People all over the world mail their broken iPhones to microsoldering specialist Jessa Jones. Aided by powerful microscopes and precision soldering irons, experts like Jessa pluck tiny chips off logic boards, swap them for new ones, and resurrect devices over which Apple’s Genius Bar would say a eulogy.
Jessa can fix practically anything. But these days, she spends most of her time fixing just one thing. Because every single month, more and more iPhone 6 and (especially) 6 Plus devices show up at her shop, iPad Rehab, with the same problem: a gray, flickering bar at the top of the display and an unresponsive touchscreen.
The gray flickering bar you can see across the top of this iPhone is a classic symptom of a problem that repair pros are seeing in more and more iPhone 6 and 6 Plus devices.
Turns out, Jessa’s not alone. Lots of repair pros are experiencing the same influx of faulty iPhones—most with flickering gray bars and all with glitchy touch functionality. Rami Odeh, a repair tech from New Orleans, sees up to 100 iPhone 6 and 6 Pluses a month that don’t respond well to touch. About half of the repairs sent to Michael Huie—the specialist behind Microsoldering.com—show symptoms of the same problem.
Of course, there’s no way to tell exactly how many phones are afflicted with what we’re calling Touch Disease, but every repair tech we spoke to told us that the problem is incredibly common.
“This issue is widespread enough that I feel like almost every iPhone 6/6+ has a touch of it (no pun intended) and are like ticking bombs just waiting to act up,” says Jason Villmer, owner of STS Telecom—a board repair shop in Missouri. He sees phones like this several times a week.
If pages and pages of complaints on Apple’s support forum are any indication, Apple’s aware there’s a hardware issue with the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus—but they aren’t doing anything about it.
“I took [my phone] to the ‘Geniuses’ at Apple Store in Westfield Valley Fair mall (Santa Clara, CA),” one iPhone 6 Plus owner wrote on Apple’s support forum. “After a very long wait (~2 hrs) I finally met with a rep. He acknowledged the problem (he was very familiar with it), but said Apple doesn’t recognize it as an issue, and so there is not much he can do.” Another iPhone 6 Plus owner was apparently told by an Apple employee that people come in with this issue “several times per day.” “After talking to a tech, I got exactly what I expected ‘You’re out of warranty and you’re [sic] only option is to buy a new phone,” the user wrote.
Despite Apple’s white flag, some afflicted users have noticed that strategically twisting the phone a bit or putting pressure on the screen reverses the issue for a while. The gray flickering bar goes away. After a short remission, though, the iPhone illness gets worse. The insidious gray bar of death spreads. Touch functionality gets increasingly glitchier. Eventually, the phone loses touch completely.
Here’s where the plot thickens: Replacing the touchscreen doesn’t fix the problem. The gray bar eventually shows up on the new screen, too. Because, according to repair pros, the problem isn’t the screen at all. It’s the two touchscreen controller chips, or Touch IC chips, on the logic board inside the phone.
These two Touch IC chips—known as the U2402 Meson and Cumulus U2401 chips, as Apple refers to them—are the root cause of the touch epidemic repair pros have been seeing in the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus. Here they are pictured in the iPhone 6.
These two chips translate your finger mashing on the display into information your phone can actually use. When the Touch IC chips go bad, you can jab, tap, and poke the screen all you want—your phone can’t correctly process the information. At least, not until the bum chips are replaced with new ones.
Apple’s repair Geniuses aren’t equipped to make specialized repairs to the logic board in-house, so they can’t actually fix Touch Disease. But skilled, third-party microsoldering specialists (most “unauthorized” to do Apple repairs, according to official company policy) can fix phones with symptoms of Touch Disease. And they can do it a whole lot cheaper than the cost of a new logic board or an out-of-warranty phone replacement. Which is precisely why so many of these damaged iPhones are finding their way into repair shops around the world.
“The issue is ridiculously widespread and Apple should’ve issued a recall or maybe a free warranty repair on this problem already,” Huie told me via email. “If you own an iPhone 6+ and haven’t experienced the problem yet, then I think the chances are pretty high that you’ll experience it during the lifetime of the phone.”
After fixing hundreds of broken iPhone 6 and 6 Pluses, many pros have developed theories about what causes Touch Disease in these two specific models. One microsoldering pro I spoke to speculated that the U2402 Meson chip—one of the two Touch IC chips on the board—has a manufacturing defect. But the most popular theory I heard is that Touch Disease is the unanticipated, long-term consequence of a structural design flaw: Bendgate.
Back when the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus were first released, some owners discovered that the large, wide phones had a nasty habit of molding themselves to the shape of your rump if left too long in a back pocket. The phenomenon, known as Bendgate, was ostensibly put to bed when Apple apparently strengthened weak points in the rear case of the iPhone 6s.
“But the fact remains—compared to earlier iPhone models, the iPhone 6/6+ is kind of a ‘bendy’ phone. Its slim form factor and larger surface area subject the logic board within the phone to mechanical flexion pressure that no other iPhone has had to deal with,” Jessa explains in a detailed blog post. The iPhone 6 Plus—the wider of the two phones—appears to be especially susceptible to this kind of damage.
In both the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, the Touch IC chips connect to the logic board via an array of itty-bitty solder balls—“like a plate resting on marbles,” Jessa explains. Over time, as the phone flexes or twists slightly during normal use, those solder balls crack and start to lose contact with the board.
