Transfer cell phone guts into a "dummy" phone?

Yzzim

Lifer
Feb 13, 2000
11,990
1
76
Bought a Moto ROKR off Ebay and it came in pretty bad condition, the housing was very scratched and the keys were all worn off. Contacted the seller and he gave me a $50 refund no questions asked, so that was pretty nice.

Now, is it possible to transfer the guts of the phone into a "dummy" (display model) phone? I'm looking at this one:

Dummy phone

I'm guessing I'd need a special tool to fit those weird looking screws on the phone. How difficult of a process is this, if it's even possible?
 

tasmanian

Diamond Member
Dec 22, 2006
3,811
1
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Well the only thing that would fix would be the casing scratches. I imagine trying to replace the keys would be a nightmare.
 

Yzzim

Lifer
Feb 13, 2000
11,990
1
76
Originally posted by: tasmanian
Well the only thing that would fix would be the casing scratches. I imagine trying to replace the keys would be a nightmare.

hmm, good point. Actually the keys themselves I could live with if I could save a headache, it's the navigation pad that is worn so heavily.
 

nod218

Member
Nov 18, 2003
165
0
0
I had a same idea awhile back with a Nokia. The dummy phone didn't have screws to take apart and snapped together. Once I had taking it apart there was no way to take out the inside of the dummy phone, it was glued together. You're better off trying to find OEM parts for it.
 

rudeguy

Lifer
Dec 27, 2001
47,351
14
61
Just change the housing. If you can't swing it, ship it to me and I will do it for you for free. Just pay me back for the housing, they can usually be had dirt cheap.
 

2canSAM

Diamond Member
Jul 16, 2000
3,390
4
81
Might work. I did this with an ATT treo 680. Ordered the Crimson Dummy phone off ebay and transferred everything over without a hitch.