Mark it down… another iPhone casualty. Since the first day of its release the iPhone has been cracking. The iPhone’s glass screen might be a beautiful window into one of the best smartphones ever made, but drop it the wrong way, just once, and it’s done for.
Once the screen is cracked the phone will probably still be usable. Of course you have to worry about it cracking further, plus there is the small detail of you having to hold it against your face. A new screen will run you $199 through Apple, a handsome sum thanks to the fact the capacitive touchscreen has to be replace along with the glass cover. Third part services will replace screens as well, generally for a little over $100.
This video goes over the details of a cracked iPhone 3GS (my cracked iPhone 3GS to be precise) and a stopgap fix that I’m using until I can convince myself to give Apple another $200.
For the “fix” I used an anti-glare screen cover from Power Support. They sell it at my local Apple Store so I picked it up right after my appointment with the Mac genius. It might not seem like much of a fix, but I can say that in the last two weeks my phone hasn’t cracked any further and I haven’t yet cut my face open, which is a nice perk. If nothing else, I’m sold on the anti-glare coating–it gives the iPhone display a nice matte look, it offers some basic protection to the display, I like the texture, and it obviously cuts down on glare.
It should go without saying that this is a short-term solution. The iPhone’s dispay has more than one layer to it, which is why most initial cracks aren’t catastrophic, but once the glass is compromised sooner or later it’s going to crack more.
As an end note, I thought it was interesting that when I brought my iPhone into the Apple store the first question I was asked was if my phone had a case on it. And the last recommendation from the rep (when I didn’t want to hand over my phone and $200) was that I pick up this display cover. I understand that Apple is all about people accessorizing their iPhone/iPod but if the phone basically needs a case, then isn’t something wrong?
