iphone: Why ‘jugaad’ is a bad idea if your iPhone 13 screen cracks – Times of India

If you are an iPhone user then you know that when the phone drops, your heart is in your mouth, there are prayers on your lips and for those few seconds anxiety becomes your middle name. Because let’s face it if buying an iPhone is expensive, then getting it repaired is another big expense. This is why a lot of people prefer to get a ‘quick fix’ or ‘jugaad’. However, a report says that if you have an iPhone 13 and god forbid you drop it, then ‘jugaad’ is a rather bad idea.
A report by iFixit reveals that if you replace the screen from third-party repair shops then “the new iPhone 13 completely disables its flagship Face ID functionality.” Yes, the FaceID, one of the flagship features of the iPhone, will not work if you get your screen replaced by an unauthorised Apple repair centre.
Apple hasn’t revealed yet how much does it cost to replace the screen of the iPhone 13 but it would be a lot if the US prices are anything to go by. An out-of-warranty screen repair of the iPhone 13 Pro Max is $329 (roughly Rs 25,000) whereas the iPhone 13 mini is $229 (roughly Rs 17,000). In India, the repair costs are relatively higher compared to the US.
iFixit tested the screen replacement on iOS 15.1. “Replacing an iPhone 13’s screen with the same exact screen from an identical brand new iPhone gives this error: “Unable to activate Face ID on this iPhone”,” noted the report.

How does Apple fix the display and FaceID issue?

The report explains that there’s a tiny chip that can be found at the bottom of the screen. The chip serialises an iPhone to its display which doesn’t work with any other third-party screen. Apple’s authorised service providers have the Apple proprietary software to sync the new display with the chip. However, there’s a ‘jugaad’ but not an easy one, according to the report. Unauthorised repair shops can remove “a soldered chip from an original screen onto a replacement screen.” But it’s a risky and rather difficult thing to do, says the report by iFixit.