Moto G4 LCD Screen and Digitizer Assembly Replacement

Written By: Jeff Suovanen

Comments: 18

Moto G4 LCD Screen and Digitizer Assembly Replacement

Difficulty

Moderate

Steps

Time Required

35 - 55 minutes

Introduction

If the screen on your Moto G4 has become cracked or distorted then it may be time for a replacement. Follow this easy guide to do it yourself.

For your safety, discharge your battery below 25% before disassembling your phone. This reduces the risk of a dangerous thermal event if the battery is accidentally damaged during the repair.

Before you begin, skip to the last step and make sure your replacement part matches the one shown. This guide is for replacing a screen/display that is already installed in a new frame. If you bought a bare display instead, you will need to carefully separate your old display from your phone’s existing frame, and then glue the new display in. Those steps are not covered by this guide.

Tools

Parts

Motorola Moto G4 Screen

Step 1

Insert a fingernail or a spudger into the notch on the bottom edge of the phone, near the charge port.
Gently twist or pry to open a small gap between the back cover and the body of the phone.
While keeping your tool (or fingernail) inserted into the gap between the back cover and the body of the phone, slide it around the corner to begin loosening the plastic clips holding the cover in place.

Step 2

Slide your tool all along the side of the phone to separate more of the clips securing the back cover.

Step 3

Keep your tool inserted slightly under the back cover, and slide it around the top corner.
If necessary, continue prying around the remaining edges of the phone until the back cover comes free.

Step 4

Remove the back cover.
To install the back cover, carefully position it over the phone and then press gently all around the edges until you feel the clips snap into place.

Step 5

Push to eject and remove the MicroSD and SIM cards (if installed).

Step 6

Use a spudger to pry up the rubber cover for the camera flash connector.

Step 7

Remove the rubber cover.

Step 8

Use a spudger to disconnect the camera flash connector by prying it straight up.

Step 9

Use a T3 Torx driver to remove the nineteen identical 3.1 mm screws securing the midframe.

In my kit, the T3 Torx bit came in the ‘repair part’ box, while a T5 Torx bit was in the ‘repair tools’ box.

Joseph Albert - 06/09/18

my phone had t4, not t3

Donald Smith - 30/07/19

Screws are stuck quite hard, apply a hefty amount of pressure when removing. Otherwise you’ll destroy the thread

face - 27/11/19

unable to remove 8 of the screws. any suggestions?

wayne malcom - 15/02/20

My T4 is the tool that fit. I can see why people strip these. They were dam tight for such little screws.

I also had a tough time getting them out of the socket once loose. Magnet in the tool was not very strong. I used my tweezers, and scratch the screw heads. That means they are real soft steel, and strip easy.

P 38 -

Step 10

Insert a spudger under the midframe at the top left corner, and gently twist to separate it from the body of the phone.

I couldn’t get the spudger in, but had success with the opening pick instead.

Bernd Mast - 07/06/21

Step 11

Remove the midframe.

During the midframe removal, be careful and do not put too much torsional stress on the loudspeaker pickup wires (to the right of the main camera). It’s not that difficult to crush or shear the pickups there. Doing so will render your phone silent.

Kevin Kwan - 10/12/18

Exactly what happened to me. Both contacts broke off and if just loosely put where they were, they can't make proper contact anymore.

There should be a warning about this in the guide itself!

Simon Vetter - 24/12/19

Step 12

Peel up and remove any tape connecting the battery to the main board.
Be very careful not to puncture the battery with any sharp tools. A damaged lithium-ion battery can catch fire and/or explode.

Step 13

Insert a thin tool (such as one of your tweezer tips) under the red and black battery wires, and slide it underneath the battery connector.
Gently pry straight up to disconnect the battery.
Pry only from the side where the wires attach to the connector—if you pry anywhere else, you may break the socket.
During reassembly, align the connector in its socket with the exposed copper wire facing up, and then press straight down to reconnect it, wiggling slightly as you press to help it seat correctly.

Before detaching the connector, you may want to take a photo to remember which way the red and black wires go. Mine were the same way as in this photo, but when looking at the tiny connector of the replacement battery it wasn’t easy to be sure which way to insert it.

jouniseppanen - 15/09/18

What can you do if you break the socket??? Will anyone email me an idea, Or- is it simply ruined-??? My email address is jeffrey_f4@yahoo.com. THANKS in advance, IF- anyone will take the time to email me about this-!!!!!!!! :)

Jeff Farmer - 13/07/20

So you have bare copper wires and you’re sticking a metal tip tweezer in the vicinity.

And yes, the battery is discharged as far as you can, but_,………

Maybe an idea to snip the wires somewhere further up before doing this ?

Gary Jones - 13/04/21

Step 14

Push the battery wires towards the battery to de-route them from the black bracket on the motherboard.

Step 15

Peel up the black pull tab at the top of the battery, and pull slowly but firmly to separate the battery from the adhesive holding it in place.
The battery separates more easily if you add a few drops of isopropyl alcohol along each side, to soften the adhesive beneath. High concentration (90% or greater) alcohol will not harm your phone's components.
Heating the area behind the battery can also help soften the adhesive, but be very careful not to overheat the battery.
If the pull tab breaks, use a spudger or an old credit card to pry up carefully on the edges of the battery until it comes loose.
Don't deform or puncture the battery—it can catch fire and/or explode if damaged.
Never reinstall a damaged or deformed battery. Replace the battery.

Step 16

Remove the battery.
During installation, note the orientation of the battery—if the connector is on the same side as the motherboard, and the text is upside-down relative to the rest of the phone, you've done it correctly.
Use a few strips of thin double-sided adhesive tape or a pre-cut adhesive card to secure the battery. (Or, if you are replacing the display, it may come with adhesive for the battery pre-installed.)

