How To Disassemble Nokia E71 & Replace Faceplate

April 26th, 2009 • Mark Guim • Filed Under •

Want to change how your Nokia E71 looks? Why not try a different colored keypad or faceplate? Here are photos and instructions which show you how you can do it yourself. Even though it’s simple, I have to warn you to only try this if you are prepared to risk ending up with a broken phone.

For the extra faceplates and spare parts, many people seem to like CNN.CN. They include the Nokia E71′s faceplate, bottom cover and even a whole body replacement. The instructions below will show you how to remove just the faceplate and bottom cover.

I purposely omit the instructions that will enable you disassemble the phone further because the photos just look plain scary.

Steps

battery cover.jpg
Release battery cover.

remove battery.jpg
Remove battery cover.

Unscrew t4 screws.jpg
Unscrew four T4+ screws.

Open the two clips.jpg
Open the two clips.

do the same other side.jpg
Do the same on the other side.

Lift the bottom cover.jpg
Lift the bottom of top cover NOT the bottom cover!

Remove top cover as shown.jpg
Remove the top cover as shown.

Press out the Qwerty.jpg
Press out the qwerty keypad.

Remove bottom cover.jpg
Remove bottom cover.

Result

That’s it! Here’s a sample result from HoFo member rapidstar who replaced the keypad on his Grey Nokia E71 to white.

White on Grey Nokia E71.jpg

Trying it?

So now that you know how to do it… are you willing to open up your Nokia E71 to change its looks?

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View Comments »

  1. Edward Umana on 27 April 2009:

    Hmmm, thats a good tutorial, I have thought in changing the housing of my E71 to white but I just don't have the nerve to do it, something could go wrong with the 400 dollar device.

  2. Mark Guim on 27 April 2009:

    it looks simple to change just the faceplate and bottom cover. I wouldn't try changing the whole body.

  3. James Whatley on 30 April 2009:

    I was going to ask if you knew of any places where I could get a replacement keyboard having just lost one of my keys…

    But you've answered that already!

    Nice one :)

  4. Take Apart The Nokia E71: Instructions For Changing The Housing, Faceplate, Keypad | nokianewphone on 2 May 2009:

    [...] Click here to find disassembly instructions for the Nokia E71. [...]

  5. New Looks of E71 | Nokia Fanboy on 2 May 2009:

    [...] {via} [...]

  6. Will on 2 May 2009:

    I tried removing the bottom cover and broke the plastic catch on the cover…

  7. Redeye on 3 May 2009:

    I have dust under my screen and scratches on the surface. From the photos it looks like removing and replacing that top cover will allow me to clean out the dust from underneath and replace the scratched surface screen. Is that accurate?

  8. John on 4 May 2009:

    Does anyone have a white steel with the grey keypad?

  9. James Dean on 4 May 2009:

    I've just bought a white one from ebay (~£15)… will report back :)

    I'm also suffering from dust under the screen, but the kit comes with a small brush, which I hope is included to sort precisely that.

    Thinking of keeping the black keyboard though.

  10. abby on 4 May 2009:

    Great post that is very cool , I want to have a try sometime later!
    here I also have a good share that is : Tradestead , which is the best consumer electronics wholesaler I have ever known, there are almost all kinds of popular consumer electronics with a cheaper price that I like it very much!

  11. Duane on 5 May 2009:

    Wow that's a very input on how to change the faceplate, does anyone here knows where to buy the genuine black cover of Nokia E71?

  12. Andrey on 12 May 2009:

    at http://cnn.cn/ you can buy parts for your e71

  13. Rudi Leung on 12 May 2009:

    This is awesome..

  14. Stan X Lee on 14 May 2009:

    cool…

  15. Bill on 18 May 2009:

    The full body change isn't much harder. It took an extra 10 minutes (maybe).
    The antenna at the bottom has to come over and the camera has to fit right. The vibration module needs to be moved and that's about it. Don't forget the SD/USB cover and volume buttons and you're home. I changed my grey e71 to a white one in less than 25 minutes, being especially careful to lay out the old one right next to the new one. I used parts from mytrendyphone.com and had good experience with them.

  16. Michlis on 5 June 2009:

    Hey,
    Does anyone has tried replacement housing for E71 from eBay? They are quite cheap (~20USD) and shipped form China including the tools. Any ideas on quality?

  17. Facebook User on 17 June 2009:

    i have dust under my screen too. it's not too serious not but it could get worse. Author of this article, could you verify?

  18. Neill on 9 July 2009:

    how much does an ori keypad cost? will the white keypad turn greyish or yellowish or somethin similar?

  19. Neill Ng on 9 July 2009:

    omg.. i wana buy a e71 .. white or black keypad??

  20. Dan on 21 July 2009:

    If anyone has worked out how to change the glass lens on the faceplate, could you please let me (and others) know? Thanks!

  21. jefferykeo on 19 August 2009:

    Hi Bill

    You have the step by step guide for full body change? I dropped mine couple of times, and the center body is full of dings.

    Thanks

    Rgds
    JK

  22. cara on 19 October 2009:

    In Melborne where can i take my nokia to have faceplate and back changed?

  23. Jonathan Sklan-Willis on 15 November 2009:

    Beware of mytrendyphone.com – read http://mytrendyphone.snazzymedia.net

  24. Ralph on 1 December 2009:

    http://cnn.cn/shop/nokia-e71-c-24_571.html is a great site for parts, thanks Andry for that post!

    I cracked the lens on my At&t branded Nokia e71x. Anyone know if I'll be OK replacing it with the Nokia E71 OEM Grey Steel lens listed on that site?

