I dropped my S21 Ultra and broke the screen and damaged the LCD.
So far, the price I am seeing for fixing it would be similar to buying a used S21 Ultra.
Can anyone please help me find the cheapest repair option in Melbourne?
Thanks.
Lowest Price for New Screen and LCD Repair for S21 Ultra (Melbourne)
coolrunnings on 07/01/2025 - 11:42
Last edited 12/01/2025 - 10:54 by 1 other user
Last edited 12/01/2025 - 10:54 by 1 other user
Comments
This answer was really unhelpful and made me almost give up before I started.
The truth is, the Ali Express route turned out to be the right way to go, and then comparison-shopping a repair kiosk technician to do the labor so I'd have the peace of mind the job was done right.
Bin and get a new one.
Thanks for nothing. See above.
Thanks, but not OzBargainy enough! I wasn't going to fix it unless I could figure out how to repair it for under $200, which I did.
You can find replacement ones on AliEx for <$100
For anyone running across this post in the future. This response was the correct answer. I kinda thought the ones under $100 looked dodgy so I paid $120 for one with lots of good reviews. I figured it the little bit extra worth the piece of mind. Then I found a phone repair kiosk nearby with a technician who was willing to do the labor for $45, which was totally worth it for his experience.
I ended up paying $160 and got back my pretty damn good cameraphone in good condition again that takes really great pictures, especially in a range of optical magnifications and a choice of camera and video sethings I like.
Even the $120 screen went on sale before it arrived and its selling now for $104 before tax. But Ali Express would not credit me the difference because the sale price is from an automatically applied coupon code, or so they said.
I protected those camera lenses like crazy. They are flawless and take amazing pictures. This more than anything is why I did not want to bin the phone.
In the meantime, I bought a used iPhone 14 Pro from my boss. Honestly, I think the S21 Ultra takes equally good pictures as the iPhone 14 Pro and I definitely was missing the extra zoom lenses and camera settings from the Samsung. Dunno, I might pass on the iPhone 14 to my wife now.
The repair video looks very doable if you are willing… (Out of pocket cost of around $100 for retirement screen to diy)
Once I broke the screen of a phone I had bought to replace another one, same model, that had stopped working. I managed to resuscitate it giving the dead phone screen, with some Dr. Frankenstein technique.
Yeah, it looked surprisingly easy. Still, I had a professional do the work. With my luck I'd screw it up.
I'm not apt or experienced with electronics at all; I just followed a YouTube video š
I did have the right tools, though. It was a Xiaomi A1, I think.
Curious how high was the drop btw? Ive dropped from table before and it bounced but screen wqs fine
It's all come to luck on impact face and orientation, height means nothing. My old note 5 drop from dining chair height to concrete facing down and has been collecting dust since, there wasnt even a crack on the glass, pretty hard to spot a hairline crack underneath. On the other hand I had an iPhone ran over by car on gravel, front back screen broken into million pieces but touch screen still work, $50 later and it was good as new frame still slightly bent according to the repair tech tho).
Oh i c thanks
I just assumed it became more durable (s21 onwards) due to the gorilla glass/ other term i forgot.
Because remember dropping the note aswell similar height and the screen was gone completely
I had an Otterbox Defender and one of those custom-cut plastic screen protectors (I couldn't find a glass screen protector that fit with the Otterbox Defender while also still being able to read my thumbprint).
With that heavy-duty case, I had dropped the phone a MILLION times without a scratch. It even fell out of the belt holster when I was crossing Kingsway in Melbourne and a car ran over it before I could get it. Even that didn't scratch the screen or lenses.
What beat the Otterbox was a perfect storm. I dropped the phone while it was in the Otterbox holster (but not on my belt) and it landed face down on the curved concrete of a kerb. The angle perfectly defeated the Otterbox rubber lip at its weakest point, which is along the curved part of the screen, and the extra weight from the Otterbox case and the holster meant the screen didn't stand a chance. The glass seemed to make contact with the concrete in the 1mm gap between the screen protector and the Otterbox rubber.
A perfect storm.
That will be very expensive. Better buy a new or second-hand phone.