Introduction
Use this guide to remove and replace the front camera assembly (a.k.a. selfie cam) in an iPhone 12.
Note: If you replace this part, Face ID will no longer work. This repair will restore a broken selfie cam to working order, but on iOS 17.6 and earlier, only Apple or an Apple “authorized” technician can restore Face ID. On iOS 18 and newer, you can recalibrate new, genuine front-facing cameras using Apple's Repair Assistant.
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Power off your iPhone before beginning disassembly.
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Remove the two 6.75 mm long pentalobe P2 screws at the bottom edge of the iPhone.
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Measure 3 mm from the tip and mark the opening pick with a permanent marker.
Got to step 2 and realized the fix kit doesn't include an opening pick! Looks like a guitar pick, and I have those lying around. Is that expected? Looks like the pick is used in many steps below. There's a little blue crowbar that isn't mentioned in the instructions. Perhaps that replaces the opening pick?
Hi! I can't see which guide you were using when writing this comment. Can you reply here with which guide and fix kit you used?
I see you posted this in Meta. I hope it's resolved soon! In the meantime, a guitar pick may work well enough for your repair.
what fix kit?
My fix kit didn't include an opening pick either
My AliExpress refurbished screen came with a pick that has a coin-like circle that pops out, so no modification was necessary
It's not an Ifixit KIT if it doesn't include everything. You'll need to order the opening pic separately. Or head to Walmart like myself and look for guitar pics. Hopefully, this will work just as well.
No pick in mine as well. It’s really not clear that you have to order this separately when ordering an IPhone SE 202/2022 screen repair kit. Is this the case?
Frustrated, I ordered a compact package where everything was encapsulated. Useless suction tools could not separate the screen. If it is unable to decouple the screen, then why sucking suction tools you have provided.
For my kit the triangle pick was stuck inside the box with the screen not with the other tools maybe it's also there for you
Y’all are getting far, FAR too detailed with some of this stuff…. Measuring and marking the pick that you won’t actually use to open the device?!? lol that’s kinda funny. Just heat it up, grab a spudger, and the back just pops right off! The iFixit tech need to stick to the KISS method more often, you know KEEP IT SIMPLE STUPID!!! Like l, for reals, I’ve been doing this stuff for YEARS and using iFixit guides regularly and this is just ridiculous at this point!
Will the phone still work if the sensor assembly on the back of the screen is damaged?
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Lay overlapping strips of clear packing tape over the iPhone's screen until the whole face is covered.
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If you can't get the suction cup to stick in the next few steps, fold a strong piece of tape (such as duct tape) into a handle and lift the screen with that instead.
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Outil utilisé dans cette étape :Clampy - Anti-Clamp$24.95
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Pull the blue handle backwards to unlock the Anti-Clamp's arms.
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Slide the arms over either the left or right edge of your iPhone.
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Position the suction cups near the bottom edge of the iPhone—one on the front, and one on the back.
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Squeeze the cups together to apply suction to the desired area.
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Support your iPhone on something sturdy such as a hardcover book so it rests hands-free and parallel to the ground; this makes it easier to work with in the following steps.
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Use a hair dryer to heat along the bottom edge of the iPhone. The screen should feel slightly too hot to touch.
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Wait one minute to give the adhesive a chance to release and present an opening gap.
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Insert an opening pick under the screen's plastic bezel when the Anti-Clamp creates a large enough gap.
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Skip the next three steps.
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Use a hair dryer or a heat gun to heat the bottom edge of the iPhone for 90 seconds or until the screen is slightly too hot to touch.
Also: 3D Printer's heated bed set to 70-80 degrees Celcius for a few minutes does the job, as it basically works the same way heating mats used in professional repair shops do.
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If you're using a single suction handle, apply it to the bottom edge of the phone, while avoiding the very edge of the glass.
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Pull up on the suction cup with firm, constant pressure to create a slight gap between the screen and the frame.
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Insert an opening pick into the gap under the screen's plastic bezel.
This seems impossible. I've been trying for an hour with heat and rocking, and the screen doesn't budge. :(
Don’t give up! Use more heat and a tad more force. I know you may fear breaking it more, but as long as you don’t stick the prying tool too far or tug too hard, you can do it! I have faith that you can do it!
