Had my flipper for two weeks, caught in rainstorm, appears dead, and it does not look like the device is intended to be fixable

Troubleshooting
#1

After only having my new flipper for 1–2 weeks, it got caught in a rainstorm two days ago, and now appears dead. I have placed it in a bag of rice for 24 hours, and still have not gotten anything out of it.

Attempting to disassemble the device to inspect for damage was a great disappointment. A hundred and fifty bucks is chump change for many of you, but things are not as fortunate over here, and it took a while to save up for when not sold out. The four external screws are known to be problematic for many users, and easily woller the head up. There is no way those connector clips for the ribbons cable were intended for anything other than single use, regardless of using a credit card to gently dislodge them. So, I am unsure if the device was designed at all to be repaired, and I am skeptical if any of the advertised mods to the board are even possible due to the fragility of the device. If I did not know better, it would appear the device was intentionally designed to be disposable, and I am debating returning it.

After finally removing the six screws that should allow the chassis to detach, it doesn’t want to release. I have inspected the device for any retaining clips, found none, and also searched the web for a solution, and found nothing. I have applied pressure to the screen, the keys, and even attempted to gently pry the internals out of the casing, but it will not budge.

Is a little bit of water supposed to kill these devices completely? Is it even possible to fix them?

#2

I’ll say a lot of people have managed to take them apart and put them back together again so it’s definitely doable. I haven’t tried it myself so I’m not going to rate difficulty. There are a couple guides on Ifixit but I bet you saw those since you said you already searched. The good one is linked below in case you haven’t. If you get it fully torn down there is a decent chance the battery is dead. That might be what needs fixed. I don’t have a battery recommendation but I would test the Flipper with whatever Lithium Ion battery I had on hand or attempt to charge the old one with an external charger after testing it for voltage with a multi-meter. Then I’d measure the battery dimensions and replace it with whatever one I found matching the size if I determined the battery was the culprit. Good luck!

#3

I doubt you can do it after unauthorized lossy disassembly.

This was my first question on this forum, and answer I’ve got is like “keep water away from any sensitive electronics, including Flipper”. It is not specifically weatherproofed like a smartphone.