VCC Board Repairs
Education • Science & Tech
The goal is to share solutions & techniques for microsoldering & data recovery repairs. I'll cover mostly iPhone & iPad motherboard repairs.
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iPhone 14 series - eSIM is a nightmare for board repair techs

So I just recently started getting iPhone 14 series for repair, mostly iPhone 14 Pro Max.

A lot of them have been for Baseband issues, like No Service/Searching issue.

But the problem I'm running into, a lot of these have the eSIM deactivated, since they have deactivated it on the phone I'm repairing & using it on another phone.

Since eSIM requires you to manually activate it with a carrier, there's no way for me to test for baseband issues.

I can't just pop in my tester SIM and see if it works.

I would have to activate an eSIM for it.

And yes, in many cases, as long as it says "SOS Only" or Modem FW is not missing or *#06# or the cellular menu is working, then it should be working... but not always.

I have a few jobs here that do seem to be working, but still doesn't pick up signal. So those require a little more troubleshooting.

But if on the 14's I need to activate an eSIM, that's not going to be easy. That means the customer has to remotely activate it for me, which is a hassle to convince them to do it. Then that also means they lose signal on their backup phone.

Does anyone have a solution to this?
Or anyone run into this before?

Would love to hear your thoughts 😅

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Which Thermal Cam Do You Have?

If you have a Seek Thermal Cam, you're missing out if you don't have a VCC Seek Stand: https://www.vccboardrepairs.com/buy-seek-stand

Injured Gadgets just got these back in stock, so get them while you can!

It can take us a while to build these out sometimes, so they're sometimes out of stock for a while, but we're working towards always having inventory ready to build more as they sell out.

This stand makes using a thermal cam so easy. So much better than any other thermal solution on the market.

It allows you to get real close up (using my Macro Lens), and easily find where the short is coming from.

Plus it's hard free, so you can have your hands free to try to boot the device from DCPS, while having an image that is in focus & not moving around.

You can even record a video through the app, while you inject voltage into the short, so you can go back & see exactly which component was it that was heating up.

Save yourself lots of time by getting a Seek Cam, Stand & Macro Lens! ...

00:00:12
If you do consoles, you need this.

Anyone who is doing game console repairs, knows how many screws you need to remove to access the motherboard.

Especially the PS5, with the 5,000 screws or so.

If you don't already have an electric screwdriver, GET ONE ASAP.

🌟 Cordless Screwdriver with T9 Bit: https://amzn.to/3E5duCj
🌟Extended T9 Bit: https://amzn.to/3c4YJac

It's rechargeable through micro USB and allows you to easily swap the tips out. You can also fold it to be straight or L shape.

Let me know below if you are already using an electric screwdriver 👇👇

00:00:03
Want My Panic Log Cheat Sheet? Click Here!

Stop Guessing at iPhone Panic Logs

Panic logs can provide valuable information about why an iPhone is restarting, but identifying the actual cause is not always straightforward.

A panic log may point toward a charging-port assembly, proximity sensor, power circuit, missing sensor, damaged flex cable, or a board-level issue. The difficult part is knowing which component is responsible on each particular iPhone model.

That is why I created the VCC Panic Log Cheat Sheet.

Personally Tested and Verified Solutions

This is not a generic list copied from forums or collected from unverified posts.

The cheat sheet is based on panic logs and solutions I have personally tested and verified while repairing iPhones at VCC Board Repairs. It covers virtually every iPhone model and documents the parts, sensors, flex cables, and circuits commonly associated with specific panic strings and numerical values.

The goal is simple: help repair technicians diagnose restart issues faster and avoid wasting time or money replacing the wrong parts.

...

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Hello, could you please help me how I can join the VIP chat group?

Before & After Pics of my Workbenches 😭

In case you haven't heard, I will be moving from Las Vegas, NV to Star, ID.

In my Las Vegas office, I had fully custom built workbenches for myself & my employee(s). But now it's time to go & tear everything down.

I'm really sad since these benches felt like the perfect layout! Or maybe I just got used to them.

I've attached some pics of what it looked like before & now that's all gone.

I do have some good news tho.... I recorded a detailed video of my office for youtube! I'll be posting that video soon!

Like this post if you want to see that video!

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