Broken screen repair for IPhone 4?

I'm horrified... My iPhone 4 fell off my 2 feet night stand to the wooden floor in an attempt of grabbing it. The glass shattered into pieces... I heard this glass was extremely resistant! I have dropped my 3GS so many times and never broke.. First drop for my iPhone 4 and bang... I read some people have gotten it replaced free of charge. Can someone confirm this for me please? All stores are closed due to the holidays..

Thanks

Yesterday I dropped my iPhone 4 while checking the mailbox as the Fed Ex truck was coming up the hill to drop off my bumper! The back shattered. I read this forum and made an appointment at the Genius Bar for this morning. When I got there, they told me they would charge me $199 to replace it. I don't want a replacement, just a new back cover. Why would I spend $199 when I can spend $50 and get a back cover. That is what they are going to do to it. It doesn't make any since. They will replace others but not mine. I am not happy about that.

I dont like hiding my ip4 in any case, because its so beautiful, especially the steel rim.

Thats why I use a sleeve. The sleeve I have is actually for an iPod touch, but my ip4 fits perfectly in it. Its a black leather Belkin sleeve and it was only $9.

Since I have a sleeve, it gives me the ultimate protection when its inside the case, and when im using the phone, I make sure I have a solid firm grip and im aware of my surroundings.

Vibration even works perfectly when inside the sleeve because its so tightly packed.

I dropped my phone like 3 times when inside the sleeve, not a scratch appeared because the leather was so smooth and bouncy. The drops were about 4-5 foot drops.

Heres what it looks like: http://www.daydeal.com/files/i11/f8z362.jpg

Any type of part for the iPhone 4 should be on eBay or Amazon or Kijiji.

The back parts will probably cost about $29, I suggest checking that out, and checking out how to do it yourself.

A local fellow in my hometown who advertises cell phone repair fixed my 3GS screen for about $100.

I got my phone on June 23rd, got the bumper the next day, and last night dropped the phone from about 2.5 feet on the sidewalk. It must have landed on the lower left corner because it shattered most on that side. The bumper DID NOT protect it. This is the first time I've dropped it. I dropped my iphone 3g numerous times over the last 2yrs and never got a scratch practically. I'm going to take it to Apple this afternoon and see if they'll do anything for me.

Me too. I went in to the apple store last night and just barely got the words out of my mouth, "the back's cracked" and the genius whipped out a piece of paper to order me a brand new one. They are going to call me next week to come pick it up. My phone still works fine so I'm still using it until I go back to the store.

daddave2 wrote:
Wow, I wonder why they replaced it free of charge. That is unusual for user caused damage. I think the bumper looks great on the phone. I do miss seeing the stainless steel rim though.

Maybe the replaced it for free because they advertised the glass being 30 times stronger than plastic, but from what I've seen so far, this glass can break as easily as a glass that you drink of.

You are so right Tamara. Nothing more to add to that other than most other cards provide the same extension to warranty as Amex but check your paperwork to be sure.

It's like the sapphire crystal on a good watch - it's nearly impossible to scratch it, but you can shatter it...

If you so happen to find a replacement cover please let me know.

I don't want to sound like a know-it all, but the glass is very hard. Hardness is defined as the resistance to scratching. Different glass compositions have different hardness. While very hard, glass is also very brittle.
Take diamond for example: it is the hardest naturally occurring substance. Hit a diamond with a hammer and it shatters into many pieces.
It seems that many people are confusing hardness with tensile strength.

Sgessler:

That is informative; however, that is not common knowledge, so harder then plastic, means exactly what it says - I should be able to take a hammer, and drop it without worrying that the glass will shatter. My 3gs dropped from the back several times on a wooden floor, no scratch or breakage, it dropped one time on face down (glass) on a tile floor from 3 feet, no crack/scratch. I like many, expected the phone to be so delicate. Watch the videos at the site, and listen to how it is portrayed to be indestructible. Luckily I did not use what they said as fact - I was shocked when I saw a video showing how easily the phone cracked.

For me that is not stopping me from getting one, I will just have to use a case, which I thought I would not have too.

I got the iPhone 4 shipped the day it came out. I couldn't find any good covers so I went without one. Unfortunately I dropped it on its face from about 3 feet on a cement sidewalk. The screen completely shattered. Don't know how you guys got the free replacements. I went to the genius bar and they gave me a new phone and split the difference. Ended up costing a little over $100. I got the iFrogz case and screen protector immediately after. I know Apple's sympathy will be short lived, I'm not trying to have this happen again!In all honesty however the screen is quite brittle, somewhat dissappointing. I'd prefer tensile strength to hardness. Scratches can always be prevented with a protector.

something else most people don't realize is that while apple claims the class is 30 times harder then plastic, if you drop your phone, it is being subjected to IMPACT forces. I have a degree in industrial ceramics (yes, glass is part of the ceramics industry), and i can tell you from personal experience, you but a piece of glass (ceramic material) under pressure in a slow, incremental fashion, and a piece of the exact same material, and subject it to a sledge hammer, even tho the sledge may exert less total pressure/force, the material is under two completely different forces, and will NOT react the same. This new iphone 4 glass may be "amazing super glass that cant be scratched" but its impact strength is about as good as any cheap glass you find at a local diner, very little. A great example more people will understand would be those little safety hammers made to break a car window out in a crash. You can push pretty hard against that car window, and it not break, (assuming no defects within the glass) but tap it with that little hammer and it shatters to pieces, impact strength.