I'm in the same boat, this isn't coming off. I've tried the hair dryer as well as the heating pad from ifixit. Any other ideas?
The suction cup comes off before the screen will
Is there a better tool for this? Just saw a video on YouTube where a kid pryed it open with no heating/etc. in 5 seconds.
I've changed the batteries in probably a half dozen iphones of different models. But 25 minutes of heating and pulling had no effect on iPhone 12
Welp. I finally ended up breaking the screen attempting this. DO NOT ATTEMPT THIS REPAIR! Not worth the broken screen and losing the cost of shipping both ways when you return the battery.
thx, I ll go to an apple repair center
Back (and bad...) experience ! Even if you heat a lot, the screen is hardly sticked. Take care, before sliding the mediator under the screen, this one should be moved up, at least 2 mm. On my side i have slided around 1 mm and .... inserted the mediator between the glass screen and the screen structure ring.... result : glass break and screen to change (my initial exercise was the battery removal !). I feel that next time i will visit a repair center...
Pro tip for anyone having trouble with this. You have to use multiple rounds of heat and pulling. Use a hair dryer and not the iOpener that comes with the fix kit and get it just too hot to touch then quickly start pulling and wiggling it up and down. Once it cools down grab the hair dryer again and repeat it a couple times until you start to get a big enough gap.
I just did this yesterday and it took around 5 rounds of heating and pulling to get it to seperate enough from the body.It's important to insert the pick under the bezel. I just delaminated my screen. The screen was probably fine, but it was glitching, so I wanted to check for a bad connection. Anyway, now I get a new screen.
Under the bezel, eh.
After reading this almost a year later to the day I last commented on it, I now know that the best way I have found to remove a screen, from pretty much any phone, not just this one, is heat (I use a heating pad on 80 degrees celsius) and before putting the phone on the heating pad, I use 91% isopropyl alcohol around the edges that you will be sliding your pry tools in, and I leave it on for 10 min. I then take it off, add more alcohol, and then put it back on the pad for another 5 min. Also, while I am sliding my tools around the screen, I continuously add more alcohol, and if it takes a really long time, then more heat as well. Heat, alcohol, and patience, lots of patience, and you should be good. Hope this helps, good luck!
Can confirm, this does indeed work. Just keep warming it up, lifting up and down, and repeat when phone goes cold. After around 10 rounds it would move enough to where I could see inside the phone when lifted. You can then insert pick
Tip: You can also try to apply heat and lift the other corner, just enough to make it move slightly. This will ease pressure needed to separate the glue on the other side as-well.
No worries guys! it’s completely doable! You just need to be patient and keep trying multiple times
I don't doubt that you folks eventually got this open, but how on earth do you not lose your mind with the suction cup popping off every 5 seconds? Agree with Ryan above, have replaced batteries on several other iPhone generations with nowhere near this much effort. Still working on it going on 1 hr, about 10 rounds of hair dryer heat. Did Apple use a stronger adhesive for the 12?
Success. iOpener doesn't get the phone nearly hot enough. Multiple rounds of hair dryer + isopropyl alcohol dribbled in b/w case and screen while pulling up on suction cup. For me, the bottom left hand corner (volume rocker side) seemed to lift up first, so I moved the suction cup to that corner while doing the heat + alcohol.
When I changed the battery on a 7+ instead of the suction cup/heat method I used an Cacto blade inserted horizontally along the bottom edge to break the seal. Would this work on the 12?
I struggled with this step, but eventually got it. Use LOTS of isopropyl alcohol, and soak the entire perimeter. Let it sit for 30 seconds after application, then heat it up, then pull with the clamp and rock back and forth. Reapply the alcohol and repeat until it works. Took me about 30 mins, but I eventually got it up just enough for the first pick. The iOpener is completely useless, I just used a shrink wrap gun and made sure to hold it 8-12 inches from the phone on the lowest heat setting.
iOpener along the bottom edge, the Anti-Clamp, and three tries about 5 minutes each worked for me. Never popped off, just needed lots of patience and 1.5 screw turns on the clamp. Bottom left corner was first, like another commenter.
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Use a hair dryer to heat the right edge of the iPhone (the edge with the power button) for 90 seconds or until the screen is slightly too hot to touch.
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Slide the opening pick around the bottom right corner of the iPhone to separate its adhesive.
