Motorola Moto G4 Plus LCD Screen and Digitizer Assembly Replacement

Written By: Arthur Shi

Comments: 18

Motorola Moto G4 Plus LCD Screen and Digitizer Assembly Replacement

Difficulty

Moderate

Steps

Time Required

35 minutes - 1 hour

Introduction

This guide will walk you through the process of replacing a faulty LCD screen and digitizer assembly in a Motorola Moto G4 Plus phone.

Before you begin, download the Rescue and Smart Assistant app to backup your device and diagnose whether your problem is software or hardware related.

This guide is for replacing a complete display assembly, which includes the display frame. Your replacement part should look like this. If you purchased a bare display, you must complete additional disassembly steps, which are not covered by this guide.

For your safety, discharge your 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.

Tools

Parts

Moto G4 Plus Screen - Genuine

Step 1

Insert a fingernail or a spudger into the notch on bottom edge of the phone near the charging port.
Pry the back cover away from the body of the phone.

Step 2

Continue to gently lift the back cover until all plastic clips have been released.
Remove the back cover.
To reinstall the back cover, align the cover over the body and gently press all around the edges until you feel the clips snap into place.

Step 3

Slide out and remove the SIM card.

Tenho un Motorola g4 plus 64 G

El celular se volvía loco abriendo y cerrando aplicaciones

Ahora no reconoce la tarjeta SIM

Internet y Wasapp funciona

Alguien sabe donde lo reparan soy de Argentina Buenos Aires CABA

Florencia Garrido - 04/10/18

Step 4

Remove the nineteen 3.1 mm T3 screws securing the midframe.

A pair of binocular magnifiers is helpful here. Also, a magnetic pickup will help pull the tiny screws out of their counterbores.

John Fossey - 17/08/19

Well I'm stuck. 3 screw heads are stripped on mine, not lucky as they are two on USB port end and screw in-between two SIM slots. Phone bought new and this is 1st time screws have been touched, could see they were already stripped before getting screwdriver near them. Any tips on removing stripped screws?

Mark Wintle - 04/01/21

Hi Mark,

I’m sorry to hear that! You can try some techniques from the stripped screw guide.

Arthur Shi - 05/01/21

Step 5

Use the point of a spudger to pry up the rubber cover over the camera flash connector.
Remove the rubber cover.

Step 6

Use the point of a spudger to pry up and disconnect the camera flash connector.

Step 7

Loosen the midframe along the edges and lift it away from the body.
Remove the midframe.

Step 8

Be very careful not to puncture the battery with any sharp tools. A damaged lithium-ion battery can catch fire and/or explode.
Peel up and remove the tape securing the battery wires.
Peel up and remove the black tape that bridges the battery and the phone.
While neither tape pieces are necessary for the operation of the phone, save them if they are in good condition for the reinstallation process.

Step 9

Slip the point of a spudger underneath the red and black battery wires and gently pry straight up.
Do not pull the plug out, or you will tear the board socket out. Be careful where you pry. Do not pry against the board socket.
During reassembly, align the connector in its socket, then press straight down to reconnect it.

Step 10

Use tweezers or your fingers to de-route the battery wires from the plastic brackets.

Step 11

Peel the black pull tab from battery and pull slowly but firmly to separate the battery from the frame.
A few drops of high concentration (90% or higher) isopropyl alcohol along each side may help soften the adhesive.
If the pull tab breaks, use a spudger to gently pry around the edges of the battery until it comes loose.
Don't deform or puncture the battery—it can catch fire and/or explode if damaged.
Never reinstall a damaged or deformed battery. Replace the battery.

Does anybody know, what the black tape covering the metal cans an the battey is made of? It seems to have a heat insulating effect.

David Kilias - 13/08/18

No, but the tape completely separated from itself when I removed it. Glue separated from the backing. I figure the glue in the frame is holding it well enough.

Alan Kristensen - 27/11/18

I found prying the battery out was the trickiest part of this job. Take your time and pry with the plastic tool, working from the end away from the wires, but try not to deform the battery in the process. It does finally come out.

John Fossey - 17/08/19

Hi, I cannot remove the Battery, it has too strong glue. Any Ideas?

Regards

Moritz Strack - 24/05/20

You can try to drip some high concentration isopropyl alcohol along the battery edge to help loosen the adhesive.

Arthur Shi - 26/05/20

Step 12

Remove the battery.
To install a battery, orient the new battery such that the wires exit near the bottom of the phone, and the battery connector is on the motherboard side.
Clean off any adhesive residue which may prevent the battery from sitting flush against the frame. Use a few strips of adhesive included in the battery kit or some double-sided tape to secure the battery to the frame.

