iPhone 4 Verizon Cellular Antenna Replacement

Passo 1

Before you begin, discharge your iPhone battery below 25%. A charged lithium-ion battery can catch fire and/or explode if accidentally punctured.
Power off your iPhone before beginning disassembly.
Your phone's rear cover may have two #000 Phillips screws or Apple's 5-Point "Pentalobe" screws. Check which screws you have, and ensure you also have the correct screwdriver in order to remove them.
Remove the two 3.6 mm Pentalobe or Phillips #000 screws next to the dock connector.

Pra descarregar a bateria, antes de fazer o serviço, isso serve pra qualquer celular?

Gilmar Dutra -

Passo 2

Push the rear panel toward the top edge of the iPhone.
The panel will move about 2 mm.

Ciro ascione

ciruzzooplay@hotmail.it -

Passo 3

Pinch the rear panel with your fingers, and lift it away from the iPhone. Alternatively, use a Small Suction Cup .
Be careful not to damage the plastic clips attached to the rear panel.

Passo 4

Remove the single 1.5 mm Phillips screw securing the battery connector to the logic board (if present).

you do not need to take the battery out as chuck said so you dont run the risk of braking the battery connector socket from the logic board

22therealala -

Won't you need the battery removed to access the large-headed screws on the side which hold the front display?

Casey Baierl - 13/01/16

In my situation, the #00 screwdriver had a hard time trying to get the screws off. Using a glasses screwdriver kit may be a better alternative if the screws are resistant to the #00 screwdriver.

tjaeger -

Unfortunately the battery screw was already stripped probably from original assembly. We used a pair of nail clippers as pliers to grab a hold of the screw by the edges to turn it. If it hadn't have been for the stripped screw it would have taken us about 10 minutes, as it was it took us 30-40 minutes if you count searching for solutions for removing the stripped screw.

Margaret Burruss - 22/05/17

Passo 5

Use the edge of a plastic opening tool to gently pry the battery connector up from its socket on the logic board.
Be very careful to only pry up on the battery connector and not the socket on the logic board. If you pry up on the logic board socket, you may break it entirely.
Remove the metal clip covering the antenna connector.

I don't see the metal clip covering the antenna connector, in the photo or in my phone. Hope this isn't a deal breaker.

Gary Tash - 01/10/16

I don't see it either. I think the metal clip is on the model A1332. The GSM model.

mcr4u2 - 03/09/17

Passo 6

Pull up on the exposed clear plastic tab to peel the battery off the adhesive securing it to the iPhone.
If the tab breaks before the battery is freed, apply a few drops of high concentration (over 90%) isopropyl alcohol under the edge of the battery. Wait about one minute for the alcohol solution to weaken the adhesive. Carefully slide a spudger under the battery tab to release the adhesive.
Prying in other places may cause damage. Don't try to forcefully lever the battery out. If needed, apply a few more drops of alcohol to further weaken the adhesive. Never deform or puncture the battery with your pry tool.
If there's any alcohol solution remaining in the phone, carefully wipe it off or allow it to air dry before installing your new battery.
Remove the battery.
If your replacement battery came in a plastic sleeve, remove it before installation by pulling it away from the the ribbon cable.
Before reassembly, clean metal-to-metal contact points with a de-greaser such as windex. The oils from your fingers have the potential to cause wireless interference issues.
Perform a hard reset after reassembly. This can prevent several issues and simplify troubleshooting.

Note that the pull tab is not actually attached to the battery. It is attached to the iPhone chassis, and is only used to separate the battery from the adhesive. (Don't expect it to come out with the battery!)

Also, the adhesive is VERY strong. I had to use my plastic opening tool to assist in prying the battery loose. This is probably the most nerve-wracking part of the job.

