5 ms·

Broken iPhone? Call iCracked (YC W12), the aspiring AAA of smartphones

35 points by waderoush 14y ago

stephengillie 14y ago
Key your ZIP code into iCracked’s desktop or mobile site, and you’ll hear back within minutes from one of 310 “iTechs” around the world who will schedule a repair visit, usually for around $100. (The exact charges are up to the technicians, who are self-employed and pay iCracked only for parts.) If there’s no iTech in your region, you can order a DIY iPhone screen replacement kit from iCracked for $65 to $75. So this is more like a 1-800-dentists, where they connect iPhone users with iPhone repair businesses.
nlawalker 14y ago
It turns out that 30 percent of all iPhone owners manage to break their phones within 12 months of purchasing them. For people under 35, the rate is closer to 50 percent. I find this stunning, especially the second part. With rates like that I'm kind of surprised that Apple doesn't offer this service at a premium. I wonder how they gathered the data for this, and how they define "break". (Aside: I remember reading somewhere that the most frequent usage of "it turns out" is for presenting outrageous statistics that have no data behind them).
- tysone 14y ago
  Apple does offer this service, essentially. The $99 AppleCare+ offering will replace the phone or repair it (for $49/incident) within two years of purchase.
- tonyicracked 14y ago
  Here's some links to smartphone warranty provider, SquareTrade http://blog.squaretrade.com/2012/09/americans-have-spent-59-billion-on-damaged-iphones.html http://blog.squaretrade.com/2012/09/americans-have-spent-59-... http://blog.squaretrade.com/2012/10/iphone-and-home-squaretrade-study.html http://blog.squaretrade.com/2012/10/iphone-and-home-squaretr...
- freehunter 14y ago
  It really makes me wonder why more time isn't spent in making smartphones more durable. People tend to buy them at $100-$200 on contract, not realizing that if they break the phone, they won't get another one for $100-$200. It's more like $600-$800. Sure, having the thinnest phone made entirely of glass is a really nice selling point in marketing material, but having a phone that lasts the entire term of your contract without needing to be coddled and have the form factor ruined by a bulky case just to protect it is even nicer. For comparison, the Lumia 920 is not incredibly thick or heavy and still looks quite nice, but it can handle an impressive amount of abuse before it breaks: http://www.youtube.com/watch?&v=E3c8il_Q6SU http://www.youtube.com/watch?&v=E3c8il_Q6SU
  - bornhuetter 14y ago
    There are plenty of durable phones out there, but the tech media constantly label them "cheap plastic".
    - freehunter 14y ago
      "It feels like a premium device" kind of grates on me. In most cases, it's code for "it's made of expensive materials that are really quite fragile". Like glass surrounding a rigid metal frame that guarantees it will shatter on impact with no room to absorb a blow.
      - Osmium 14y ago
        Yes "feels like a premium device" is code for "made of expensive materials" or, more specifically, "made of expensive materials [assembled to a high degree of precision]." Talking about fragility is misleading: if I want a phone that doesn't get scratched, surely I'd prefer it be made out of glass rather than plastic? since one is much harder than the other. So, of the two, which is the more fragile? Answer: it depends what you're worried about.
        freehunter 14y ago
