Best Aftermaket Screens for iPhone Repair Shops

In this blog we will be looking into the different types of after market screens for iPhone available in the UK market. Discussing which options are the best for your shop. While also showcasing the differnet options we offer.

The Core Differences: LCD vs Hard OLED vs Soft OLED

LCD

These are the big 3 options in aftermarket screens for iPhone in the UK. There are many sub sections of each but we will focus here on the main differences between them.

An LCD is the lowest quality option for aftermarket screen replacement. iPhones stopped using LCD after the iPhone XR and 11. Changing to the flexible Soft OLED for the iPhone 12 and above, as well as the iPhone X, XS, XS Max, 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max. Any other models from the X series up use a Soft OLED panel. An LCD option can be a great budget screen replacement offering if your customers are incredibly price orientated. The phone will get back up and running but there are a few drawbacks:

• Greater power draw on the battery
• Thicker than the original screen
  
• More likely to break again

We only bring in the best quality aftermarket options for our LCD range, these may not be the cheapest on the market. But when compromising by using an LCD, you should always source the best option. Choosing a low quality LCD will only exaggerate the drawbacks mentioned earlier.

You can find our best quality LCD options for iPhone here: Value LCD — The Screen Surgery

Hard OLED

Hard OLED, sometimes the forgotten about screen replacement, and there is good reason for it. Hard OLED used to come and be priced well below the Soft OLED and therefore the disadvantages were outweighed by the cost. However, in the past few years Soft OLED options have become a lot more reasonably priced. Usually only £10-£15 cheaper, whereas LCD are usually £40-£50 cheaper. The drawbacks of Hard OLED:

• More fragile on impact
• Higher risk of green lines and screen burn
• Thicker than Soft OLED
• Lower flex tolerance on installation

All of these drawbacks mean most repair shops come to the consensus that if they are offering a budget option they may as well stock LCD. For the premium option at only £10-£15 more expensive, the advantages to the Soft OLED will convince their customer. We therefore do not stock Hard OLED panels.

Soft OLED

Soft OLED are the top of the fully aftermarket food chain. Using a flexible OLED panel they are the most durable and thin aftermarket option for UK repair shops. We offer two ranges of Soft OLED, our TX Pro flagship range and our Value Soft OLED range. 

The TX Pro brand which we launched over 3 years ago has become a stamp of high quality repair components. We do not compromise on quality and monitor return rates constantly to make sure they are reliable too. A multitude of factories are used to deliver the range and if one factory is underperforming we will switch to make sure only the best comes with the TX Pro name.

The Value Soft OLED range comes directly from one factory. We began offering this range about a year ago. For those price orientated customers who still want quality options. Using one factory only allows us to secure bulk discounts which we pass onto you. You will see this reflected in the price vs TX Pro. Usually £5-£15 cheaper. 

The thing to watch out for with Soft OLED in this age is the refresh rate. When iPhone Pro and Pro Max models started to use 120Hz - where previously on the iPhone 12 Pro Max and below they used 60Hz - aftermarket Soft OLEDs were only 60Hz. This meant a greatly reduced quality compared to the original. Nowadays we only offer the 120Hz in both our TX Pro and Value Soft OLED range (where applicable). We thought, if your customer is choosing a quality Soft OLED option, why wouldn't they want a 120Hz Soft OLED. 

You can find our TX Pro screens for iPhone here: TX Pro Replacement Parts and Repair Components for iPhone — The Screen Surgery and our Value Soft OLED  here: Value Soft OLED — The Screen Surgery. Both available with free next day shipping over £100.

What Options Should I Stock?

They say the hardest thing to manage in a business is cashflow. This is true whether you are a sole trader or managing a chain of repair shops. Therefore stocking lots of different options can mean there isn't any spare cash for the expensive ad hoc parts that you don't usually stock, such as Samsung Service Pack repairs. 

We suggest that you stock LCDs and Soft OLEDs only. This means you have two clear options for customers that have distinct differences. Adding Hard OLED into the mix can make it too confusing for customers. Also paying premium prices for a Hard OLED repair that will break easily on a drop may leave your customer with a sour taste in their mouths. Losing out on that repeat business is not what you want. In terms of quantity that is down to your local market. We suggest keeping a good stock of the base models, and maybe ones and twos of the higher end screens. Making sure you don't lose out on them same day repairs.

What Other Options Are Out There?

There are two other options, Refurbished and Service Pack. Last year Apple partnered with some suppliers to offer service pack screens to the market. You can trade in the old faulty part and get these at a discount. However, they can be over £200 more than an aftermarket panel which is quite hard for the customer to swallow. They are great for customers who aren't price orientated though, but margins are tighter due to the increased screen cost.

Refurbished screens use an aftermarket top glass over the original screen panel. These can be priced about £20-£50 more than the Soft OLED panels. We are beginning to expand into this range. Partnering with one of the most respected screen refurbishing companies in the UK GlassMasterz. You can start to see the range coming in here: Refurbished — The Screen Surgery

Summary

There are plenty of options for your repair shop. We tend to keep things simple here, LCD, Soft OLED and Refurbished. Meaning you can manage cashflow easily while still offering your customers a wide range of options that have distinct differences.

- Thomas Gregg

Mobile Phone Parts UK - The Screen Surgery