What to do when an Xteink screen cracks

# The first hour

Do these in order. The goal is to keep the free options open, then pick a path without guessing.

1. 1
   Photograph the screen and the whole device

   If the X3 or X4 still shows an image, photograph the front in good light, plus the back, the edges, and any case or accessory that was on it. You need those photos for a warranty email or a shop quote. Do this before you move shards around.

2. 2
   Do not open the case

   Self-disassembly voids the warranty. If the screen died with no drop and no visible crack, a claim may still be possible. Leave the back cover on until you know a claim is closed.

3. 3
   Name the symptom before you buy parts

   Ghosting, white-X4 sunlight fade, a loose ribbon, a dead battery, and a cracked panel all get called "the screen is broken." Only one of those is a repair. Use the table below before you spend money.

4. 4
   If there is no crack and no drop, stop and write support

   A dead zone or a total blackout with no impact can be a 1-year defect claim. A unit that arrived dead, with no physical damage, may still sit inside the 30-day return window. Email support@xteink.com for web-store orders or help@xteink.com for Amazon and TikTok orders. Attach the photos. State the model, the purchase date, and whether the unit is on stock or CrossPoint.

5. 5
   If the glass is cracked, skip the warranty claim

   Physical cracks are always out of warranty. A scratched or physically altered screen also fails the 30-day return. Do not wait a week on a claim that the policy already closes. Pick a path below. Some owners still email support for a paid replacement quote even when out of warranty.

6. 6
   Gloves on if you have to handle cracked glass

   Broken e-ink produces razor-sharp shards. Hairline fractures hold splinters you cannot see. Wear cut-resistant or nitrile gloves before you pick the device up, pocket it, or bag it.

# Is it actually broken?

Pick the closest match. Ghosting, white-X4 sunlight fade, and a loose ribbon are not panel replacements. Firmware procedures live on the firmware pages and in the stock firmware issues guide. This page will not repeat them.

White X4 sunlight fade is reported on white units. It is not confirmed on other colors or the X3. On CrossPoint, the toggle is Display, then Sunlight Fading Fix.

# Four paths after a real crack

Visible glass damage closes the warranty. You have four remaining moves: DIY, a mail-in shop, a new unit, or a long-shot paid request to Xteink. On a $69 X4 or a $79 X3, buying new is the default. The other three have to beat that number.

Both documented community breaks were indirect pressure, not drops. A clip-on reading light cracked an X4 from the top bezel (Jun 2026, 143 points, 51 comments). A cheap third-party glass protector fractured another panel (May 2026, 154 points, 38 comments). That is user damage, so it stays out of warranty. How to avoid each one lives on prevent screen damage.

*Free only when the failure has no physical or impact damage, the device is unmodified, and it is still within its 1-year warranty. Physical cracks are always out-of-warranty. Pro-repair cost is a rough estimate (~$150–400 CAD, from a Canadian e-reader shop). Only a handful of shops take unlisted models, mostly in the US and Canada, and none has publicly confirmed Xteink support, so price and availability vary by region.

# How to pick a path

Work these in order. You are choosing a next action, not collecting opinions.

1. 1
   Rule out a free exit

   Ghosting and white-X4 sunlight fade are firmware. A dead battery is a cable or a ~$10 X3 pogo adapter. A no-drop death is a warranty email. None of those belong in the repair-vs-replace math.

2. 2
   If the glass is cracked, warranty is closed

   Do not spend the week hoping Xteink will replace a spider-webbed panel under the 1-year defect warranty. They will not. A paid out-of-warranty replacement from Xteink is a maybe. The paths you can start today are buy new, DIY, or a shop quote.

3. 3
   Compare every paid path to $69 or $79

   A new X4 is about $69. A new X3 is about $79. DIY is about $75 in tools plus a $14 to $90 panel and 2 to 6 weeks from China. Mail-in e-reader repair runs $150 to $400 CAD. If you do not already own the tools, buying new is usually cheaper and faster.

4. 4
   DIY only if you want the project, or already own the tools

   Must-haves from the parts list: heat gun or hair dryer, plastic pry tools, a metal spudger for the ZIF latch, a precision screwdriver set, tweezers, cut-resistant gloves, 90%+ isopropyl alcohol, and 0.5 mm double-sided tape. If that kit is already on your bench, a $14 panel can beat a new unit. If you have to buy the kit, it rarely does.

# If you still have a warranty path

Use this only when the screen failed with no physical crack and no drop. The full coverage matrix lives on warranty and official options.

1. 1
   Check the two clocks

   The 30-day return and the 1-year defect warranty both start at delivery. A return is the stronger remedy, but only if there is no physical damage and the original packaging is intact. A visible crack closes both clocks.

