About an Unresponsive Touch Screen

[AndroidUser4321]

Hello,

recently my Galaxy S3 got wet, and the touch screen has been acting erratically since. At first it was unreliably responsive, still usable but freezing and scrolling problems, and at that time the 'soft' menu and back keys were not working. Then, the touch screen became totally unresponsive and detects no touching. The soft keys now make a noise when pressed and work as far as I can tell, cancelling the power button press menu with the back key. The speakers work, it boots, but now after I factory reset via the tri-button method, I cannot proceed past the initialization which requires the touch screen.

So the rest of the phone seems fine, just the touch screen is not working. Do these symptoms seem like I would need to replace the glass screen, or both the screen and the digitizer?

I'm hesitant to have it repaired by a store, and warranty is not a factor. I am comfortable repairing it myself, I am just wondering if anyone has more experience and can tell me what they think would be necessary parts for me to order and install.

Thank you.

 

[GSDer]

I haven't had to replace one myself, but from everything I've read your best bet is to replace both the LCD & digitizer together.
Seems like other folks have found them on eBay.
Did you put the phone in a bag of rice after it got wet? That's the recommended process.

Sent from my rooted, debloated, deodexed Sinclair ZX-80 running CM -0.001 using Tapatalk 4

 

[mssca]

Before you order the parts for replacement, try to find if anything else is damaged and if it is worth the money you will be spending to fix it. I found once I replaced the speaker after getting wet and only to find out that the main board also has damaged.

Good luck and all the best.

Posted using Samsung GS III

 

[meyerweb#CB]

For future reference, if electronics get wet your should IMMEDIATELY remove power from the device (remove the battery). Then let it dry out thoroughly before reapplying power. A good way to help the process is to put the phone, with the back removed, in a sealed container of dry (uncooked) rice for a minimum of 48 hours. Before spending the money on new parts, I would suggest putting the phone (without battery) in a container of rice now and wait 48 hours. it just might dry out enough to start to work again.

Trying to use a wet device is the fastest way to guarantee something is going to die.

 

[ashii]

Hi,

I am facing a similar problem with my Samsung GS3 after it got wet. I did the TRI BUTTON reset but cant get past the initialization screen because the touch screen doesn't respond. Everything else seems to be fine. Speakers are fine, the phone boots. But there is another problem, the the touch sensitive back button ( on the right side of the home button ) works fine but keeps flickering. what could be wrong ? And I also wanted to know if replacing the LCD and digitizer is the only option or is there is a cheaper solution as the screen and the digitizer cost a fortune!!

I would really appreciate any help as I really want to get my phone working asap.

Thanks

 

[GTWalling]

Hi,

I am facing a similar problem with my Samsung GS3 after it got wet. I did the TRI BUTTON reset but cant get past the initialization screen because the touch screen doesn't respond. Everything else seems to be fine. Speakers are fine, the phone boots. But there is another problem, the the touch sensitive back button ( on the right side of the home button ) works fine but keeps flickering. what could be wrong ? And I also wanted to know if replacing the LCD and digitizer is the only option or is there is a cheaper solution as the screen and the digitizer cost a fortune!!

I would really appreciate any help as I really want to get my phone working asap.

Thanks

The phone got wet. Could be other problems than just a screen.

 

[ashii]

hi GTwalling,

What other problems would you be referring to?? because everything else seems to be working fine except the screen.

 

[GTWalling]

With water evolved it could still be wet inside. Corrosion setting up, could be a problem where the screen connects to the board. Water and electronics not a good mix.

 

[ashii]

will try and see if i can find the location and see of there is anything possible signs of corrosion or anything.

Thanks

 

[GSDer]

ashii,
You didn't mention if you put the phone in rice for 24-48 hours to dry it out.

While $179 isn't cheap http://m.repairsuniverse.com/samsung-galaxy-s3-screen-assembly-replacement-white.html it's better than purchasing a new phone.

Sent from my rooted, debloated, deodexed Sinclair ZX-80 running CM -0.001 using Tapatalk 2

 

[meyerweb#CB]

ashii,
You didn't mention if you put the phone in rice for 24-48 hours to dry it out.

While $179 isn't cheap RepairsUniverse.com it's better than purchasing a new phone.

Sent from my rooted, debloated, deodexed Sinclair ZX-80 running CM -0.001 using Tapatalk 2

That could be pretty expensive, though, if you replace the screen assembly and then discover that's not the only problem.

 

[ashii]

GSder,

I did put the phone in rice for about 24 hours. Everything else seems to be fine except the touch screen and the back touch sensitive button, which seems to work fine but the light keeps flickering.

 

[ashii]

meyerweb,

What you said is exactly what is worrying me . Since my screen is ok (doesn't black out completely) and its only the touch response that isn't working, I am not sure as to what could have gone wrong . Would it be the screen and the digitizer or the main mother board logic board?

 

[GSDer]

You didn't mention how wet it got (how long it was in [water?] before you took it out; did you immediately pull the battery or did you turn it on; etc). Those are factors that can affect your likelihood of being able to continue to use the phone.

Based on the information you've provided I'd guess that it's your screen assembly rather than the motherboard that's causing the touch screen not to register. It does bother me that you're also having problems with one of the capacitive buttons, but there's not much to be done there. You could certainly check with Samsung to see how much it would be to get it repaired, but I'm guessing it'll be a lot more than the $179 that I listed for the display. You could see what you could get for it as parts, but I think you'd be disappointed.

My recommendation would be to throw it back in rice for a few days while you wait for your replacement screen to come in and take your chances. Your call.

Sent from my rooted, debloated, deodexed Sinclair ZX-80 running CM -0.001 using Tapatalk 2

 

[ashii]

all of you,

thanks for all your support. I will keep in touch as to what happens with my samsung gs3.

thanks again

 

[meyerweb#CB]

I agree with GSDer. It's probably just the screen assembly. No way to know for sure, though, without replacing it. And replacing the screen isn't a trivial job.

 

[muscat17]

Where can I sent my android smartphone to be repaired because the touchscreen is unresponsive. I bought it on ebay uk but it came from china.thank you :-

 

[GSDer]

You could certainly send it to Samsung for repair (if it's indeed an original S3 and not some counterfeit). Or you could replace the whole screen assembly yourself http://m.repairsuniverse.com/samsung-galaxy-s3-screen-assembly-replacement-white.html (be sure to get the correct colour). I'm sure you could find some electronics savvy person to do it for you if you don't want to deal with it.

Sent from my rooted, debloated, deodexed Sinclair ZX-80 running CM 10.2 using Tapatalk 4

 

[Tamara73]

Hi, I have a problem with my phone. It didn't get wet, it didn't fall or anything, the screen looks perfectly normal, but it's not working! It's simply not reacting. Sometimes it's reacting, but it's very rare, and even then letters like a, s, d, j, etc. aren't reacting at all. So, can someone please tell me what to do to fix my unresponsive screen?

 

[GSDer]

Tamara73,
See the link in post #18 - sounds like the digitizer quit working, in which case your best bet is to replace the complete screen assembly.

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