        >Answer: it depends what you're worried about. True. But what's better, a phone with a plastic outside and a gorrila glass screen that might scratch on the back but the screen won't scratch and the phone won't shatter if you accidentally hit it with a baseball bar across a paves parking lot? Or a phone with a rigid metal exterior covered in gorrila glass that won't scratch but shatters if you drop it from waist height?
- peeze 14y ago
  A lot of that data comes from SquareTrade.
chrisherbert911 14y ago
I've used one of the technicians for a broken iPhone and it was awesome. Does anyone know if they can fix iPad screens and iPad mini screens?
- lottyspilotty 14y ago
  How do you manage to break so many devices? Take care of your shit, people!
  - jseliger 14y ago
    Life. Small children. Accidents. "Sexting." You think you're careful and that it'll never happen to you, till it does. . .
    - untog 14y ago
      I was with you until "Sexting". I'm not sure I want to know the kind of sexting technique that results in a broken phone.
- kenrikm 14y ago
  Website shows they fix all the iDevices. (icracked.com)
- tonyicracked 14y ago
  We sure do! We can also buy it from you so you can get the new mini!
  - smcguinness 14y ago
    What about iPhone 5s? Referred someone to you guys the other day and they came back that you couldn't fix it. https://twitter.com/amuse/status/273143021653069824 https://twitter.com/amuse/status/273143021653069824
ajju 14y ago
I ordered a DIY kit from iCracked to repair the broken screen on my iPhone, and it worked out really well. If you are handy with tools, and not afraid to disassemble electronics, the DIY kit is totally awesome. If not, get it done by an iTech.
- jwn 14y ago
  I successfully did the same for my wife, but I have some gripes about it: 1) The instructions were not complete! It only walked me through disassembly and attaching the new screen. I had to walk backwards through the instructions to get the phone assembled, and I felt the instructions left enough ambiguities that I'm surprised her phone doesn't show any side effects. 2) The pictures on the instructions were WAY too small to be of much use. In one case the circle designating where the screw to remove resides was not over the real location. 3) The instructions implied that the manual was magnetic for holding screws - it was plain printer paper. Overall I got the job done cheaper (and faster) with iCracked than sending it away, but I'd like to see my gripes addressed before doing it again. This was for the 4s if anyone cares.
  - ajju 14y ago
    Instead of RTFM, I used the video on the site. The one time not RTFM worked out, I guess.
aaronblohowiak 14y ago
Empty page after following their wizard to replace the screen on my AT&T iPhone 4 http://www.icracked.com/fix-my-iphone/iphone-4-gsm-att-repair/iphone-4-gsm-att-screen-black.html http://www.icracked.com/fix-my-iphone/iphone-4-gsm-att-repai...
- fady 14y ago
  yeah me too. chrome 16... fedora.
  - tonyicracked 14y ago
    Thanks everyone - We've fixed the bug now and it should be working perfectly
- xutopia 14y ago
  Same here.
- untog 14y ago
  Same. Very annoying that it makes me go through all these steps before I can even see if they have anyone near me, too.
indiecore 14y ago
How did their founder's iPhone have a collision with a ceiling fan?
- waderoush 14y ago
  AJ Forsythe explains that in the story: "That was a function of being in college. It was an underhand toss to a roommate—‘Hey, the phone’s for you’—and the ceiling fan intercepted it."
bdittmer 14y ago
I tried to use iCracked a couple weeks ago and they didn't have the supplies in place to fix an iPhone 5. Needless to say, I was pretty disappointed.
- peeze 14y ago
