Since having a child last year, my wife and I often find ourselves confirming that gravity does, in fact, continue to function well. Our toddler trips, sits down abruptly, and drops things from all heights as one would expect from someone still figuring out how her body is working.

You can see where this is going.

One day recently, my daughter reached for something shiny and swiped the corner of my wife's iPhone 3G, spinning it off the table and onto one of its corners against the floor. The top portion of the glass screen fractured, but the phone was still usable. To keep glass shards out of my wife's ear when using the phone, I immediately applied an Artwizz ScratchStopper, a plastic film designed to protect the iPhone's screen.

Next, I researched the options. Although the phone was still under its original warranty, according to Apple's iPhone Service FAQ the "Limited Warranty for iPhone excludes coverage for damage resulting from accident, disassembly, unauthorized service and unauthorized modifications." The other Apple option was to get Out-of-Warranty service, which costs $199 and results in a replacement (refurbished or new) iPhone. (According to Jim Dalrymple at The Loop, Apple is now offering screen-replacement services onsite at Apple retail stores, which also costs $199, since it would be a non-warranty repair. That means the repair can be done without having to send it in or be given a replacement.) We could have also bought a new iPhone 3GS, but since this iPhone 3G wasn't yet a year old, it didn't qualify for AT&T's least-expensive pricing.

Instead, I turned to the do-it-yourself-and-risk-destroying-the-whole-thing approach. A few minutes of searching Google led me to 3G Cracked Glass.com. Site owner Tim Dupree has put together links to companies other than Apple who can do the repair and where to get parts yourself, as well as a tutorial video on making the repair. Although the video lacks narration (which Dupree notes will be added later), I found it helpful to watch someone disassemble the iPhone. For about $80 and four hours of my time (working slowly and deliberately), I successfully fixed the screen myself.

The Parts -- I purchased the iPhone 3G Digitizer and Front Glass with Adhesive Kit from Mission Repair for $59. Taking this route is more advanced than ordering a $119 kit that includes the digitizer, glass, and frame. In hindsight, the latter would have made for a much easier repair, but I was trying to do it myself without spending a lot of money. I had resigned myself to the likelihood that if I messed up and damaged the iPhone, I'd be paying $199 to replace it, so I wanted to reduce the cost of learning my limitations to $59.

I also bought a case opener tool from AX Micro Solutions (Directfix.com) for $3.99. Yes, it's just a molded piece of plastic, and I also ended up paying $3.99 for shipping, and it's silly that I had to go to a second merchant to get the part. However, I don't have a lot of tools, and the thought of using a bare X-Acto knife to pry open the iPhone didn't sound like a great idea. Within a week or so, I had the tools in hand.

I also assembled the other tools I'd need: the SIM removal tool that came with the iPhone, or a small paperclip; a small Phillips screwdriver; a pair of tweezers; a cup to hold the incredibly tiny screws; and a small knife (more on that later). The screwdriver turned out to be a sticking point, because none of mine were small enough. You need a size #000 Phillips head (the middle one in the photo below). I ended up purchasing one at Amazon for about $6 with free Amazon Prime shipping, because not even my local Radio Shack carried one that small.

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