iPhone 16 Plus Back Glass Replacement

Written By: Nick Schultz

Comments: 0

Difficulty

Moderate

Steps

Time Required

30 - 45 minutes

Introduction

Use this guide to remove or replace a cracked or broken back glass aka back cover on your iPhone 16 Plus.

This assembly includes the flash light and wireless charging coil. These parts come as one unit, which is uniquely paired to your logic board. Replacing it means you'll need to complete your repair using Apple's Repair Assistant to avoid issues using charging or using the camera's flash.

You'll need replacement back glass adhesive to complete this repair.

Tools

Step 1

Allow your phone's battery to drain below 25%, as a charged lithium-ion battery is a potential safety hazard.
Unplug any cables from your phone.
Hold the power and either volume buttons and slide to power off your phone.

Step 2

If your screen or back glass is badly cracked, lay overlapping strips of packing tape over the glass to protect yourself and make disassembly easier.
Make sure there's a smooth area near the bottom edge that's big enough for a suction cup to stick to.

Step 3

If inserted too far, an opening pick can damage your device. Follow this step to mark your pick and prevent damage.
Measure 3 mm from the tip and mark the opening pick with a permanent marker.
You can also mark the other corners of the pick with different measurements.
Alternatively, tape a coin to a pick 3 mm from the tip.

Step 4

Use a P2 pentalobe driver to remove the two 7.7 mm-long screws on either side of the USB-C port.

Step 5

Apply a heated iOpener to the bottom edge of the back glass for two minutes.
Alternatively, you can use a hair dryer or heat gun to heat the bottom edge of the back glass until it's hot to the touch.
Be careful not to heat the phone hotter than this—the battery is susceptible to heat damage.

Step 6

Apply a suction handle to the bottom edge of the back glass, above the USB-C port.
Pull up on the handle with a strong, steady force to create a gap between the back glass and the frame.
Insert the tip of an opening pick into the gap.

Step 7

As you slice the adhesive securing the back glass in the next steps, be careful of the following areas:
There's a delicate cable connecting the back glass to the phone, right next to the volume up button. Don't insert your pick here to avoid slicing the cable.
There are multiple spring contacts around the perimeter of the phone. Be extra careful not to insert your pick deeper than suggested in each step to avoid bending these contacts.

Step 8

Don't insert your pick deeper than 5 mm on the bottom edge to avoid damaging the spring contacts.
Slide your pick back and forth along the bottom edge to separate the adhesive.
Leave your pick inserted in the bottom right corner to prevent the adhesive from resealing.

Step 9

Apply a heated iOpener to the right edge of the back glass for two minutes.
When using a hair dryer or heat gun, heat the back glass until it's hot to the touch.

Step 10

Don't insert your pick deeper than 5 mm along the right edge to avoid damaging the spring contacts and ribbon cable.
Slide your pick around the bottom right corner and slide it halfway up the right edge, or until you feel a hard stop at a clip securing the back glass.
Don't slice near the volume buttons to avoid damaging the wireless charging/flash cable.
Leave this pick inserted to prevent the adhesive from resealing.

Step 11

Apply a heated iOpener to the left edge of the back glass for two minutes.
When using a hair dryer or heat gun, heat until it's hot to the touch.

Step 12

Don't insert your pick deeper than 5 mm along the left edge to avoid damaging the spring contact.
Insert a second opening pick at the bottom edge.
Slide the second pick around the bottom left corner and along the left edge of the screen to separate the adhesive and release the metal clips.
You'll hear and feel the metal clips release as you pass them.
Leave this pick inserted at the top left corner to prevent the adhesive from resealing.

Step 13

Apply a heated iOpener to the top edge of the back glass, angled to include the volume buttons, for two minutes.
When using a hair dryer or heat gun, heat until it's hot to the touch.

Step 14

Don't insert your pick deeper than 3 mm along the top edge to avoid damaging the spring contacts.
Slide your opening pick across the top edge and around the top right corner to the volume up button to separate the adhesive.
You should hear and feel clicks as the top two clips release.