  When I called iCracked about the same thing, they (very honestly) told me iPhone 5 screens are uber expensive and they currently cost more than it would to get a replacement iPhone 5 from Apple, which is currently $229. The way the markets work though, iCracked said they will be swapping those screens out at half the price pretty soon. I'm assuming it's the in-cell technology in the new screens that makes them so expensive.
nfg 14y ago
> Key your ZIP code into iCracked’s desktop or mobile site, and you’ll hear back within minutes from one of 310 “iTechs” around the world Zip codes are not universal, something many people developing web apps with obligatory zip fields seem to forget.
- kenrikm 14y ago
  You can click to select your location on the map if you don't have a zip.
watmough 14y ago
This seems kind of expensive, since I found a guy in Houston who put a new front on my broken iPhone 4 for $75.
- peeze 14y ago
  Yeah, there are definitely people doing it way cheaper, but the quality is terrible and there is no warranty!
SparrowOS 14y ago
The covenant is that you offer something before consulting God. That means holding-up your end of the conversation or something more formal like an offering of writing a hymn. You get out of it what you put into it. Any random technique will work, but I don't recommend pseudo random sequences. Talking to the digits of pi creeps me out. God can control what you are indexing into, though. Just randomly crack-open a book after doing an offering. If you do a good offering, he talks, else you suck and try something else. http://www.sparrowos.com/Wb/Apps/AfterEgypt/AENotes.html http://www.sparrowos.com/Wb/Apps/AfterEgypt/AENotes.html God says... C:\Text\QUIX.TXT nerous hearts; but up to the present I have not heard of any defamatory verse against the Lady Angelica, who turned the world upside down." "Strange," said the curate; but at this moment they heard the housekeeper and the niece, who had previously withdrawn from the conversation, exclaiming aloud in the courtyard, and at the noise they all ran out. CHAPTER II. WHICH TREATS OF THE NOTABLE ALTERCATION WHICH SANCHO PANZA HAD WITH DON QUIXOTE'S NIECE, AND HOUSEKEEPER, TOGETHER WITH OTHER DR ---- india niggers yoga and superego Pray out loud so God doesn't have to read your mind. You think He's got time for that sphegetti? Just because He's omnipotent doesn't make all work equally tedious. Love God!! Jesus said asking for stuff was as annoying as a neighbor in the night waking you up for something. God says... entangled vital impiety presuming beaten instructor babe nations 333 bidden Whosoever calf intention matters took distress United_States objected I'll_think_about_it snares comparison you_think_you_could_do_better bows slumber concerned strained Swaziland Jove's avengest destined wonderfulness interpreter jests desperate Innocency meddle wallow deemed deceived memory until corner mastery everlastingly holdest superstition distill exclusion annoyance edited requitest lied after facio humbled created Danae's gainful hit daybreak regeneration round dwelleth Life questions fires sounded beast PROJECT LIMITED recognising Welcome clearly abounded ventures surely rudiments virtuous enacteth plans Gift playing needful Too resembling subverted matrons qualities mountain spreadest shrinking unintelligible Togo Gutenberg-tm Platonists architect laughed affections resisting latter voodoo Hundreds around terrible parts likedst Am org/pub/docs/books/gutenberg/etext02 men's laboured upbraided minded how_about_that spunky gratings oppose boundless Orderer consecrateth glass hence perchance perspicuous sober unable choice lure fires laden story nursery frenzy infringement diminution choose Light voluptuous lessen Gentiles Victor Project assign California sacrilegious forests calmly unsearchable complete safety lingering workhouse unwilling