    It would be about $20+ cheaper than replacing the whole e71x faceplate, that's available here: http://www.cellulardr.com/products.php?cat=482

    Thanks!

  25. Ralph on 1 December 2009:

    http://cnn.cn/shop/nokia-e71-c-24_571.html is a great site for parts, thanks Andry for that post!

    I cracked the lens on my At&t branded Nokia e71x. Anyone know if I'll be OK replacing it with the Nokia E71 OEM Grey Steel lens listed on that site?

    It would be about $20+ cheaper than replacing the whole e71x faceplate, that's available here: http://www.cellulardr.com/products.php?cat=482

    Thanks!

  26. jamie on 14 January 2010:

    hey my beautiful e71 giot crushed and iv lost the power button for it, it wiorks perfectly however its now died and i cant power it back up thanx

  27. ejfalla on 3 February 2010:

    hi, someone knows how to disassemble w71 cool cellphone (clone of nokia e71)??? because it don't have the clips, it have the 4 screws, but not have clips… thanks a lot.

  28. Capacitive Switch on 4 February 2010:

    great a pretty step by step how to, really helpful. ive been looking for this guide since my keys are fading… and the white looks good

  29. nikhilgarodia on 4 March 2010:

    vewry nice mobile e71…..
    i love dis mobile

  30. Vendetta on 17 March 2010:

    Is this the same steps applied to the Nokia E72, a feedback please. Thanks! Great guide!

  31. nog on 28 March 2010:

    You show am right boss !

  32. rajan2012 on 29 March 2010:

    Any help on changing the housing on a E72 would be great, it ain't the same as the E71 – Thanks

  33. rajan2012 on 29 March 2010:

    Got the same problem as you !!!

  34. MammaRazziii on 30 March 2010:

    Wondering if i could do this with the E72? I have a white E71, but i want to upgrade it to a E72 but they don't come in white! Bummer! Could i change this as well on the E72? Oops, i can c more people asking the same thing, lol!

  35. k850i on 31 March 2010:

    That's a really good demo, wish I had known your site before I damaged my phone. Got another one through insurance but it was a hassle. Will bookmark this for future reference as Im in forever problems with this phone

  36. Jeff on 1 April 2010:

    Not quite sure why you show taking off the bottom cover. This doesn't seem to be required for replacing the keypad. Many thanks anyway! O2 wanted £45 to replace my keyboard as a letter had fallen off and they said it was “cosmetic damage” and not covered under the warranty.

  37. vikeyvivek on 6 April 2010:

    thank you ,,,,,,,,,,,,i cant fint the lock b4 but now am very happy bcz next time i can open very essley
    thaks

  38. Alan Watson on 22 April 2010:

    I use a heat gun at fron the front being carefule not to damage the dust seal on the back of it. Start a at a corner and be gentle patient. Too much force may bend the face plate.

  39. shaima on 28 April 2010:

    go on ebay they have great ones

  40. eccehomo on 29 April 2010:

    Hi.

    Thanks for instructions.

    But what do you mean by “open the clips” ? Do we must push on a clip to open it or do we need to pull it (inserting something between it and the cover) ? Picture is not clear…

    Thanks for helping.

  41. Flaker on 2 May 2010:

    Hi Mark,

    Great guide. Question … I have a nasty scratch in my e71 screen, buying the front cover like this one http://cnn.cn/shop/nokia-grey-steel-lens-p-5787... is enough? does it include the screen “glass”?

    Thanks,

    Flakr

  42. o0sweetcharade0o on 2 May 2010:

    My E71 keeps shutting off/restarting ALL THE TIME as of recently. Sometimes it restarts itself, other times I have to manually turn it back on. I read somewhere that if there is space between the SIM card and the censor, the phone would reset, so I put a small piece of thick paper to ensure 100% contact all the time, but the phone still restarts/shuts off. Is this just me? Would updating the software fix this or is it going to make things worse? I don’t know what to do – the phone works SO well when it is on. It’s frustrating that sometimes it turns off or resets in the middle of texting and so forth. Or when I look at my phone and find that it’s turned off. PLEASE HELP

  43. Lance on 27 May 2010:

    You didnt say how to remove the small bottom cover, does it just lift out? i am preparing my self do do it following your instructions to the letter.. “does it just drop out?

  44. prada outlet on 31 May 2010:

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  45. rajiv on 15 June 2010:

    WHERE CAN I GET A NEW BODY FOR E 71. atlasmotor@hotmail.com

  46. Stav on 15 June 2010:

    thanks for the great demo. I'm not 'techy' guy and yet had no problems by following your demo.

  47. Danny_g443 on 26 June 2010:

    how are you supposed to take off the front screen if you dont have the right tools. can i just go to an ordinary phone store to get them to fix it? my screwdrivers are too big.

  48. Leicaalan on 2 July 2010:

    how do you open the clips? do you push them in or pull them out?

  49. Belly7897 on 19 July 2010:

    Mine does the same thing. It was fine when I got it and then a couple months later started this crap. Have you found a fix yet or are you still having the problem?

    Thanks,

  50. atticus on 30 July 2010:

    Mine was doing the same thing. A new battery has appeared to fix the issue.

  51. Frank Reid on 9 August 2010:

    I am unable to charge my battery on my Nokia E71 the connection inside seems to be broken and now the battery is flat can i buy a and replace the connection board? Frank

  52. Jose_carlos_moya on 1 September 2010:

    You need to change the on/off button I did it and everything ok

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