Opening Procedure

Step 1

If your iPhone has a cracked screen, keep further breakage contained and prevent bodily harm during your repair by taping over the glass.
Lay overlapping strips of clear packing tape over the iPhone's screen until the whole face is covered.
Wear safety glasses to protect your eyes from any glass shaken free during the repair.
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.
If all else fails, you can superglue the suction cup to the screen.

Step 2

The next three steps demonstrate the Anti-Clamp, a tool we designed to make the opening procedure easier. If you aren't using the Anti-Clamp, skip down three steps for an alternate method.
For complete instructions on how to use the Anti-Clamp, check out this guide.
Pull the blue handle backwards to unlock the Anti-Clamp's arms.
Slide the arms over either the left or right edge of your iPhone.
Position the suction cups near the bottom edge of the iPhone—one on the front, and one on the back.
Squeeze the cups together to apply suction to the desired area.
If you find that the surface of your iPhone is too slippery for the Anti-Clamp to hold onto, you can use tape to create a grippier surface.

Step 3

Pull the blue handle forward to lock the arms.
Turn the handle clockwise 360 degrees or until the cups start to stretch.
Make sure the suction cups remain aligned with each other. If they begin to slip out of alignment, loosen the suction cups slightly and realign the arms.

Step 4

Heat an iOpener and thread it through the arms of the Anti-Clamp.
You can also use a hair dryer, heat gun, or hot plate—but extreme heat can damage the display and/or internal battery, so proceed with care.
Fold the iOpener so it lays on the bottom edge of the iPhone.
Wait one minute to give the adhesive a chance to release and present an opening gap.
Insert an opening pick under the screen and the plastic bezel, not the screen itself.
If the Anti-Clamp doesn't create a sufficient gap, apply more heat to the area and rotate the handle a quarter turn.
Don't crank more than a quarter turn at a time, and wait one minute between turns. Let the Anti-Clamp and time do the work for you.
Skip the next three steps.

DO NOT separate the glass from the plastic bumper or rim around it. These instructions don't clarify that the pick has to be inserted between the plastic rim and the metal body. It is likely that the glass will lift slightly off the plastic surround before the plastic will lift out of the metal body. I had success sliding a card or pick back and forth along the bottom edge of the plastic rim while pulling on the suction cup. Eventually there was a space large enough for the pick to go under the plastic rim.

Anessa -

Thanks for pointing this out! I'll revise this step to clarify this point.

Arthur Shi -

Step 5

Heating the lower edge of the iPhone will help soften the adhesive securing the display, making it easier to open.
Use a hairdryer or heat gun or prepare an iOpener and apply it to the lower edge of the iPhone for about a minute in order to soften up the adhesive underneath.
If you use a hairdryer or heat gun, do not heat to much because that can result in damaging the screen.

General tip regarding heating necessary to remove adhesive:

consider using a heated tip of a small screwdriver or metal spudger (not the one made of plastic, provided in kit), rather than to heat the device itself.

Uri - 17/12/19

You then need to be careful about the temp of the tool which if hot enough can melt plastic components or harm them. Keeping the heat source (heat gun) far enough away from the object that you’ll eventually melt the glue but would be much harder to melt components. I try to keep 4” or 5” gap between the source & object

Sandman619 - 07/01/20

Thanks for the info. Could a air convector do the job

dominique.br -

When opening a device that has previously been worked on, and on which the adhesive might not have been replaced, be extremely carful when opening the phone. It will open much more easily than expected. If you’re not careful you might rip a cable.

jonpol -

Is this tool required or can I just use the Anti-Clamp by itself.

Mikail -

If you have a 3d printer, heat the bed to 80c and put the phone screen side down on it for 30 secs

philip.joseph123 - 28/04/23

Step 6

If using a single suction handle, apply it to the bottom edge of the phone, while avoiding the curved portion of the glass.

If you were using some form of screen protector, it may come off first as soon as you pull on the suction cup. Do not be alarmed. That is normal behavior.

Alain-Daniel Wa-Baguma - 21/06/20

3m VSB double stick tape will stick to the screen when the suction cups fail (see my comment on step 1)

Tawan Khamapirad - 15/12/20

Step 7

Pull up on the suction cup with firm, constant pressure to create a slight gap between the screen and the frame.
Insert an opening pick into the gap under the screen's plastic bezel, not the screen itself.
The watertight adhesive holding the screen in place is very strong; creating this initial gap takes a significant amount of force. If you're having a hard time opening a gap, apply more heat, and gently rock the screen up and down to weaken the adhesive until you create enough of a gap to insert your tool.

In addition to safety goggles, I would recommend you also wear good gloves to avoid getting cut with the glass as you try to pry it open.

