Scratched Blackberry Screen - REPAIRED!

The same day I purchased my new Blackberry Curve, I scratched the screen. Not a small, minor scratch, but the kind that makes an entire line on the readout impossible to read. I was devastated.

I browsed various Blackberry forums and found this article. I went to the cnn.cn and found a replacement lens for $4.99 + $5.99 shipping. So for around $11.00, I got a new screen and it came in today.

As the forum article indicates, there are two camps for screen replacement: Pry the old one off or disassemble the entire unit and pop the lens out from behind the faceplate. There's actually a video on YouTube that shows how to take a Curve apart, which doesn't look too hard. I don't have a #5 torx bit driver though so I opted for the good old fashion method of prying the lens right off the front.

It took some serious leverage (make sure to use some type of tape or you will scratch your case when you use it as a fulcrum). I used three layers of electrical tape right where the speaker is located. I simply took the smallest screw driver I had and wedged it under the screen. It cracked and came off in three pieces. If you do this yourself, just make sure you don't drop the jagged pieces on to the LCD below. These are much more expensive to replace.

Once the lens was removed, I peeled away the paper from the back of the new lens and applied it right where the old lens had been. I pressed a few times to make sure the adhesive took hold and I was done. It took less than 5 minutes and it looks like a brand new Blackberry.