with putting my old, cracked display back in just to have a working phone, and it really feels like a lot of the plastic tabs inside the phone aren't meant to withstand repeated bending and I was worried about snapping them.

A friend also suggested that this might be a firmware issues with the phone. I have the USB cable for the phone, and I downloaded the Nokia Software Updater. Unfortunately I got the error message "Phone not recognized" when I went to update the firmware in the phone. Based on my research on this site, it looks like one cannot use NSU to update an AT&T branded 6126 even if you get it unlocked. Yeah, I'm a n00b, my next phone is gonna be an unlocked one. :-/

Thanks for your help, though.