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Continue sliding up the right edge of the iPhone until you reach the top right corner.
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Leave the pick in the top right corner before continuing.
There is a spot on this side where a slight ridge in the iPhone frame makes the pick stick. Eventually I used two, one twisting a bit to open a path for the other. But if you're not expecting it you feel like you're going to break something.
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Use a hair dryer to heat the top edge of the iPhone for 90 seconds or until the screen is slightly too hot to touch.
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Slide the opening pick around the top right corner of the iPhone to separate the top adhesive.
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Leave the pick in the top left corner before continuing.
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Use a hair dryer to heat the left edge of the iPhone for 90 seconds or until the screen is slightly too hot to touch.
Also: 3D Printer's heated bed set to 70-80 degrees Celcius does the job - it basically works the same way professional heated mats that are used in phone repair shops.
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I kinda forgot about this step when I opened my first iPhone 12.
For the next one, I'm going to mark that edge of the phone with blue tape roughly where each cable is to help me remember.Also FWIW, I got the 70 cent adhesive cutting tool from Apple with my genuine battery and used that for all my display prying needs after getting the first opening propped with a guitar pick.
It worked great and did not damage anything so no need to sweat inserting something too far and causing damage.
Could you PLEASE move this to step 13?? I tore the front sensor cable. 😭
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Insert a second opening pick in the bottom left corner of the iPhone.
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Twist both picks simultaneously until the left edge clips release.
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Rotate your iPhone so the right edge faces you.
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Open the iPhone by swinging the display up from the right side, like the front cover of a book.
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Lean the display against something to keep it propped up while you're working on the phone.
i did this and the shroud with the earpiece speaker still stuck with the phone so its just wedged in there i cant get it out
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Outil utilisé dans cette étape :Magnetic Project Mat$19.95
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Remove two 1.1 mm long Y000 screws securing the battery and display connector cover.
Ouch, I see a broken flat here…
Can I use a y 0.6 if I don’t have y000
Yep! The measurements for Y000 are 0.6 mm.
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Remove the cover.
Hi
On my original display on an iPhone 12, there is no metal hinge as shown here and therefore no place for it when closing the phone. Have double-checked model and the original display - and it is just not there. Is there another model based on serial number?
Hinge marked: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/asztgi60g...
Best regards,
Carsten
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Use a spudger or a clean fingernail to pry the battery connector up from its socket on the logic board.
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Bend the connector slightly away from the logic board to prevent it from accidentally making contact with the socket and providing power to the phone during your repair.
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Use a spudger or a fingernail to disconnect the display cable connector.
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Use a spudger or a fingernail to disconnect the digitizer cable connector.
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Use a Y000 driver to remove four screws securing the front sensor connector cover.
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Three 1.1 mm long screws
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One 1.4 mm long screw
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Swing the cover up from the left until the small clip on the right unhooks.
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Remove the cover.
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Use a spudger or a fingernail to disconnect the front sensor assembly cable connector.
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Use a Y000 driver to remove the 1 mm long screw securing the front-facing camera assembly.
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Lift up and remove the front-facing camera bracket.
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Use a spudger or a fingernail to disconnect the Face ID dot projector cable from its socket on the logic board.
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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.
To reassemble your device, follow the above steps in reverse order.
After your repair, depending on the replacement part, you may be able to calibrate it using Apple's Repair Assistant, available as of iOS 18. Update your device, 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 12 Answers community for help.
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.
To reassemble your device, follow the above steps in reverse order.
After your repair, depending on the replacement part, you may be able to calibrate it using Apple's Repair Assistant, available as of iOS 18. Update your device, 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 12 Answers community for help.
Annulation : je n'ai pas terminé ce tutoriel.
14 autres ont terminé cette réparation.
Un commentaire
Tausch hat gut funktioniert, nur muss Face ID von Apple noch konfiguriert werden, das machen sie aber nicht wenn sie die frontkamera nicht selbst ausgetauscht haben. War das letzte applegerät.
Do you sell the waterproof seals separately or are they included in the kit?
Heather Furnas - Réponse
Do you sell the waterproof seals separately or are they included in the kit? (I would like to know this as well.)
CaliforniaGunner - Réponse
I just got my Fix Kit and it includes the seals. Not sure if a "part only" version would, though.
Neal Sofge - Réponse