Not a day goes by when I don’t receive at least a half dozen calls asking if I fix cell phones. I think I received about a dozen today. If it’s not cell phones it’s tablets. I don’t mind the calls because it gives me a chance to educate customers and point them in a direction that makes sense for them.

My Experience

Years ago I used to fix mobile electronics, stopped, and started again during the pandemic when most shops were closed. Right around the time masks came off I happily stopped and will hopefully never have to personally repair another phone for a long time. Even though computer repair and cell phone repair businesses are remotely related, the two are very different.

Customer Decision

Shrinks would say the sense of urgency when our phone breaks takes away our rational thought process. Customers make a decision to have their phone fixed because we’ve been conditioned to having a functional phone in our pockets 24/7. Fixing a broken phone is an impulse decision because we need it now. Customers rarely question the how or why.

It’s also been my experience that we, as consumers, don’t think of our phone as a $1,000.00 device because most of us finance the phone through our cell phone carrier. Instead, we think of them as having a month-to-month value and in some cases free (even though they’re really not free). Cell phones to most people are just another necessary bobble we carry in our pocket.

Commodity Repairs

Mobile phone and tablet repair shops are truly commodity repair businesses – meaning the parts are the same from shop to shop and the technique and process of making the repair is the same. An iPhone, for example, comes apart with 2 screws. Once removed, there’s 4 or so more screws that expose the connectors and guts. A few quick pops and ticks and the screen is out. Reverse the process and the new screen is back in.

The Business of Mobile Repairs

Every phone repair business relies on aftermarket parts. I am tempted to call them counterfeit instead of aftermarket. I wish there was a combination of the two words. One of the biggest justifications for aftermarket cell phone parts I’ve heard goes something like: “they’re no different than aftermarket car parts.” Aftermarket car parts are made to the same or better specifications than the OEM. Aftermarket cell phone parts, on the other hand, have limited functionality and are poor copies of the original.

By far the most common repairs for a cell phone store are iPhone screen replacements. You drop your phone, the screen breaks and you go to get it fixed. Pretty simple really. Unless you go to Apple directly you are going to get an aftermarket/counterfeit replacement part. The screen costs the installer anywhere from $20-$40 and they typically charge $150.00 and up for about 15 minutes worth of work. Not a bad profit; and that’s why cell phone shops exist.

For the same repair Apple charges around $260.00 but keeps your phone for a few days. Most of the time Apple will provide a phone with your data transferred to the loaner for as long as you need it. Most people would make the choice to go with the cell phone shop over Apple based strictly on price – not paying attention to what’s being put in their phone. The average customer is almost always going with the cheaper, faster option.

Aftermarket vs OEM

That difference of $100.00 or so buys a lot more than an actual Apple screen. It buys full functionality of your phone and gets your phone back to 100% original. In fact, Apple warranties the screen AND having Apple replace a screen on a phone that’s still covered under their warranty will not depreciate or void the warranty. Replacing with aftermarket/counterfeit parts will void Apple’s warranty.

Just to be fair, Apple does sell screens for DIY repairs. To get the actual Apple screen the customer must also rent the tools specific to the repair. I believe the tools used to replace the screen include a hot plate, a press and a special screen removal tool. No repair shop is going to justify renting tools they either own or don’t need just so they can use actual Apple OEM parts. It would be incredibly cost prohibitive.

Instead, phone repair places purchase inexpensive screens and install them under the guise of being quality replacement parts. By the way, this practice is the same for all brands of phone and tablets. Most of the parts come from a few vendors. I remember reading in one of my trade journals that Amazon and its vendors account for 96% of the screens used by repair shops. The other 4% are specialty vendors. Less than 1% are actual OEM. (I know that’s 101%)

So what makes an aftermarket/counterfeit screen so bad? Screens aren’t just the display for your phone. Behind the glass is a hoard of circuits and whizbangs that control how the phone operates. Fingerprint readers hang out back there. There’s also sensors for facial recognition and your camera (which are integrated on many phones). I can’t forget iPhones also have this True Tone feature which adjusts the screen automatically.

Aftermarket screens don’t have these features. Most of the time there’s no predicting if the phone will have those features until the screen is replaced. It’s kind of like a crap shoot with your $1,000.00 phone. It may work but probably won’t. Your home button may or may not work. Unfortunately you won’t know until the phone is back in your hands. You may not be able to unlock your phone just by holding it up to your face.

Inconvenience vs Functionality

You’re probably thinking that these sound more like inconveniences than anything else and for some people they may be. Wait wait, there’s more, the most important stuff are the physical differences between the OEM and aftermarket products.

Apple uses this crazy proprietary glass called Ceramic Shield which I can attest is extremely durable. Because Ceramic Shield is proprietary it simply isn’t available on aftermarket screens. Aftermarket counterfeiters use one of two types of glass: borosilicate or tempered. Borosilicate is really tough and is used on the higher end replacement screens. The downside to borosilicate is it contains boron which is really hard to dispose of. Tempered, on the other hand, is standard glass that’s put through a heating process to make it stronger. Neither borosilicate nor tempered is nearly as tough as the original.

Screens are laminated with a special superglue that is optically clear. Apple places the glue across the entire screen and then applies a vacuum to draw out bubbles. Most aftermarket screens apply only a small bead of glue around the perimeter so they can avoid getting it on the actual LCD screen which eliminates the vacuum process.

Connecting the screen to the metal body of the phone is a super sticky rubberized sealant. When the screen is first removed it’s not uncommon for strings of black to go everywhere. That’s the goo that makes your phone water proof. During reassembly there’s two options. The first is nothing more than a sticker that’s nearly impossible to apply. I think I’ve done one perfectly out of the MANY phones I’ve fixed. Option 2 is a rubber cement like adhesive that sticks the screen in place. Number 2 is just that, number 2.

Over the years I’ve had screens come back because they don’t work like the original: maybe the color is off. Brightness on the aftermarket screen is lower than expected. Weird blotches start appearing. Touch points stop working after the screen is used for a month or so. Let’s see, the fitment of the replacement isn’t the same as the original. I can’t forget they de-laminate over time. Yeah, they’re just bad.

Customer Education

When people call me for cell phone repairs I always suggest they head to the closest mall, grab a Coke and find the lowest priced vendor. For newer phones I suggest getting them repaired by the OEM if possible. In other words, Apple to Apple and Samsung to Samsung. In my service area finding a Samsung repair center is nearly impossible.

Read the fine print and don’t be afraid to ask questions of your service provider. My favorite ambiguously deceptive advertisement for cell phone shops usually reads: “Genuine parts.” Of course they’re genuine parts, they’re just not genuine Apple or Samsung parts. You should always ask the shop to clarify if you’re getting actual OEM parts. It’s a rhetorical question that should lead them to make excuses about how their’s is just as good. No business is going to tell you it’s garbage just before they fleece you.

If I Were to Start a Cell Phone Repair Business Again

For years now I’ve been tossing around the idea of getting back into the cell and mobile repair business. If I ever do it will be totally transparent to customers that I’m installing discount parts at discounted prices. I would have full disclosure about the features that will not work with the replacement screens. My way of doing business is to be up front about what the customer should expect before taking their money. There’s no worse feeling than spending your hard earned money on garbage and then being inconvenienced when you have to get it fixed repeatedly.

With that being said, I will never start a cell phone repair business because I like to know I’m doing right by the customer. On top of that, I never want to fix another cell phone in my life.

Please contact me with any questions. I have stores in Greenfield and Gardner MA. https://www.localcomputerwiz.com