Samsung Galaxy S21 Screen Replacement

Written By: Alex Diaz-Kokaisl

Comments: 6

Difficulty

Moderate

Steps

Time Required

1 - 2 hours

Introduction

Use this guide to remove or replace the screen in your Samsung Galaxy S21.

For your safety, discharge the 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. If your battery is swollen, take appropriate precautions.

You'll need replacement adhesive in order to complete this repair.

Tools

Parts

Step 1

Completely power off your phone before you begin.
Heat an iOpener and apply it to the back cover's bottom edge for two minutes.
A hair dryer, heat gun, or hot plate may also be used, but be careful not to overheat the phone—the display, internal battery, and plastic back cover are both susceptible to heat damage.

How hot does the back cover have to be to come off? I tried with iOpener many times but have had no luck opening it. The surface temperature goes up to 105-110F (43C).

Imtiaz Chowdhury -

Hi Imtiaz!

We don't have a specific temperature that we recommend, but, if you're still having issues separating the adhesive with the iOpener, I would recommend you switch to a hair dryer or a heat pad. The back cover should be slightly too warm to the touch.

Alex Diaz-Kokaisl -

Step 2

Apply a suction cup to the back of the phone, as close to the center of the bottom edge as possible.
Pull up on the suction cup with strong, steady force to create a gap between the back cover and the frame.
Depending on the age of your phone, this may be difficult. If you're having trouble, apply more heat to the edge and try again.
Insert an opening pick into the gap.
Only insert the pick up to 5 mm, as you may damage internal components if you go further.

Are you pulling the suction cup on an angle or something? How can you pull up on cup with nothing tying down the phone?

PCman999 -

The backing is a polycarbonate material - so yes it's plastic. Also, when pulling up with the suction cup your correct in that it is or should be done on an angle. Plus, the back is plastic so it will only flex upwards as you're applying the pressure. Lastly, because the backing is still tapped inside and your pulling upwards, if necessary with the hand that's pulling up you can gently rest the part of your palm/wrist against the phone which may also help in the separation process but remember you're goal is to only lift it enough so you can slide in the separator pick. I use guitar picks myself since I have them laying around all over the place. Good luck, and don't rush yourself :0)

Miles Long -

Step 3

Slide the pick back and forth along the bottom edge to slice through the adhesive.
Leave the pick in to prevent the adhesive from resealing.

Step 4

Apply a heated iOpener to the back cover's left edge for two minutes.

If you have access to a heating pad you can use this instead and save some cash but make sure to turn it on and let it heat up so you check the temperature first as it needs to be hot enough to melt the glue but not damage the components. Typically, these work great because they're designed not to burn a person.

Miles Long -

Step 5

Apply a suction cup to the back of the phone, as close to the center of the left edge as possible.
Pull up on the suction cup with strong, steady force to create a gap between the back cover and the frame.
Insert an opening pick into the gap.
Only insert the pick up to 5 mm, as you may damage internal components if you go further.

Step 6

Slide an opening pick along the left edge towards the bottom left corner to cut the adhesive.
Don't cut past where the camera shell meets the back cover, as you risk cracking the plastic.
Leave the pick in to prevent the adhesive from resealing.

Step 7

Apply a heated iOpener to the back cover's right edge for two minutes.

Step 8

Apply a suction cup to the back of the phone, as close to the center of the right edge as possible.
Pull up on the suction cup with strong, steady force to create a gap between the back cover and the frame.
Insert an opening pick into the gap.
Only insert the pick up to 3 mm, as you may damage the secondary interconnect cable, which runs parallel to the right edge.

Step 9

Slide an opening pick back and forth along the back cover's right edge to cut the adhesive.
Leave the pick in to prevent the adhesive from resealing.

Step 10

Rotate the right-edge opening pick around the top-right corner of the phone.
Only insert the pick up to 5 mm, as you may damage internal components if you go further.
This procedure can be applied to each corner, except the top-left where the rear-facing camera is located.

Step 11

Slide the top-most opening pick as close to the camera shell as possible.
Repeat for the left-edge pick.

Step 12

Heat an iOpener and apply it to the camera shell for two minutes.

Step 13

Rotate the back cover counterclockwise to create a gap between the camera shell and the frame.
Only insert the pick up to 5 mm to avoid scratching the camera.
Insert an opening pick in the gap.
If this method doesn't work, move to the next step for an alternative method; otherwise, skip the next step.

Step 14

Gently slide the two picks toward the camera shell so they are under the corners of the back cover adjacent to the camera shell.
Move the picks back and forth along the bridge between the back cover and the camera shell until you create a gap between the camera shell and the frame.
Be careful with this method, as you risk cracking the plastic back cover.

Step 15

Slide an opening pick between the camera shell and the frame to cut the adhesive.
There's a significant amount of adhesive securing the frame to the camera shell, so multiple rounds of heating may be needed.

Step 16

There's additional adhesive to the right of the camera that you need to cut through.
There's a plate on the back cover surrounding the phone's flash that the pick can get stuck on:
Angle the pick downward to avoid any damage.

Step 17

Line up the opening pick's tip with your phone's flash
Insert the pick slowly, making sure to avoid the flash's plate.
The plate's resistance can feel similar to adhesive. Angle the pick downward to keep the pick from sliding into the plate.
Slice the adhesive to the right of the camera.

