How-to: Replace the Screen of a Ipod Touch 4th Generation

This summer, my bestie Andrew gave me a sweet gift - an iPod touch! Love it. I used it for everything. Listening to podcasts on the way to NJ. Taking photos for Instagram. Shooting videos of gas lines and a car fire. Posting blogs. Video chatting with family & friends. Sending emails. Checking the weather. Running through temples. You get the picture...

I also used it to play tunes while I exercise outside. One time it fell. On the cement. and the screen cracked. YIKES!

I knew how expensive it would be to fix one with the Apple company. But then I stumbled upon THIS tutorial on Pinterest (can you stumble upon something on Pinterest? or is that a conflict of interest?). Although it relates to the iPhone, I found THIS you-tube video to help me out.

And I also bought this screen from Amazon, along with the tools and 3M strip that it suggests.

When all of the supplies came in the mail, I went to work.

What a scary, scary process! I was opening things that shouldn't be opened. I was removing things that shouldn't be removed. and I was freaking out. After I finished going through the video,  I turned on the iPod... and got the white screen of death. (dun dun dun!!). Not good. I followed all of the helps out there on different forums, and nothing worked. So I redid the whole process and put the old screen back on to see if it was the screen or the device or me that was failing. The old screen worked. Hmm. So I put the new screen back on. Nothing. Hmm.. So I put the old screen on again. Nothing. Shoot. =(. Nothing for me to do...

We tried taking it into the Apple store in Jersey, but they told us that they do not fix iPod screens (what?) and that we could buy a new one for 50% off (seemingly an awesome deal, but when I get an iPod for free... I don't want to pay $200 for a new one... know what I mean?). Forget it.

So we had no iPod for our drive home to South Dakota. Meaning, we only had random radio stations that played strictly Christmas music, and some random, scratched, skipping CDs to keep us entertained for the 24+ hour drive halfway across the country. But we survived, like generations before us have survived without iPods.

But we had not given up hope on our little iPod. No sir. We brought it in to the local Apple Specialist at Computer Village. Waited a week. Paid a bit of money. and Viola! Our toy was fixed! Horray! It ended up being more expensive than we wanted to pay... but for as much as I use it, I feel it was worth it. If only I could have done it completely by myself.

Maybe I can inspire some of you to DIY. (but probably I inspired you to forget the frugality and take it in to a specialist), I sincerely hope it is the former.
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Now I can maybe succeed with my photo-a-day challenge!