Never had a phone that was just requiring a screen to be fixed, I tend to do a 'proper' job on them. I know if you book an appointment at the genius bar at an Apple store they replace the handset with a reconditioned one for about £140 - £150.
I repaired my son's i phone 4 last year, bust screen, bought a kit from ebay, job done in 10 mins. Loads of guides on youtube. The fiddly bit is the fitting the loom without snagging it but take yer time and its easy enuf....
I've personally done 3 lots of 3GS and helped a mate do a 4 which admittedly was harder but still straight forward if you take your time. each time I just bought the eBay kits and they all worked fine ever since, just get yourself a seat at the table and a couple of beers and a youtube clip to follow, it's pretty easy going
Done screens on 3,4 and 5. As said loads of guides on YouTube. Just take your time. I used a load of little plastic tubs to but all the screws in, in the stages they are removed. just watch where you buy from. Cheapest is not always best. Found out the hard way.
I have done dozens as we fix them in my shop. As said it's not all that hard but there are a few pitfalls. If the phone is white or u want non standard colours then the pattern plastic usually lets too much light into the proximity sensor and it doesn't work. Iphone 4s models came with a UV filter over the sensor to combat this and i retro fit it to all 4 models as finding out the sensor doesn't work is an arse after putting it together. Black is less of a problem but can have issues too. I would buy the lcd and digitiser/frame combo as seperating them is a pain and often does damage to the LCD. On the cables from the LCD etc bend where the dotted line is printed on the ribbon. If you bend elsewhere you may get flickering or lines on the screen unless you get lucky. When taking the metal cover off at the top of the main board take care undoing the tiny screw below and to the right of the camera. There is a little threaded metal post that the screw goes into which acts as a secondary ariel for wifi. That threaded part often breaks away if that screw was overtight and the wifi signal will be reduced slightly without it as the contact to the cover is lost.. We buy our parts from "we fix macs" (google it). Decent quality parts and prompt service. Some of the Ebay stuff can be real poor so look at the feedback if going that route.
I paid £70 on Plymouth Market for a new screen fitted to a 4. Well worth the extra for somebody who knows what they're doing in my opinion, and they had it done in about a hour.
I've got some small chips on the raised lip that surrounds the front of the phone on the edge. Is that part of the screen / digitaliser or is it a seperate part?
