Back up your iPhone 17 today, then decide where the screen gets replaced based on two things: whether Apple cover applies to you, and which display part you want fitted. A cracked screen is a display replacement job, and the choice you make now about the part decides what your phone will report about that repair for the rest of its life.
If the phone still works, you have time to choose properly. If touch is failing or the image is breaking up, you do not, because a screen that stops responding can lock you out of the phone before you have copied anything off it. Either way, the first step is the same.
Back up before anything else
Make a backup now, while the screen still lets you tap through the menus. Apple's own reason is the right one: a backup gives you a copy of your information to use if the device is ever replaced, lost or damaged [4]. A cracked screen is damage, and any repair, by anyone, is safer with a current backup behind it.
- Connect the iPhone to Wi-Fi.
- Open Settings, tap your name, then tap iCloud.
- Tap iCloud Backup, then tap Back Up Now.
- Stay on Wi-Fi until it finishes, then check the date and time of the last backup shown under Back Up Now [4].
If iCloud warns that you do not have enough storage, follow the onscreen steps to buy more [4]. Do it anyway. Paying for a month of storage is cheaper than losing photos you cannot get back.
Then turn on automatic iCloud Backup so the phone keeps itself backed up when it is on power, on Wi-Fi and locked [4]. If the touch layer is already dead in patches, try the backup before you do anything else with the phone, and bring it in if you cannot get through the steps; our data recovery service exists for exactly the phone that will not let you in.
Decide who repairs it: the warranty fork
Check your cover before you book anyone. Apple's one-year limited warranty covers manufacturing issues, and it does not cover accidental damage [3]. A dropped phone with cracked glass is accidental damage, so unless you hold a separate cover plan, the screen is an out-of-warranty, paid repair wherever you take it.
Apply this decision rule:
- You have an active AppleCare plan or other cover that pays for accidental damage. Use it. Go to Apple or an Apple Authorised Service Provider, because Apple states that repairs done by Apple and Apple Authorised Service Providers are covered by Apple's warranty [2].
- You have no accidental damage cover and you need the phone back today. Compare an independent repair on speed, price and the part used. Apple notes that Authorised Service Providers set their own service fees [3], so get a firm figure from whoever you choose before work starts.
- The phone is still inside its first year and the fault is not damage, for example a display that failed without a drop. Take it to Apple first, because a manufacturing fault is what the warranty exists for [3].
Apple guarantees its own service and replacement parts for 90 days or the remaining term of your Apple warranty, whichever is longer [3]. Whoever you use, ask what their repair warranty is and get it in writing.
Know what part goes in, and what the phone will say about it
Ask every repairer, including us, one question before you hand the phone over: is the replacement display a genuine Apple part? The answer shows up on the phone afterwards, so you should hear it from the repairer first.
Your iPhone 17 keeps a record of display repairs. Open Settings, tap General, then tap About; after a repair you will see a Parts and Service History section [2]. Next to Display it will show one of these labels [1]:
- Genuine: the repair was completed using genuine Apple parts and processes.
- Used: on iPhone 15 and later with iOS 18 and later, the display was already used or installed in another iPhone.
- Finish Repair: a new Apple display has been installed but the repair has not yet been finished with Repair Assistant.
- Unknown: the display is not a genuine Apple part, is not functioning as expected, has not been verified and linked to your iPhone, or has been modified.
Apple states that an Unknown part might affect the trade-in value of your device [1]. It also says these messages do not affect your ability to use your iPhone [1]. After a repair with an Unknown part, the phone shows a notification the first time you unlock it and another one in five days [2]. Expect those notifications if a non-Apple display is fitted, and do not mistake them for a fault.
Be straight with yourself about the trade-off. We fit premium OEM-quality parts, so ask us at the counter exactly which display we are fitting and how Parts and Service History will label it, before you agree to the job. If you plan to trade the phone in soon, or a Genuine label matters to you, go the Apple route. If you plan to keep the phone and need it working today, an independent repair gets you there faster.
Check the screen before you leave the counter
Test the new display before you walk away, whoever fitted it. Apple lists the problems a non-genuine display can bring [1], and they double as a handback checklist for any replacement screen:
- Touch. Drag a finger across every edge and corner. Apple warns that Multi-Touch may not respond on parts of the screen, or touches may not register in the right location [1].
- Calls. Make a test call. The display should turn off when you hold the phone to your ear and should not register touches from your cheek [1].
- Brightness. Push brightness to maximum and cover the top of the phone with your hand. Apple lists lower maximum brightness and an ambient light sensor that dims or brightens the screen incorrectly as possible issues [1].
- Colour. Open a white page and look for a yellow or blue cast, uneven brightness, or True Tone not working correctly [1].
If any of those fail, hand it back there and then. A fault you report at the counter is a fault the repairer fixes on the spot; a fault you find at home is a second trip.
We run these checks ourselves before handback. Every screen we replace is tested for touch sensitivity, display brightness, colour accuracy and the functions around the display before it goes back to you, and screen replacements carry our 90-day warranty on parts and labour.
Do not let an untrained repair open the phone
Avoid the cheapest kitchen-table fix. Apple warns that repairs by untrained individuals using non-genuine parts may affect the safety of the device, and that repairs which do not replace screws or cowlings correctly can leave loose parts behind that could damage the battery, cause overheating or result in injury [1]. The screen is the visible part of the job; what happens inside the phone while it is open is what decides whether the repair is safe.
Self Service Repair is Apple's route for people experienced with the complexities of repairing electronic devices, and it is available only in certain countries or regions for specific iPhone models [1]. If you have never opened a phone, do not make an iPhone 17 your first one.
Bring it in today
Walk in to Best Tech Repair at Unit 4, Piccadilly Circus Underground Station, London W1J 9HS. We are open 10:00 to 22:00, seven days a week, so you can come before work, at lunch or on the way home. The diagnostic check is free and we confirm a fixed price before any work begins. If we cannot fix it, you do not pay.
Turnaround is same day, and many screen repairs are finished in under an hour. Back up first, then call us on 020 3417 7090 or see our screen replacement service page and come straight down.
Sources
- About genuine iPhone displays – Apple Support (UK) — support.apple.com
- iPhone Parts and Service History – Apple Support (UK) — support.apple.com
- Apple Service and Repair for iPhone Screens – Apple Support (UK) — support.apple.com
- How to back up your iPhone or iPad with iCloud – Apple Support (UK) — support.apple.com