Step 15

Don't try to fully remove the back glass just yet—it's still attached with a delicate ribbon cable. Follow the next few steps to remove it safely.
If the back glass doesn't swing open easily, don't force it—go back around the perimeter with your pick to check for missed sections of adhesive or stuck clips.
You may need to lift the back glass up slightly before swinging it open to fully disengage the clips.
Gently swing open the back glass towards the volume buttons.
Support the back glass with a clean, sturdy object like a small box to avoid straining the cable.
Remove the opening picks.

Step 16

Use a tri-point Y000 driver to remove the two 1.3 mm-long screws securing the middle connector cover.

Step 17

Be careful not to dent or puncture the battery during this step.
Use blunt-nose tweezers or your fingers to slide the cover towards the left edge of the phone and release its hook from its slot on the logic board.
Remove the cover.
During reassembly, align the hooks over their slots on the logic board. Then, press the cover down and slide it towards the right edge to re-engage the hooks.

Step 18

Use the point of a spudger to pry up and disconnect the battery press connector.
During reassembly, align the connector carefully over its socket and press down with your fingertip or the flat end of a spudger—first on one side, then the other—until it clicks into place. Don't try to force the connector into place. If you're having trouble, reposition it and try again.

Step 19

Use the point of a spudger to pry up and disconnect the wireless charging coil press connector.

Step 20

Lift the back glass off the frame and remove it.

Step 21

Congratulations on completing disassembly! The remaining steps will show how to reassemble your iPhone.
Depending on your iPhone model, some reassembly photos may have minor visual discrepancies. The procedure, however, will be correct for your iPhone.

Step 22

Be careful not to damage any of the spring contacts as you clean the frame.
This is a good point to test your repair before sealing up your phone. Connect the battery and back glass, power on your phone, and make sure it works as expected. Power it back down, disconnect the battery and back glass, and continue reassembly.
The adhesive remaining on your phone is difficult to remove and leaves residue. If you have trouble removing the adhesive, apply some heat using a hair dryer or heat gun.
Use the pointed end of a spudger to press and roll the adhesive until you can grip it with a pair of tweezers.

Step 23

Use the tweezers to pull the adhesive off of the phone.
Repeat the previous step and this step until all of the adhesive is removed.

Step 24

Any leftover residue will compromise your iPhone's seal. Be sure to clean the frame thoroughly.
Wrap a microfiber or lint-free cloth over the point of a spudger and apply a few drops of high-concentration isopropyl alcohol (over 90%) to the cloth.
Wipe in one direction along the perimeter of the frame to clean the adhesive residue.
Wait a few minutes before proceeding to make sure any excess alcohol has evaporated.

Step 25

If you're not reusing your back glass, skip this step.
Apply a few drops of high-concentration isopropyl alcohol (over 90%) to a microfiber or lint-free cloth and wipe around the perimeter of the back glass to prepare the surface for new adhesive.
If any clips on the back glass are bent, gently straighten them with your fingers.

Step 26

Orient your replacement adhesive over the frame with the larger blue liner on the underside and its pull tab in the bottom-right corner.
The color of your liner and the pull tab locations may be different on your adhesive.
Use features such as the camera cutout and notches along the edges to ensure the adhesive is oriented correctly.

Step 27

Use the pull tab to begin peeling the back liner off of the adhesive starting from the bottom, but do not remove the liner all the way.

Step 28

Once the adhesive is pressed into place, you can't reposition it—you'll have to remove it and start over with new adhesive.
Hold the blue liner out of the way and align the adhesive with the bottom edge of the iPhone.
Lay the bottom edge of the adhesive into its recess in the frame, making sure the iPhone's spring contacts are aligned with their cutouts in the liner.

Step 29

Continue peeling the back liner off of the adhesive while pressing the adhesive into place along the edges of the iPhone's frame.
If you correctly aligned the lower edge of the adhesive, the side and top edges will fall perfectly into place. If the adhesive is misaligned, remove it and start over with new adhesive.
If your adhesive is misaligned and you don't have another set handy, it's okay to temporarily put your iPhone back together and use it normally without any adhesive, but keep in mind that your iPhone's water resistance will be compromised until you install new adhesive.