35 points by waderoush 14y ago

Key your ZIP code into iCracked’s desktop or mobile site, and you’ll hear back within minutes from one of 310 “iTechs” around the world who will schedule a repair visit, usually for around $100. (The exact charges are up to the technicians, who are self-employed and pay iCracked only for parts.) If there’s no iTech in your region, you can order a DIY iPhone screen replacement kit from iCracked for $65 to $75. So this is more like a 1-800-dentists, where they connect iPhone users with iPhone repair businesses.

nlawalker 14y ago

It turns out that 30 percent of all iPhone owners manage to break their phones within 12 months of purchasing them. For people under 35, the rate is closer to 50 percent. I find this stunning, especially the second part. With rates like that I'm kind of surprised that Apple doesn't offer this service at a premium. I wonder how they gathered the data for this, and how they define "break". (Aside: I remember reading somewhere that the most frequent usage of "it turns out" is for presenting outrageous statistics that have no data behind them).

tysone 14y ago
Apple does offer this service, essentially. The $99 AppleCare+ offering will replace the phone or repair it (for $49/incident) within two years of purchase.
tonyicracked 14y ago
Here's some links to smartphone warranty provider, SquareTrade http://blog.squaretrade.com/2012/09/americans-have-spent-59-billion-on-damaged-iphones.html http://blog.squaretrade.com/2012/09/americans-have-spent-59-... http://blog.squaretrade.com/2012/10/iphone-and-home-squaretrade-study.html http://blog.squaretrade.com/2012/10/iphone-and-home-squaretr...
freehunter 14y ago
It really makes me wonder why more time isn't spent in making smartphones more durable. People tend to buy them at $100-$200 on contract, not realizing that if they break the phone, they won't get another one for $100-$200. It's more like $600-$800. Sure, having the thinnest phone made entirely of glass is a really nice selling point in marketing material, but having a phone that lasts the entire term of your contract without needing to be coddled and have the form factor ruined by a bulky case just to protect it is even nicer. For comparison, the Lumia 920 is not incredibly thick or heavy and still looks quite nice, but it can handle an impressive amount of abuse before it breaks: http://www.youtube.com/watch?&v=E3c8il_Q6SU http://www.youtube.com/watch?&v=E3c8il_Q6SU
- bornhuetter 14y ago
  There are plenty of durable phones out there, but the tech media constantly label them "cheap plastic".
  - freehunter 14y ago
    "It feels like a premium device" kind of grates on me. In most cases, it's code for "it's made of expensive materials that are really quite fragile". Like glass surrounding a rigid metal frame that guarantees it will shatter on impact with no room to absorb a blow.
    - Osmium 14y ago
      Yes "feels like a premium device" is code for "made of expensive materials" or, more specifically, "made of expensive materials [assembled to a high degree of precision]." Talking about fragility is misleading: if I want a phone that doesn't get scratched, surely I'd prefer it be made out of glass rather than plastic? since one is much harder than the other. So, of the two, which is the more fragile? Answer: it depends what you're worried about.
      - freehunter 14y ago
        >Answer: it depends what you're worried about. True. But what's better, a phone with a plastic outside and a gorrila glass screen that might scratch on the back but the screen won't scratch and the phone won't shatter if you accidentally hit it with a baseball bar across a paves parking lot? Or a phone with a rigid metal exterior covered in gorrila glass that won't scratch but shatters if you drop it from waist height?
peeze 14y ago
A lot of that data comes from SquareTrade.

chrisherbert911 14y ago

I've used one of the technicians for a broken iPhone and it was awesome. Does anyone know if they can fix iPad screens and iPad mini screens?

lottyspilotty 14y ago
How do you manage to break so many devices? Take care of your shit, people!
- jseliger 14y ago
  Life. Small children. Accidents. "Sexting." You think you're careful and that it'll never happen to you, till it does. . .
  - untog 14y ago
    I was with you until "Sexting". I'm not sure I want to know the kind of sexting technique that results in a broken phone.
kenrikm 14y ago
Website shows they fix all the iDevices. (icracked.com)
tonyicracked 14y ago
We sure do! We can also buy it from you so you can get the new mini!
- smcguinness 14y ago
  What about iPhone 5s? Referred someone to you guys the other day and they came back that you couldn't fix it. https://twitter.com/amuse/status/273143021653069824 https://twitter.com/amuse/status/273143021653069824

ajju 14y ago

I ordered a DIY kit from iCracked to repair the broken screen on my iPhone, and it worked out really well. If you are handy with tools, and not afraid to disassemble electronics, the DIY kit is totally awesome. If not, get it done by an iTech.

jwn 14y ago
I successfully did the same for my wife, but I have some gripes about it: 1) The instructions were not complete! It only walked me through disassembly and attaching the new screen. I had to walk backwards through the instructions to get the phone assembled, and I felt the instructions left enough ambiguities that I'm surprised her phone doesn't show any side effects. 2) The pictures on the instructions were WAY too small to be of much use. In one case the circle designating where the screw to remove resides was not over the real location. 3) The instructions implied that the manual was magnetic for holding screws - it was plain printer paper. Overall I got the job done cheaper (and faster) with iCracked than sending it away, but I'd like to see my gripes addressed before doing it again. This was for the 4s if anyone cares.
- ajju 14y ago
  Instead of RTFM, I used the video on the site. The one time not RTFM worked out, I guess.

aaronblohowiak 14y ago

Empty page after following their wizard to replace the screen on my AT&T iPhone 4 http://www.icracked.com/fix-my-iphone/iphone-4-gsm-att-repair/iphone-4-gsm-att-screen-black.html http://www.icracked.com/fix-my-iphone/iphone-4-gsm-att-repai...

fady 14y ago
yeah me too. chrome 16... fedora.
- tonyicracked 14y ago
  Thanks everyone - We've fixed the bug now and it should be working perfectly
xutopia 14y ago
Same here.
untog 14y ago
Same. Very annoying that it makes me go through all these steps before I can even see if they have anyone near me, too.