Step 17

Peel up and remove the black rubber cover from the charging port and vibration motor connector.

Step 18

Insert the point of your spudger underneath the vibration motor, and gently pry up to separate it from the frame.
You don't need to completely detach the vibration motor; it can stay wired to the motherboard.

Step 19

Peel up the copper tape covering the display connector.
This tape provides protection from electromagnetic interference. Keep it in one piece if possible, and carefully fold it back into position when your repair is complete.

Step 20

Use your spudger to disconnect the display by prying its connector straight up from the motherboard, on the edge nearest the side of the phone.

Step 21

Pry up with your spudger to flip open the locking flap on the headphone jack's ZIF connector.
It's possible to disconnect the headphone jack at this point by pulling its orange flex cable straight out of the ZIF socket, but it's easy to tear the cable if you're not careful. For a better method, continue with the steps below.

The orange flex cable is glued to the motherboard at the ‘A’ mark on the corner. Make sure to pry them apart before trying to remove the motherboard or pull the cable out of the ZIF socket.

Donald Diviney - 12/10/18

Step 22

Use a T3 Torx driver to remove the two bronze-colored, 2.4 mm screws securing the motherboard.

Step 23

Grasping the motherboard by its edges, left the bottom end up at an angle, while keeping the top edge close to the phone.
Use your spudger to pry up the front-facing camera and make sure it separates safely from the frame. The camera can remain attached to the motherboard.
Using your tweezers, grasp the headphone jack flex cable and carefully pull it out of its socket as you remove the motherboard.
Remove the motherboard.
If you feel any resistance, stop. Make sure there are no components still holding the frame to the motherboard.

Step 24

Insert the point of your spudger into the headphone port, and pry straight up to separate the headphone jack from the frame.
If needed, pry from the opposite side of the headphone jack to finish separating it.

Step 25

Remove the headphone jack.

Step 26

Using the flat of your spudger, pry up on the upper right edge of the earpiece speaker to separate it from the frame.
Strong adhesive secures the earpiece speaker. If necessary, apply heat or a few drops of isopropyl alcohol to help weaken the adhesive and make it easier to remove.

Bei meinem verschickten iFixit Ersatzteil war der Lautsprecher schon drinnen - ich musste ihn also nicht aus dem alten Teil herausnehmen.

Matthias Uiberacker - 11/02/20

Step 27

Remove the earpiece speaker.
Check the condition of the adhesive around the bottom of the earpiece speaker when you reinstall it. A little heat from a hair dryer or iOpener can help soften the adhesive and make it sticky again. Be careful not to touch or damage the surface of the speaker.
In some of the previous photos in this guide, the speaker is shown installed incorrectly. During installation, make sure the speaker's two spring contacts are located at the bottom corners, as shown in the first image in this step. Images showing the speaker rotated 180° (with the spring contacts near the top edge of the phone) are incorrect.

Bei meinem verschickten iFixit Ersatzteil war der Lautsprecher schon drinnen - ich musste ihn also nicht aus dem alten Teil herausnehmen.

Matthias Uiberacker - 11/02/20

Step 28

Wedge the sharp edge of your iFixit opening tool between the headphone jack flex and the plastic frame it's adhered to.
Carefully press down to separate the headphone jack flex cable from the adhesive securing it.
Don't use too much force, or you may damage the flex cable. If necessary, apply heat or a few drops of isopropyl alcohol to help weaken the adhesive and make it easier to remove.

Achtung! Das Bild ist leicht irreführend, da das Öffnungswerkzeug hier direkt beim Flachbandkabel ansetzt. Das Flachbandkabel sitzt aber noch auf einem weißen Plastikplättchen, welches dann am Gehäuse klebt. Die Klebung zwischen Flachbandkabel und Plättchen ist kaum zu lösen und soll auch nicht gelöst werden. Das Plastikplättchen muss vom Gehäuse gelöst werden. So kann man das Flachbandkabel samt Plastikplättchen gut herausbekommen.

Matthias Uiberacker - 11/02/20

Step 29

Remove the headphone jack flex cable.

Step 30

The two case buttons (power and volume rocker) are each secured with two mushroom-shaped pins.
In the following steps, you'll apply pressure to these pins from the inside in order to remove and transfer the buttons.

Step 31

Push the power button out of the frame from the inside by carefully pressing the tip of your spudger against the tops of the two mushroom pins securing it.

Step 32

Repeat the previous step to push the volume rocker button out of the frame.
During reassembly, press the buttons gently into the frame in the orientation shown here.

Step 33

Only the LCD screen and digitizer assembly (with frame) remains.
Check carefully to make sure your replacement part matches, and that you've removed all the necessary parts from the old frame for installation in the new one.

I was about to order the replacement screen from ifixit but I notice that the phone I want to fix does not a volume rocker switch but two separate switches - one for volume up and a separate one for volume down. The model number is Moto G4 and the SKU is XT1622. Can I still buy the replacement screen from ifixit?

Graham Gullett -

Conclusion

Carefully compare your new replacement part to the original part. Remove any adhesive backings before installing your new battery.

To reassemble your device, follow the above steps in reverse order.

Take your e-waste to an R2 or e-Stewards certified recycler.

Repair didn’t go as planned? Check out our Answers community for troubleshooting help.

Author

Jeff Suovanen

Member since: 06/08/13

406751 Reputation

2 comments

would this work:

https://www.amazon.com/Assembly-Motorola...

thanks

Bert - 18/01/19

I would not recommend it. The adhesive between the screen and the frame was too strong for me to separate, so a screen with a new frame pre-installed would be a better bet.

I used this:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/OEM-Motorola-Mo...

John Smith - 12/05/19