Step 30

Use the flat end of a spudger to press the adhesive into place around the perimeter of the frame.
Be careful not to touch the spring contacts sticking through the pink liner.

Step 31

Use the small pull tab in the top-right corner to remove the pink adhesive liner.

Step 32

Once the top liner is removed, there should be three narrow liners on top of the adhesive with pull tabs near the bottom edge.
Your pull tabs may be in different positions.
If you don't see these pull tabs, you may have accidentally removed the thin liners in the previous step. If the adhesive is clean and properly aligned, you may proceed, just be careful not to touch anything to the exposed adhesive until you are ready to install the back glass.

Step 33

Prop up the back glass along the right edge of your iPhone, using a box or similar sturdy object to support the screen.
Use the flat end of a spudger or your finger to connect the charging coil press connector.

Step 34

Use the flat end of a spudger or your finger to connect the battery.

Step 35

The connector cover has two hooks that slide into slots on the logic board.
Lay the connector cover on the phone so the hooks are slightly to the left of their slots in the logic board.
Use your finger to press the connector cover down and to the right until both hooks slide into their slots.

Step 36

Use a tri-point Y000 driver to install the two 1 mm‑long screws securing the middle connector cover.

Step 37

As you remove the liners in this step, the adhesive will be fully exposed. Make sure nothing touches the exposed adhesive.
Use the blue tabs to remove the liners from the bottom, left, and top edges of your iPhone. Wait to remove the liner along the right edge.

Step 38

Without letting the back glass touch the adhesive, hold the back glass over the phone so you can access the final liner along the right edge of the phone.
Use a pair of tweezers or your fingers to remove the final liner along the right edge of the phone.

Step 39

Hold the back glass above the phone and align it with the frame.
Lay the glass straight down onto the frame and press until the clips engage.
Press around the perimeter of the back glass to engage all clips.

Step 40

To help the adhesive bond, apply heat to the edges of the back glass using an iOpener, hair dryer, or heat gun until it's hot to the touch.
Firmly press around the perimeter of the back glass.
If you have screen vise clamps, use them to strengthen the bond of your new adhesive. If not, keep reading for more ways to secure the back glass.

Step 41

To evenly compress your iPhone and strengthen the bond of the back glass to the frame, you need to account for the camera bump.
If you have the box your iPhone came in, take the lid and place it on a flat surface.
If you don't have your original box, skip this step for an alternate method.
Place your iPhone screen-side-up in the lid of your box with the camera bump in its recess.
Find something close to the size of your iPhone, but taller than the sides of the box. Stack it on top of the iPhone, followed by a few heavy objects.
Leave the objects in place for at least thirty minutes. The lighter the objects, the longer they should be left. Ideally, leave them stacked overnight.

Step 42

If you don't have the original box for your iPhone, follow the next three steps for another method to evenly compress the back glass.
Place the iPhone screen-side-down on a soft, flat surface.
Apply tape to the back glass to protect its finish.

Step 43

Place two layers of coins or similarly thick objects on the tape along the edges of the back glass.
Evenly distribute the coins and make sure they are at least as thick as the camera bump.

Step 44

Stack multiple books or other heavy objects on your iPhone.
The coins may leave an impression on the bottom object, so don't use anything valuable.
Leave the objects in place for at least thirty minutes. The lighter the objects, the longer they should be left. Ideally, leave them stacked overnight.

Step 45

Use a P2 pentalobe driver to install the two 7.7 mm-long screws on either side of the charging port.

Conclusion

To reassemble your phone, follow this guide to reapply adhesive and install your back glass.

After your repair, calibrate a genuine replacement back glass using Apple's Repair Assistant. Navigate to Settings → General → About → Parts & Service History, tap Restart & Finish Repair, and follow the onscreen prompts.

Take your e-waste to an R2 or e-Stewards certified recycler.

Repair didn’t go as planned? Try some basic troubleshooting, or ask our iPhone 16 Plus Answers Community for help.

Author

Nick Schultz

Member since: 24/03/24

20083 Reputation

iPhone 16 Plus Back Glass Replacement

Introduction

Tools

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