Welp, here’s my device as of this evening. I have:
1.) Replaced all case parts with natural aluminum and silver-toned screws and hinges
2.) Successfully reset the IMX8MP module to factory defaults while I await my RK3588 board and new wireless card (Thanks again, @josch)
3.) Applied a matte trim-to-fit film to a new screen module
I sure am pleased with the aesthetics and I’m looking forward to actually, y’know, using it again. For the time being, though, I’m gonna put it away and not look at it for a while!
As usual, ifixit was a great resource in taking it apart and putting it back together again. That said, the tutorial shows the screen being removed after applying a tiny amount of isopropanol to the adhesive holding it in place, which created a new problem: a “watermark,” which I suspect is from the solvent getting into the screen layers.
After reassembly, I noticed the “watermark” in the lower left corner, which didn’t go away, even after giving it a few days for the solvents to evaporate. I managed to get replacements on Aliexpress, one of which turned out to have a dead pixel. I used the alcohol procedure again, which resulted in watermarks of its own on that unit.
This wasn’t due to soaking the poor screen in solvents, since I was able to use a 27g needle to apply the barest amount of alcohol. I don’t think this was due to any excessive bending or other such strain on the screen, either.
So be careful if/when you remove the screen from your device. As much as I hate the material going to waste, I’m glad these were pretty inexpensive!