2. 2
   Keep the case closed

   Xteink's policy says unauthorized hardware disassembly may compromise device integrity. Opening the X3 or X4 ends the claim.

3. 3
   Email support with photos

   Write support@xteink.com for a web-store order, or help@xteink.com for Amazon or TikTok. Name the model, X3 or X4, the purchase date, and the firmware, stock or CrossPoint. If you run custom firmware and you still have a shot at a defect claim, reflash stock first. Warranty contacts and policy · Reflash to stock.

4. 4
   If they decline, come back here

   The coverage matrix and the exact claim wording live on the warranty page. This page is the next decision: buy new, DIY, or ask a shop. Open the warranty page.

# If you buy a new unit

This is the usual answer on a $69 X4 or a $79 X3. You get a working reader in a few days and you skip a voided-warranty teardown.

1. 1
   Price the same model first

   A replacement X4 is about $69. A replacement X3 is about $79. Shipping is usually 2 to 5 days. That is the number every other path has to beat. X4 · X3.

2. 2
   Check the next unit before you buy

   If you want a different size or you are still choosing, compare compact e-readers first. If you are staying with Xteink, read the locked-versus-unlocked buying note so the next unit is one you can flash. Compare compact e-readers · Locked or unlocked · X4 pre-purchase check.

3. 3
   Protect the next panel

   Both documented community breaks were pressure, not drops. Read the prevention guide before the new X3 or X4 ships. Prevent screen damage.

# If you swap the panel yourself

This page will not walk the teardown. The X4 guide is 23 steps. The X3 guide is the X3-specific fork of that procedure. Use those pages for heat, prying, the ZIF latch, and reassembly.

1. 1
   Confirm the math still works

   Tools about $75, plus a $14 to $90 panel, plus 2 to 6 weeks of waiting, plus a voided warranty. A first attempt is 2 to 3 hours. On a $69 X4 that only wins if the tools are already paid for, or you want the teardown.

2. 2
   Source the panel before you open anything

   Xteink does not sell replacement screens. A raw ED043WC3-class 4.3-inch 800×480 parallel panel is about $14. A donor X4 or X3 is about $20 to $90 and is the reliable match. Do not buy a 4.26-inch 800×480 SPI hobby module. Same pixel count, electrically incompatible. Open the device and verify the connector before you order a generic panel. Panels, the interface trap, and tools.

3. 3
   Use the model-specific guide for the teardown

   The X4 opens with heat on the back adhesive and one ribbon cable. The documented procedure is 23 steps in 6 phases. The X3 uses the same glue-based method, with a 3.7-inch panel, pogo-pin charging, and the magnet in the back plate. There is no public X3 teardown as of June 2026, so that guide adapts the X4 procedure. This page does not repeat those steps. X4 screen replacement · X3 screen replacement.

4. 4
   Gloves on before the glass moves

   E-ink glass is thinner than phone glass. Collect every fragment. A stray shard between the new panel and the board ruins the replacement on first power-on. Do not close the case if the new screen is blank.

# If you want a shop to do it

Professional e-reader shops are Kindle, Kobo, and Nook first. An Xteink job is a custom mail-in quote, and none of these services has publicly confirmed X4 or X3 support as of June 2026.

1. 1
   Email before you ship

   No shop on this list has publicly confirmed Xteink X4 or X3 support as of June 2026. They repair other e-readers and will quote unlisted models. Ask before you ship. A refusal after you have paid postage wastes the shipping on a $69 reader.

2. 2
   Send a spec packet, not a mystery box

   Model, X4 or X3. Panel size, 4.3 inches or 3.7 inches. Host chip: the X4 is confirmed ESP32-C3; the X3's exact variant is unconfirmed. Connector: ZIF, a zero-insertion-force ribbon socket. Build: adhesive back cover. Clear photos of the crack.

3. 3
   Compare the quote to a new unit

   Mail-in e-reader repair runs about $150 to $400 CAD and 1 to 3 weeks. If the quote lands above a new X4 or X3, buy new.

# Is buying a second unit practical?

Yes. Parts are hard to source, and a new X4 or X3 is often cheaper than a shop. Every route with the verified numbers:

# Handling a cracked panel

If you open the X3 or X4 for a reseat, a panel swap, or a look, read this before the glass moves.

1. 1
   Gloves before you pick it up

   Wear cut-resistant or nitrile gloves. Even a hairline crack holds splinters you will not see until they are in a fingertip.

2. 2
   Do not pocket it with keys or coins

   The chassis has no buffer around the panel. A cracked face plus a house key finishes the job and throws more glass.

3. 3
   Keep shards out of a later repair

   If you later open the X3 or X4, collect every fragment before the new panel goes in. A stray shard between the panel and the PCB will ruin the display.

# Where each path goes next

The exact page for the path you picked. DIY splits X4 versus X3.

# Common questions