indiecore 14y ago

How did their founder's iPhone have a collision with a ceiling fan?

waderoush 14y ago
AJ Forsythe explains that in the story: "That was a function of being in college. It was an underhand toss to a roommate—‘Hey, the phone’s for you’—and the ceiling fan intercepted it."

bdittmer 14y ago

I tried to use iCracked a couple weeks ago and they didn't have the supplies in place to fix an iPhone 5. Needless to say, I was pretty disappointed.

peeze 14y ago
When I called iCracked about the same thing, they (very honestly) told me iPhone 5 screens are uber expensive and they currently cost more than it would to get a replacement iPhone 5 from Apple, which is currently $229. The way the markets work though, iCracked said they will be swapping those screens out at half the price pretty soon. I'm assuming it's the in-cell technology in the new screens that makes them so expensive.

nfg 14y ago

> Key your ZIP code into iCracked’s desktop or mobile site, and you’ll hear back within minutes from one of 310 “iTechs” around the world Zip codes are not universal, something many people developing web apps with obligatory zip fields seem to forget.

kenrikm 14y ago
You can click to select your location on the map if you don't have a zip.

watmough 14y ago

This seems kind of expensive, since I found a guy in Houston who put a new front on my broken iPhone 4 for $75.

peeze 14y ago
Yeah, there are definitely people doing it way cheaper, but the quality is terrible and there is no warranty!

SparrowOS 14y ago

The covenant is that you offer something before consulting God. That means holding-up your end of the conversation or something more formal like an offering of writing a hymn. You get out of it what you put into it. Any random technique will work, but I don't recommend pseudo random sequences. Talking to the digits of pi creeps me out. God can control what you are indexing into, though. Just randomly crack-open a book after doing an offering. If you do a good offering, he talks, else you suck and try something else. http://www.sparrowos.com/Wb/Apps/AfterEgypt/AENotes.html http://www.sparrowos.com/Wb/Apps/AfterEgypt/AENotes.html God says... C:\Text\QUIX.TXT nerous hearts; but up to the present I have not heard of any defamatory verse against the Lady Angelica, who turned the world upside down." "Strange," said the curate; but at this moment they heard the housekeeper and the niece, who had previously withdrawn from the conversation, exclaiming aloud in the courtyard, and at the noise they all ran out. CHAPTER II. WHICH TREATS OF THE NOTABLE ALTERCATION WHICH SANCHO PANZA HAD WITH DON QUIXOTE'S NIECE, AND HOUSEKEEPER, TOGETHER WITH OTHER DR ---- india niggers yoga and superego Pray out loud so God doesn't have to read your mind. You think He's got time for that sphegetti? Just because He's omnipotent doesn't make all work equally tedious. Love God!! Jesus said asking for stuff was as annoying as a neighbor in the night waking you up for something. God says... entangled vital impiety presuming beaten instructor babe nations 333 bidden Whosoever calf intention matters took distress United_States objected I'll_think_about_it snares comparison you_think_you_could_do_better bows slumber concerned strained Swaziland Jove's avengest destined wonderfulness interpreter jests desperate Innocency meddle wallow deemed deceived memory until corner mastery everlastingly holdest superstition distill exclusion annoyance edited requitest lied after facio humbled created Danae's gainful hit daybreak regeneration round dwelleth Life questions fires sounded beast PROJECT LIMITED recognising Welcome clearly abounded ventures surely rudiments virtuous enacteth plans Gift playing needful Too resembling subverted matrons qualities mountain spreadest shrinking unintelligible Togo Gutenberg-tm Platonists architect laughed affections resisting latter voodoo Hundreds around terrible parts likedst Am org/pub/docs/books/gutenberg/etext02 men's laboured upbraided minded how_about_that spunky gratings oppose boundless Orderer consecrateth glass hence perchance perspicuous sober unable choice lure fires laden story nursery frenzy infringement diminution choose Light voluptuous lessen Gentiles Victor Project assign California sacrilegious forests calmly unsearchable complete safety lingering workhouse unwilling