While we do everything we can to educate our customers, there are still several things that we commonly see people confused about when it comes to repairing phones.  Below is a list of the most common misconceptions we see and hear:

1. "I only paid $xxx for my phone, how come the repair is the same amount or more?"

It's mind-boggling how many people have no clue what their device is actually worth or even realize that they are still paying for it!  iPhones and other smartphones are much more valuable that people realize.  When you sign that 2-year contract and get your phone for peanuts, it surely sounds like a great deal at first but a new phone actually costs you over time with your plan and this greatly confuses the perceived value of smartphones.  Read the fine print in your contract sometime and you will soon begin to understand how your plan costs so much more on a monthly basis than you might be paying if you bought a phone outright.

2. "I can fix this phone myself, no problem!"

It doesn’t take a genius to disassemble a smartphone, but the average Joe doesn't normally realize just how much tech-savvy is needed to get the job done right.  Properly done, phone repairs are time consuming, require specialized equipment, and can be very frustrating if you don't know what does what inside your device. Following a guide to take a phone apart and put it back together is one thing, but when you get it reassembled and the darn thing just doesn't turn on, what do you do?  What happens when you replace one part and a seemingly unrelated thing stops working?  If you don't have the technical education to perform this kind of troubleshooting, you are in for some major headaches and you could actually end up making the problem worse!  While we wouldn't discourage a determined person from trying their own repairs, we also remind them that we're always here to take over in case you manage to get in over your head.

3. "I saw that part online for $8 bucks, how come you charge so much more for the repair?"

Our labour rates are very competitive and fair and we have spent years finding the right suppliers with quality parts at the best prices so we can pass down some savings to our customers.  As a matter of fact, we don't even put a markup on the parts!  This means you pay what we pay for the part, and we only charge you for our labour time.  If you can really get the part cheaper than we can, we'd happily invite you to become our supplier!  We run into this one most often in regard to iPhones with broken glass.  iPhone glass parts you see online are just about always only one piece of the whole.  I can't count how many customers have brought in the glass-only part of an iPhone screen looking to have it installed by us, thinking they saved a fortune on the part. Unfortunately, these customers always get a shock when we tell them that in order to install that piece they have, the labour charges alone will amount to sometimes twice as much as it would cost to install one of our inventory parts.  The glass-only pieces we see most often still need to be attached with a digitizer, LCD, back light, frame, and often more.  Not to mention the need for expensive vacuum chambers and screen separation equipment.  These are cases where we always recommend the buyer beware... if it seems like a deal that's too good to be true, it probably is!

4. "If you replace the screen on my phone, it's going to void my warranty!"

Sorry to have the be the one to break it to you, but if your device has a broken screen (or any other accidental or physical damage of any kind), the phone’s limited warranty was already voided.  And your service provider will usually only try to convince you to buy a new device instead of repairing it.  The real truth is that 9 times out of 10, taking your phone to a repair shop like ours will always be cheaper than replacing it.

5. “It costs too much money to repair my cell phone.”

This is subjective and prices vary, but we guarantee you won't find a better price in town from any other retailer.  If you do, not only will we match the competitors price, but we will also give you a $10 gift card as well!  Many people think it’ll cost a fortune to get a wireless device fixed, but compared to the cost of a new device, repair is always considerably cheaper.  Considering how much we use our phones on a daily basis, the cost of a repair is a small price to pay to get your device working like new.

As always, thank you for reading my blog.  These will be a regular thing as we are working hard to provide increased content on our website!  Keep your eye out for the next one and until then take good care of your phones... and if you have an accident, you know where to come find me!