Alain-Daniel Wa-Baguma - 21/06/20

The top about applying more heat and gently rocking the screen up and down to weaken the adhesive did the trick for me. Thank you!

Monil Shah -

There needs to be more clarity on where to shove the opening pick into. There is actually two openings that the pry tool can be forced into: one below the black plastic bezel, and one above the black plastic bezel. When I heated my screen with a warming pad and pulled up the suction cup, it actually pried apart above the black plastic bezel which removed the touch screen from the display panel. With this being the first newer iPhone I'd opened since the 3GS, I didn't realize that I was opening the wrong opening as the directions only mentioned one opening and did not warn of this. I was pretty disappointed in the lack of mentioning this, as I was taking my time and following it to the tee. As a result, it destroyed my original iPhone screen.

Caleb Davison -

DO NOT separate the glass from the plastic bumper or rim around it. As someone else noted, these instructions don't clarify that the pick has to be inserted between the plastic rim and the metal body of the phone. When pulling upwards with the suction cup, it is likely that the glass will lift slightly off the plastic surround before the plastic will lift out of the metal body. I had success sliding a card or pick back and forth along the bottom edge of the plastic rim while pulling on the suction cup. Eventually there was a space large enough for the pick to go under the plastic rim.

Anessa -

Thank you for pointing this out! I've updated the step to reflect this.

Arthur Shi -

The suction cup doesn't work at all... The minimum force I apply to lift it up, it comes off completely. This is very frustrating!!!

Mario Silva -

Step 8

Slide the opening pick around the lower left corner and up the left edge of the iPhone, slicing through the adhesive holding the display in place.
Don't insert your pick more than 3 mm, as you may damage internal components.

Step 9

There are delicate cables along the right edge of your iPhone. Don't insert your pick here, as you may damage the cables.

Wouldn’t it be better to put this part BEFORE the step where you have to pry open the phone?

Jan D. Höllwarth -

Step 10

Re-insert your pick at the bottom edge of the iPhone, and slide it up the right side to continue separating the adhesive.
Don't insert your pick more than 3 mm, as you may damage the display cables.

If you have flat feeler gauges (for adjusting engine valve tappet clearance, ignition points … old school) the .003” thick gauge goes right in. Work your way up in thickness until you can get the pic or supplied pry tool in. Don’t insert metal feeler gauge in too far, just enough to hold crack open. I didn’t need to use the suction cup. I used a hot/cold gel pack heated in microwave to heat edges to soften glue a bit. Made sure it wasn’t so hot I couldn’t stand it on my skin.

William Olstad - 16/01/22

Step 11

The top edge of the display is secured with both glue and clips.
Slide the opening pick around the top corner of the display, while gently pulling or wiggling the display down in the direction of the Lightning port.
The clips will break if you use too much force. Work carefully and be patient.
Don't insert your pick more than 3 mm, as you may damage the front panel sensor array.
Slide the pick to the opposite corner and cut any remaining adhesive securing the display.

These are the best instructions I’ve ever read for anything.! Thank you!

Peter Andrew - 23/05/18

Step 12

Pull on the small nub on the suction cup to remove it from the front panel.

Step 13

Open the iPhone by swinging the display up from the left side, like the back cover of a book.
Don't try to fully separate the display yet, as several fragile ribbon cables still connect it to the iPhone's logic board.
As pictured, make sure the frame comes off with display and doesn't get stuck in the device.
Lean the display against something to keep it propped up while you're working on the phone.
During reassembly, lay the display in position, align the clips along the top edge, and carefully press the top edge into place before snapping the rest of the display down. If it doesn't click easily into place, check the condition of the clips around the perimeter of the display and make sure they aren't bent.

My phone came apart in a different way and looks not right the little box at the top of the display as actually bolted to the top of the frame body I think something went really wrong when I opened it.

Mike Kostersitz - 08/06/20

It opens like a book but be careful not to open it all the way — only as far as shown in the photo. Otherwise it will strain the thin cable that connects the sensor module and then no more FaceID for you (or, as it turns out me). This could have been made more explicit in the instructions.

Richard Tucker - 28/11/20

It opens like a book but be careful not to open it all the way … the small stainless steel tabs that hold the screen around the metal frame, that are on the bend place (right side of the phone)… are tend to bend, you can straighten them back to 90 deg. but the plastic base that they are on? very fragile- watch out not to break the plastic bezel … it may come apart of the glass.

dabur872 - 27/04/21

Advice for re-assembly: Before closing up the phone with the seal, check if phone is powering up again and speaker, mic and sensors are still working. If done this check even before installing the board connector bracket in Step 13.

Alexander Nowak -