Step 18

Remove the back cover.
If your back cover is still sticking to the frame, slide the pick around the edges of the phone until the back cover completely separates.
During reassembly:
This is a good point to power on your phone and test all functions before sealing it up. Be sure to power your phone back down completely before you continue working.
Remove any adhesive chunks with a pair of tweezers or your fingers. Use some high concentration (over 90%) isopropyl alcohol to wipe away any adhesive residue.
If you're using Samsung custom-cut adhesives, follow this guide.
If you're using double-sided tape, follow this guide.

Why begin reassemble directions or reminders when the battery has not even been removed yet? This advice would be better suited just after the battery install and just after powering on to test. Might have to inject multiple "test" points before and after reassembly.

Tarzan1812 -

Step 19

Use a Phillips screwdriver to remove the five 4 mm-long screws securing the motherboard bracket to the frame.
Throughout this repair, keep track of each screw, and make sure it goes back exactly where it came from.

Step 20

Use a pair of tweezers to gently pull up and unclip the motherboard bracket from the frame.
Do not completely remove the bracket yet, as it's still attached to the wireless charging coil.

Step 21

While using tweezers, or your fingers, to hold the motherboard bracket out of the way, use a spudger to pry up the battery press connector.
Take care to pry only under the edge of the connector to prevent damaging the socket itself and surrounding components.
To re-attach press connectors like this one, carefully align and press down on one side until it clicks into place, then repeat on the other side. Do not press down on the middle. If the connector is misaligned, the pins can bend, causing permanent damage.

Step 22

While still holding the motherboard bracket out of the way, use a spudger to pry up and disconnect the wireless charging coil's press connector.

Step 23

The wireless charging coil is secured to the phone with light adhesive.
Use your fingers to gently peel the wireless charging coil away from the phone.
During reassembly, refasten the motherboard bracket screws first to properly align the charging coil into place, then firmly press the rest of the coil down to adhere it.

Step 24

Use a Phillips screwdriver to remove the six 4 mm screws securing the loudspeaker to the frame.

Step 25

Insert the point of a spudger into the notch in the top-left corner of the loudspeaker and pry up to release the clips holding it in place.
Remove the loudspeaker.

Step 26

Use a spudger to pry up and disconnect the display cable's bottom press connector.

Step 27

Use a spudger to pry up and disconnect the display cable's top press connector.

Step 28

Use tweezers, or your fingers, to remove the display cable.

Step 29

Apply a heated iOpener to the screen for at least five minutes to loosen the adhesive underneath.
The display adhesive of the Galaxy S21 is extremely strong, and it's likely you need to reheat and reapply the iOpener several times before starting the display removal and during the removal procedure.
A hair dryer, heat gun, or hot plate may also be used, but be careful not to overheat the device.

Step 30

While you wait for the adhesive to soften, note the following:
There’s adhesive securing the screen around the perimeter of the frame.
More adhesive surrounds the front camera and will require inserting an opening pick further to slice through it.
There’s more adhesive right above the fingerprint sensor.
Some adhesive may stick to the screen after removal depending on how you slice with a plastic card.

Step 31

Once the screen is warm to touch, apply a suction handle to the left edge of the screen and as close to the edge as possible.
If your screen is badly cracked, covering it with a layer of clear packing tape may allow the suction cup to adhere. Alternatively, very strong tape may be used instead of the suction handle. If all else fails, you can superglue the suction cup to the screen.
Lift the screen with the suction handle to create a small gap between the screen and the frame.
Insert an opening pick into the gap between the frame and the screen.
Slide the opening pick to the top left corner of the screen to slice its adhesive.
Only use the tip of the opening pick (4–5 mm) during this procedure to avoid tangling with the in-display fingerprint cable or accidentally tearing it.
Leave the opening pick in place to prevent the adhesive from resealing.

Step 32

Insert a second opening pick at the top left corner and slide it to the bottom left corner of the screen to slice the adhesive.
Leave the opening pick in place to prevent the adhesive from resealing.

Step 33

When you slice near the front facing camera, insert only the tip of the opening pick (2–3 mm) to avoid damaging or smearing the camera.
Insert a third opening pick at the top left corner of the screen.
Slide the opening pick along the top edge of the phone to slice the adhesive.
Leave the opening pick in place to prevent the adhesive from resealing.

Step 34

If the adhesive becomes hard to cut, it has most likely cooled down. Use your iOpener or heat gun for 1–2 minutes to reheat it.
Insert a fourth opening pick underneath the top-right corner of the screen.
Slide the opening pick along the right edge of the screen to slice the adhesive.
Leave the opening pick in place to prevent the adhesive from resealing.

Step 35

Insert a fifth opening pick at the bottom right corner of the screen.
Slide the opening pick along the bottom edge to slice the remaining adhesive.
Do not try to remove the display all the way yet. The display is still adhered to the midframe by adhesive underneath the center of the screen.

Step 36

The Galaxy S21 has adhesive underneath the center of the screen that needs to be cut before removing the frame.
Insert a plastic card into the gap between the frame and the display at a long edge of the phone.
Use the plastic card to slice the adhesive underneath the screen.

Step 37

Remove the screen.
Compare your new replacement part to the original part—you may need to transfer remaining components from your old screen to your replacement part.
Apply new adhesive where it's necessary after cleaning the relevant areas with isopropyl alcohol (>90%).
During reassembly, follow this guide in case you're using a precut adhesive card.