[Nexus 7 General] Farfle:
Another Fix for the Nexus 7 screen lift issue

I've found a new fix for the screen lift issue that worked for me; I never post on these things, but this has been bugging me so much that I though I should share this with others who have had to contend with this issue. Please do not hold me responsible if you take these somewhat "drastic" measures and they don't work for you in the same way they did for me. Also note that this procedure will certainly void your warranty, so proceed at your own risk.

I am on my third N7, so I simply examined the device myself and went through with what I thought was necessary to fix it. My first two N7s had the screen flicker issue and all of them had the screen lift. This third device didn't have the flicker issue, but the screen lift was the worst on this one than my previous two; it was the only one that not only had a perceptible lift above the bezel, but was also very squishy and made a clicking or shifting sound when I pressed it. This became particularly annoying every time I tapped the home button in portrait.

I have also tried a lot of the common fixes online: tightened all the screws, loosened the ones on the left side a bit, made the washers as suggested on this thread, etc. What I found when I took the back off, however, was that I could easily run my guitar pick (which I used to pry off the back) along the groove on the *right* side, but could not do the same on the left problem side. Aside from the four-pin connector and a part in the middle, each screw appears to have a three ridged "grate" as part of the inside mould which doesn't allow a deep groove along the entire left side like it does on the right side. Also, the back cover has a number of ridges sticking out (likely to block out dust, etc.) in addition to the clips that hold the back cover in place. In my thinking, then, I thought that perhaps those ridges on the back cover were pushing down on the elevated portions inside the N7, thereby pushing out the screen on the left side along with it. It would make sense, since there is such a deep groove on the right side to accommodate the right-side ridges on the back cover, which isn't the case for the left side. It seemed, therefore, that there was a flaw in the design of the shape of the mould for the back cover.

So, since this was my third device, and I simply didn't care what the results would be out of frustration, I ever-so-carefully trimmed or scraped off any ridge that wasn't a clip along the left side with a jack knife. Then, (and I don't know if this was necessary), I watched a video to heat up the N7 and placed a stack of books on it over night (ensuring that the bottom book was aligned with the screen inside the bezel).

Now, I have tried many adjustments, and after each of the probably 50-ish times I've carried out these various methods, the screen popped back up after only about 15 minutes of use. It's now been about a week of fairly heavy use, and the screen is still below the bezel where it belongs.

There are three additional points: first, this methods was implemented in conjunction with the aforementioned book-stacking and the washer method. I don't know how much the book-stacking played a part, but the washers by themselves did nothing for me (I just haven't removed them b/c I didn't want to risk messing with a good thing). Second, because I removed all those ridges on the back cover, there is a barely perceptible gap between the silver bezel and back cover. In my opinion, it is not enough to let dust in, and it is certainly much, much, MUCH more preferable to the screen lift. Third, this method isn't perfect; there is still the slightest of slightest lift in one place (more near the bottom, in portrait), but it is enormously better than it was before.

I've included a few images that show the "grates" by the screws and elevated portions that the ridges on the back cover were pushing down on, the trimmed or scraped-off sections on the back cover where the ridges used to be and used to push down on these elevated portions inside the N7, the end results that show the screen below the bezel from two perspectives, and the size of the "gap" between the silver bezel and back cover after the procedure.

I truly hope this helps everyone relieve some frustration.

Inside "grates" by screws aren't deep enough to accommodate ridges on the back cover.

another elevated portion

groove isn't deep enough

Trimmed-off ridges on the back cover

results

results from the other side -- silver is visible

picture of the widest portion of the resulting nearly imperceptible gap between the bezel and back cover