Gorilla Glass Epic Fail

[dmanlee]

I'm looking to buy an Epic soon bcuz contract is up, but this would be my 1st device w/ Gorilla Glass (currently w/ Pre). Would a screen protector protector make a difference if u dropped the phone on a hard surface like concrete as far as cracking goes?

My Pre's screen is plastic so I know scratches r an issue, but lord knows I've dropped it on the pavement stepping out of my car several times w/ no cracks.

Sounds like I'm gonna need an otterbox for my butterfingers, lol

-- Sent from my Palm Pre using Forums

 

[Chetbungo]

Look again, it says Epic 4g...

 

[jrz5024]

I'm looking to buy an Epic soon bcuz contract is up, but this would be my 1st device w/ Gorilla Glass (currently w/ Pre). Would a screen protector protector make a difference if u dropped the phone on a hard surface like concrete as far as cracking goes?

My Pre's screen is plastic so I know scratches r an issue, but lord knows I've dropped it on the pavement stepping out of my car several times w/ no cracks.

Sounds like I'm gonna need an otterbox for my butterfingers, lol

-- Sent from my Palm Pre using Forums

I've dropped my epic a bunch of times and only have one hairline scratch, only noticeable if you know where to look for it. Gorilla glass is tough stuff, and as long as you're careful (and aren't obsessive about a pristine screen) you really don't need a screen protector. My guess would be that any fall hard enough to crack the screen would be hard enough to break the rest of the phone as well.

 

[Galane]

I suspect whether or not the glass fails depends on if something small and sharp hits the glass hard enough and pretty well straight on instead of at enough of an angle to slide across the surface.

Ordinary glass is pretty hard to break if what hits it is blunt and/or smooth. That's why vehicle rescue tools have a tiny, sharp and hard point.

If your Epic, iPhone etc falls flat onto a smooth and clean concrete surface, most likely it'll survive. Likewise if there's a lot of grit that's all of pretty much the same size - the force is spread out.

But put one little sharp grain of sand on that clean and smooth concrete then smack your glass phone face down flat, it's very likely to crack because of the force concentrated in that one little spot.

Same goes for dropping it on gravel. One sharp chunk of crushed rock poking up just so, may as well slam it down on the point of a nail.

What I'm wondering is how the touchscreen can continue to work when it's supposedly integrated into the Super AMOLED screen? Is the glass a separate layer over the display?

 

[tndank]

What I'm wondering is how the touchscreen can continue to work when it's supposedly integrated into the Super AMOLED screen? Is the glass a separate layer over the display?

The digitizer is a clear piece that sits on top and a ribbon cable runs to the board. It's what actually get cracked in most cases. They are fairly inexpensive. But, changing them can be difficult on some phones. Ideally, you want to remove the lcd panel from the top piece with the digitizer. That's usually the hardest part. Once apart, use a heat gun or blow dryer and heat up the digitizer. There's adhesive tape along the borders to keep it attached to your phone. Peel it off and stick the new one on.

 

[yankeefan8755]

Sorry to hear

 

[big_bake]

So two weeks ago when I was a bit drunk at a mud bog I pulled my phone out of my pocket (where it resides by itself) and it was cracked like so. It really freaked me out since I take care of things and don't have butter fingers. I really wish I knew how I manged to do it. The phone still functioned perfectly fine, even missing a chunk of glass at the bottom.

It looks like it was dropped and hit the bottom edge right where the bezel meets the screen. If anyone knows much about tempered glass, or any glass for that matter, the edges are the weak point.


I found a guy on craigslist selling the whole front of an Epic, brand new, sans the circuit board and rear cover for $100. I payed him $80 and got home to start swapping parts. It even had the factory screen protector on it.


It didn't go as smoothly as it should have. First time I fired it up I had no softkeys at all. Stripped it wayyy down to the front panel and saw the softkey board wasn't plugged in all the way. Completely reassemble it to then have a useless power button. So then back apart to swap the mid board (?) that has the power button on it from the first phone to finally have a complete working phone again.


All in all it wasn't hard, just a little unnerving with your phone under the knife and things not going smooth. I don't do the whole insurance/warranty/wineuntiltheygivemeanewphone thing. I like to fix things myself, which is also tends to be cheaper any way you look at it.

 

[nmoreman]

I have the Nexus, had never used insurance so cancelled, fell on my bike with it in pocket. It shattered but had a screen protector on it. So it worked, and the protector held it all together,
looked kinda like a screen saver.
I was fortunate, a wonderful full service third party store (used to be Nextel) with real service
people put a new screen on for $35 in 20 minutes.

 

[rdybala]

I've dropped my Epic on the ground, face down after falling and it's still has no scratches or cracks on the glass. My friend bought an Epic about a month after mine and his cracked within weeks of buying it. Did Samsung forget to put Gorilla Glass on all of them, or are the refurbs coming out without Gorilla Glass?

 

[blitzen89]

Mine has alot of cracks in it as well, but before I even take it in to ask what itll cost me, do I need to odin back to stock just to get the screen replaced?

 

[cajunrph]

My daughter dropped mine once, from about 4 feet high. I don't know how it hit but I think it hit on the edge of the phone. There are 3-4 breaks at the top and one long break down the phone. My wife has dropped her iPhone 3gs many times and it didn't break. This I don't know if she has dropped her iPhone4 yet. It seems to be weak for GG. Is the $35 and $100 repairs other are talking about just for those with insurance? I do not have the insurance on the phone. This is a secondary phone for me but I'd like it to be fixed if it was that cheep. :-$

 

[Ricolando]

I dropped my original Epic onto a tile floor. Cracked the glass over the capacitive buttons, but the screen itself was okay. My replacement phone never left the case again. Gorilla glass is more scratch resistant than anything else.

Sent from my Epic 4G Touch