Matt Strange -

It is much easier to slightly WARM the battery with a HAIRDRYER not a HEAT GUN to soften the adhesive. DO NOT GET BATTERY HOT AND DO NOT USE HEAT GUN

Joe -

I just did this today. Everything was as scripted. Mine had lots of adhesive and had to use plastic spudger to go around battery to loosen up. Do not use plastic tab until you can see under battery a little bit. Great instructions. Took less than 10 minutes.

kamullins4135 -

The adhesive is very strong and I was initially worried about damaging the phone by prying so much. There are a couple of places below the volume switch where you can pry between the metal of the case and the battery. If you lift the battery just a little, wiggle the pry bar further in and then start moving down the case. Don't worry about bending the battery, its dead anyway.

Do not pry on the left side (circuit board side) and do not use the pull tab until the adhesive is broken loose.

martin474 -

I tried this at first with a plastic pry tool, and the adhesive was so strong that I broke the tool. I then used a large screwdriver and applied pressure very slowly along various places on the outer side of the battery. That eventually did the trick.

alsmith1928 -

Passo 7

Remove the two 1.8 mm Phillips screws securing the dock connector cable cover to the logic board.
Remove the metal dock connector cable cover.

Passo 8

Use the edge of a plastic opening tool to pry the dock cable up from its socket on the logic board.

This repair went well overall, but I thought I would add a couple comments on this step. Once I got my iPhone back together, it would not charge and the home button didn't work. I took it back apart and realized that the dock cable was not seated. After many attempts, I finally got it seated correctly and you can feel it "click" into place. The metal rectangle that holds it on should sit FLAT and not have any bulge. If you have a bulge, that means the dock cable is not seated correctly.

tobykanobe - 24/04/14

Passo 9

Peel the dock connector cable off the adhesive securing it to the logic board and the side of the speaker enclosure.

Passo 10

Remove the 1.6 mm Phillips screw securing the pressure contact to the logic board near the vibrator.
Remove the pressure contact.
When reinstalling the pressure contact, be sure to clean it with a degreaser such as windex or isopropyl alcohol. The oils on your fingers have the potential to create wireless interference.

Passo 11

Use the edge of a plastic opening tool to pry the Wi-Fi antenna cable up from its socket on the logic board.
De-route the Wi-Fi antenna cable out from under the metal fingers attached to the logic board.

Passo 12

Remove the two 2.4 mm Phillips screws securing the speaker enclosure assembly to the outer case.

Passo 13

Remove the small black spacer that was under the Phillips screw near the vibrator.

Passo 14

Use a plastic opening tool to lift the speaker enclosure assembly out of the case, being sure not to damage the EMI fingers on the attached Wi-Fi antenna.
Remove the speaker enclosure assembly.
Before reinstalling the speaker enclosure assembly's screws, be sure the Wi-Fi grounding fingers are installed below the lip in the iPhone's metal case as seen in the third picture.
Before reassembly, be sure to clean all metal-to-metal contact points between the grounding fingers of the Wi-Fi antenna and the case of the iPhone with a de-greaser such as windex or isopropyl alcohol. The oils on your fingers have the potential to cause wireless interference issues.

Passo 15

Remove the two 1.6 mm Phillips screws securing the cellular antenna to the speaker enclosure.

Passo 16

Starting near the cellular antenna cable, use the edge of a plastic opening tool to peel the antenna off the speaker enclosure.
Continue peeling the cellular antenna off the speaker enclosure, being careful not to rip the gold bracket attached to one of its edges.
Remove the cellular antenna.

"When installing a new cellular antenna, be sure to slide the gold bracket over the ear molded into the speaker enclosure before sticking the antenna down."

This is all that is noted about this small gold bracket. However, this is probably one of the most important pieces of information on this topic.

Having a picture of the placement of this small copper (gold) component would be helpful. When searching the internet there are no images or pictures of the placement of this component. This includes this site. Searching discussions on this topic I have found that and is probably one of the most overlooked problems after someone replaces their screen and they are not able to get reception.

I

Jorge -

Passo 17

When installing a new cellular antenna, be sure to slide the gold bracket over the ear molded into the speaker enclosure before sticking the antenna down.