Step 13

Peel away the yellow tape over the T3 screw next to the SIM card slot.
Peel away the copper tape covering the display connector.
The copper tape provides protection to the display connector. Try to keep it in one piece for reinstallation.

When putting this metal tape back down. place it on the center of the connector first. Use the Spudger and GENTLY rub on the metal tape from the center out, to get the creases out of it that will appear when you take it off. By doing this, you can get it VERY flat and eliminate any creases that formed.

Alan Kristensen - 27/11/18

Step 14

Slide the point of a spudger underneath the vibration motor's wires.
Gently pry up to free the vibration motor from its recess.
During reinstallation, align the vibration motor with its recess and press down.

Step 15

Use a spudger to pry up and disconnect the home button cable connector from the motherboard.

Step 16

Use a spudger to pry up and disconnect the display connector from the motherboard.

As you try to re-attach this clip, it helped me to look at it from the side (top of phone ) and look under the clip to help align the connector. It was easy to see when it did not line up and correct it so it clicked in cleanly. Same thing applies in Step 15

Alan Kristensen - 27/11/18

Step 17

Use tweezers to remove the yellow tape protecting the headphone jack's connector.
Use the point of a spudger to carefully flip up the headphone jack's grey ZIF connector lock.

Step 18

Use tweezers or the point of a spudger to carefully walk the ribbon out of the ZIF connector.
For reinstallation, align and reinsert the cable into the ZIF connector so that the white line on the cable barely shows. Flip the ZIF connector lock back down.

Step 19

Remove the two 2.4 mm T3 screws next to the SIM card slot.

General hint in putting screws back in without stripping them. 1) put the screw back in the hold. 2) gently turn it counter-clockwise like you are loosening it again. (Do not press down on the screw, let the weight of the screwdriver be the only pressure) When you feel/hear a little click, stop. That is the screw thread falling into the correct groove. 3) Turn it clockwise to tighten the screw.. you should feel NO resistance until the screw is fully seated. If you do, repeat step 2 again until you hear/feel the drop of the screw. This works when putting in any screw, not just the ones on this phone. Repeat this same process for each screw in this step and step 4 above.

Alan Kristensen - 27/11/18

Step 20

Insert the point of a spudger into a groove at the bottom of the motherboard.
Gently pry up to loosen the motherboard from the frame and from the edge clips.
Use a spudger to move any flex cables out of the way, as well as making sure that any modules attached to the motherboard (such as the front-facing camera) are loose from the frame.
If you feel any resistance, stop. Make sure there are no components still holding the frame to the motherboard.
Lift the motherboard up from the frame and remove it.

When reassembling, make sure the protective film over front camera opening is removed before putting that camera back in or you will be taking it apart again to remove it.

Alan Kristensen - 27/11/18

Step 21

To remove the headphone jack to transfer it to the new frame, insert the point of a spudger into the headphone port, and twist downwards to pop the jack out of the frame.
Remove the headphone jack.
To install the headphone jack onto the new frame, align it over where it should be and press downwards.

Unless I got a defective or incomplete replacement part (LCD screen and digitizer assembly), you must also remove the little headphone jack wire that you disconnected in step 18 and transfer it into the new assembly. It is stuck on the assembly quite well.. I used some alcohol (just like you used on the battery) to loosen the glue. It pulls straight towards the earpiece you will remove in step 22.

Alan Kristensen - 27/11/18

Wie beim Kommentar von 2018, fehlte auch bei mir das Verbindungsstück im neuen Rahmenteil, kein großes Ding, aber dies fehlt hier in der Beschreibung

Johannes Wirth -

Step 22

To remove the earpiece speaker to transfer it onto the new frame, insert the point of a spudger at the bottom of the speaker.
Pry upwards to separate the earpiece speaker from the frame.
To install the earpiece speaker onto the new frame, check and replace the adhesive if necessary. Align the speaker such that the two spring contacts are oriented as shown in the picture.

Den Lautsprecher musste ich in meinem Fall nicht ausbauen, da ich einen neuen schon auf dem Ersatzrahmen montiert bekommen hatte

Johannes Wirth -

Step 23

Only the LCD screen and digitizer assembly (with frame) remains.
Compare your new replacement part to the original part. You may need to transfer remaining components or remove adhesive backings from the new part before installing.

Vom alten Rahmen mussten noch die Buttons für Einschalten und Lautstärke rausgelöst und in den neuen Rahmen eingeklickt werden

Johannes Wirth -

Conclusion

To reassemble your device, follow these instructions in reverse order.

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

Repair didn’t go as planned? Check out our Motorola Moto G4 Plus Answers community for troubleshooting help.

Author

Arthur Shi

Member since: 03/01/18

225807 Reputation

One comment

Why are the display/ LCD screen of any smartphone damaged?

Subrata Choudhury - 10/09/19