The folding display is the part of my iPhone Duo teardown I am most worried about. My goal is to remove it without breaking it, but I am not confident that will happen.
By this point in the full iPhone Duo teardown, I have worked through both halves of the phone. Now it is time to tackle the large inner screen.
Picking a Side to Start
I choose the right side to start prying because the display flex is on the left. I want to keep away from that cable as I begin separating the panel.
I leave the display on during most of the process. If something goes wrong while I am prying, I want to know whether the screen still works.
An Hour of Prying
The entire process of prying takes about an hour. This is easily one of the most nerve-racking parts of taking the Duo apart.
Partway through, I turn the phone off because I am getting close to the flex-cable area.
Once the panel is free, I do not know whether it still works. There is only one thing left to do.
I put everything back together and turn the phone on.
A Working Screen, With More Work Left
The inner display actually works. After all that prying, I am relieved to see it come back on.
Works after reassembly.
Needs replacing.
The frame is a different story. I cannot put it back the same way it came out, so I will need a replacement.
Final Thoughts
I set out to remove the folding display without killing it, and the screen survives. That is a result I am happy to see.
The frame still needs replacing before I can get the display sitting properly again. The panel works, but I have more work to do.
See you in the next article!
