How to Replace a Google Pixel 2 Screen

ID: 103077

Description: This repair guide was authored by the iFixit...

If your display glass is cracked, keep further breakage contained and prevent bodily harm during your repair by taping the glass. This also makes a smooth surface allowing the suction cup to bond.
Apply a suction cup as close to the volume button edge of the phone as you can while avoiding the curved edge.
The suction cup will not make a good seal on the curved portion of the glass.

Pull up on the suction cup with firm, constant pressure and insert an opening pick between the front panel and rear case.
Do not insert the pick deeper than 1.5 mm, or you risk damaging the OLED panel.
This requires a significant amount of force and patience. If you have trouble, rock the suction cup and screen to weaken the adhesive, or apply heat with an iOpener, heat gun, or hair dryer.
The display panel is fragile. If you plan to re-use your display, take care to insert your tool only as far as necessary to separate the adhesive. Inserting the tool any further can damage the OLED panel under the glass.

In the following steps, extra caution is required in certain areas to avoid damage to the phone:
Do not insert the pick more than 9 mm into the bottom edge of the phone. If the pick contacts the folded portion of the OLED panel it can damage the display.
Only make very shallow cuts in the upper left corner, prying deeply can damage the front-facing camera.
Inserting an opening tool deeper than 1.5 mm into the sides of the device, or 9 mm into the top and bottom can permanently damage the display.

In the following steps, use the flat of the opening pick, rather than a corner, to cut here. This will help prevent inserting the pick too deeply.
Slide the opening pick up the right side of the phone to separate the display adhesive.
Take extra care with the side bezels, which are only 1.5 mm deep.

Slide the opening pick around the upper-right corner and along the top edge of the phone.
There's a mesh covering the earpiece speaker on the top edge of the screen. If you don’t have a replacement mesh, take care not to damage or lose this component.

Slide the pick around the upper-left corner of the phone and down the left edge of the phone.

Slide the pick around the bottom-left corner and along the bottom of the phone. Keep pick at a slight angle away from the screen to avoid damage to the OLED corners.
Take extra care not to insert the opening pick more than 9 mm to avoid damaging the OLED panel.

Reinsert the pick at the top edge of the phone and gently pry up the display.
If the display doesn't readily lift, do some extra prying to separate the last of the adhesive. The adhesive near the upper speaker is thicker than other places.
Don't try to fully separate the display yet, as a fragile ribbon cable still connects it to the phone's motherboard.

Carefully lay the display down on top of the rear case as shown, making sure not to crease or tear the display ribbon cable.
Remove the two 4.0 mm T5 Torx screws securing the display cable bracket.
Throughout this repair, keep track of each screw and make sure it goes back exactly where it came from.

Use the point of a spudger to lift the display cable connector up and out of its socket on the motherboard.
Avoid touching the motherboard with the tip of your spudger. The components surrounding the socket are fragile.
To re-attach press connectors like this one, carefully align and press down on one side until it clicks into place, then repeat on the other side. Do not press down on the middle. If the connector is misaligned, the pins can bend, causing permanent damage.
If any part of your screen doesn't respond to touch after your repair re-seat this connector, making sure it clicks fully into place and that there's no dust or other obstruction in the socket.
During reassembly, pause here and replace the adhesive around the edges of the display.

If your replacement display did not come with pre-installed speaker grilles or a front-facing camera bracket, carefully remove these parts from your old display. Follow the rest of the guide to install them on a new display.
To remove the camera bracket, apply heat, then use a thin metal blade to pry the bracket away from the old screen.
There are two layers that make up the speaker grille—the metal mesh grille, and a layer of thin fabric mesh behind it. Use tweezers to peel both layers off of the old screen together. Do your best to not separate those layers at all.
Make sure to install the grilles and gasket before applying display adhesive.
Cut two corners of a pre-cut adhesive card so that each side is no more than 12 mm (0.5 inches) long, or cut four 12 mm (0.5 inches) strips of double-sided adhesive.
The adhesive strips should be no wider than 1 mm.
Apply the adhesive strips to the edges of the flat side of the front-facing camera bracket. When you're done, there should be adhesive on all four edges of the camera bracket.
Gently press the adhesive into place using your finger or a spudger.

Place the camera bracket into its slot surrounding the front-facing camera.
Make sure the rounded corner of the bracket faces the upper left corner of the phone. If the bracket does not sit flush with the camera, it is not properly seated.
Peel the white backing off of the adhesive strips.

Use your finger or the flat edge of a spudger to reconnect the new screen's display cable connector.
To re-attach press connectors like this one, carefully align and press down on one side until it clicks into place, then repeat on the other side. Do not press down on the middle. If the connector is misaligned, the pins can bend, causing permanent damage.

In this step, you will temporarily install the new screen in order to properly align it with the front-facing camera bracket while adhering the bracket to the screen.
Make sure there is no adhesive anywhere on the screen before attempting this step. You should not seal the phone closed yet.
Very carefully align the lower edge of your new display with the lower edge of the phone case.
Set the lower edge of the screen in the case, and slowly hinge it down toward the phone case, being careful to keep it properly aligned with the case.
Set the screen down in the case and press down on the front-facing camera hole to ensure that the bracket is adhered to the screen.
Lift the screen up and away from the phone case and check that the camera bracket is adhered to the screen.
Disconnect the display cable.
During the boot-up process after reassembly, the screen will go through a calibration sequence. Do not touch the screen during this process, as it could result in improper touch calibration and create touch issues.

Cut a strip of 1 mm wide double-sided tape to be about 3 cm long (1.25 inches).
Lay the adhesive strip along the upper edge of the earpiece speaker slot in your new display so that it's centered over the slot and touching the upper edge.
The adhesive strip needs to be as close as possible to the edge of the slot without overlapping.
Gently press the adhesive strip into place on the display with your finger or a spudger.
Repeat this step to apply a second, identical adhesive strip along the bottom edge of the speaker slot.
Peel the white backing away from both adhesive strips.

Lightly set the speaker grille into its slot so that the curved grille sits in the slot and the flat side faces away from the screen.
Before pushing the grille down against the adhesive, make sure it is centered and properly seated in the slot.

Use the flat end of a spudger or your finger to push the edges of the speaker grille down against the adhesive strips.
Repeat the previous two steps to install the lower speaker grille.
During the boot-up process after reassembly, the screen will go through a calibration sequence. Do not touch the screen during this process, as it could result in improper touch calibration and create touch issues.

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