How to Disassemble HP iPAQ hx4700 series Pocket PC. LCD screen and digitizer removal & repair guide
I have used my Hewlett-Packard Pocket PC for about a year and a half without any problems, until I was faced with a very sad surprise one day. The touch screen was dead. I still have no idea how that might happen: my iPAQ has a screen protector, and, moreover, I always carried it in a small case.
As I was not sure whether my iPAQ was still under warranty or not and I had no idea how long it may take to repair a pocket PC in Adelaide or how much it may cost, I decided to repair it myself. I bought a new iPAQ hx4700 LCD screen + digitizer unit from eBay. It cost 70 AUD, and there were a T6 screwdriver and a case opener tool in the kit. Theoretically, the screen and the digitizer could be replaced separately, but I wasn’t sure if I could separate them and then join again without letting any particles of dust or air bubbles in between, so I decided not to risk. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find any good instructions for disassembling an HP iPAQ 4700 (or any other HP PDA 47xx series) on the Internet, so it took a bit more time to me to discover how to replace the broken LCD screen. I have made the following instruction in case it would help someone else. However, please note that I'm not responsible for any damage caused to yourself or your unit by using the following instructions.
1
You need a crosshead screwdriver, torx T6 screwdriver, and a case opener tool (or something like that).
2
Unplug all devices, remove all SD/MMC cards.
3
Take the battery off, and remove the 4 screws on the back of the unit using the T6 screwdriver.
4
Take the plastic corner off.
5
With all 4 screws removed you can take off the back cover. It is clipped on, so it might be hard to remove. In this case use the case opener tool: slide the tool all the way around the case and releasing the plastic tabs.
6
Detach the two ribbon cables. To do this, release the tabs on each connector. The smaller ribbon connector has a tab, which should be picked and pulled upward. The larger connector has a tab (dark brown in the photo) which should be picked on its ribbon side and opened for up to a 45 degree angle (like a small door). Once the tab is lifted up, you can now slide the ribbon cable out. Be very careful, the connectors are extremely fragile and can be easily damaged! Then remove a small crosshead screw in the other angle of the unit.
The images below show attached and detached ribbon cables:
7
Remove a cross screw from the transmitting module.
8
Remove the transmitting module. Take the bottom edge of the module and gently pull upward to disconnect the black connector (pointed by arrow on the image). Then disconnect the wire connector and remove the a crosshead screw nearby (outlined by circle). After that, the motherboard can be easily removed.
9
After motherboard removed, unscrew 2 crosshead screws as the image below shows.
10
To remove the LCD screen with the digitizer, you should carefully release two tabs on the side of the screen that has no ribbon cables. To release these tabs, you need to remove two small pieces of rubber between the tabs and the PC case, then release the tabs and the LCD screen should come out (slide the screen a little to the side before taking it out).
11
Done!
12
Now carefully follow these steps backwards to assemble your iPAQ with a new screen:
This photo (when I used flash) shows the spot on the old screen better:
10 September 2007
Australia |