“At first, there may be no defect at all. Later you might notice that the screen is sometimes unresponsive, but it is quick to come back with a hard reset,” Jessa explains. “As the crack deepens into a full separation of the chip-board bond, the periods of no touch function become more frequent.” Any drops or heavy handling keep chipping away at the cracked solder balls. Damage enough of them, and the connections between the chips and the logic board are severed, signals are lost, touch gets glitchier, and then goes away altogether.
Of course, the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus are also big phones—so why doesn’t Touch Disease happen to them, too? It turns out that size matters—but it’s not the only thing that matters. In the iPhone 6s/6s Plus, Apple moved the susceptible Touch IC chips off the logic board and onto the display assembly, presumably sheltering them from most of the flexing forces the logic board is subjected to.
And repair professionals have singled out other problematic design elements of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus. In other phones, a little blob of cured “underfill” beneath critical chips helps to keep solder balls secure—but there’s no underfill anchoring Touch IC chips to the board in the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus. In previous iPhone models, Apple also covered the Touch IC chips with a rigid, metal EMI shield. In the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, the rigid shield was replaced with a pliable sticker shield.
“Since the Touch IC chip doesn’t have underfill, nor a metal backing, it seems to be the first to ‘break off’ the logic board,” Huie explains. “When I say ‘break off,’ I mean the solder joints break off from the chip, which causes the no touch.”
So what do you do if you see a gray, flickering bar at the top of your iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus? That twisting trick we mentioned earlier? Turns out putting pressure on the screen allows the chip to make full contact with the board again, Jessa explained. But it’s not a permanent fix. It’s a bandaid—and a poor one, at that (don’t break your phone trying to fix it, please). The only permanent fix is to replace the phone (expensive), replace the logic board (also expensive), or replace both Touch ICs on the board (less expensive).
Watch our interview with Jessa to learn more:
So, if you’re experiencing symptoms of Touch Disease and you’re still in warranty—now might be a good time to take advantage of that warranty replacement option. Though, there’s no guarantee that your replacement phone won’t suffer from the same issue somewhere down the line, too.
If you’re out of warranty, you can take your phone to an electronics repair shop that offers board-level repairs. A good microsolderer can replace those two Touch IC chips on the iPhone’s logic board for less than the price of a new phone. (Make sure the shop you choose replaces the chips, and doesn’t just reflow them, warns Jessa. Reflowing—or heating up the chips until the solder melts and reconnects to the joint—doesn’t fix the loss of touch in the long run. The problem tends to come back.)
In order to ensure that Touch Disease is actually cured, some repair shops have been experimenting with ways to keep the logic board from flexing. After a Touch IC repair, iPad Rehab, for example, has been adding a strong metal shield over the top of the chips as an internal reinforcement.
“We have found that placing our own mod—a metal shield soldered over the sticker shield—seems to protect the phone from future recurrence of the problem. We (and others) have only recently started sending out our Touch IC jobs with the ‘futureproof’ shield on them,” Jessa says. So far, she says, none of her customers have reported any adverse effects from the hardware mod.
Of course, no option involving independent repair would be endorsed by Apple. In fact, Jessa and colleague Mark Shaffer have been censored and banned from posting on Apple Support Communities for explaining why touch fails and suggesting third-party repair as a solution.
Repair pro Mark Shaffer’s post on Apple Support Community before it was edited by a mod.
And after.
So it seems like Apple is happy to sell people replacement phones, but they seem unwilling to point iPhone owners to the only people who can actually fix the problem: independent repair shops.
“[Apple doesn’t] tell customers they can get it fixed at an independent service center. They don’t offer repair of it at all. The only option that Apple offers to people who encounter this problem is ‘Would you like to buy a new iPhone?” says Louis Rossmann—a board repair expert from New York City—in a YouTube video on the topic.
Rossmann predicts that, eventually, the Touch Disease problem will probably explode into a class action lawsuit—at which point Apple will be forced to respond with some sort of extended warranty program. But only if customers start banding together and demanding more support from Apple for this problem.
If you’ll remember, it took an exposé and a massive public outcry for Apple to address Error 53—and that was a comparatively easy-to-fix software issue. Touch Disease is a hardware problem; Apple can’t fix this thing with an iOS update. Addressing Touch Disease is going to be more complicated, and more costly. But if the issue is as widespread as repair pros suspect, then Apple should start offering customers solutions instead of excuses. And they need to do it soon.
“Apple has designed phones better than this in the past. They need to design phones better than this in the future,” says Rossmann. “And they need to take accountability and responsibility for the devices that people have been paying for right now that don’t work the way they’re supposed to.”
Julia Bluff is a writer, blogger, and repair advocate at iFixit.com
Repair is noble.

Never seen so much speculation and anecdote in one place before. I’m not sure whether to be appalled or impressed.
We at The Cell Phone Doctor in CORINTH, MS see upwards of 100+ of these myself, replacing both IC’s and adding the mod seem to help. It only seems to be a growing problem with the age of these two devices as well.
I had this exact issue and it’s very frustrating. It started out happening only once and awhile until it got so bad that I couldn’t even use my phone. I took my first one back to Apple and got it replaced under the 1 year warranty, but now only 9 months later the phone is doing the exact same thing and I can’t even use it. I went back to the Apple store yesterday and they said sorry its out of warranty the only thing they could do would to be sell me a refurbished iPhone for $450! After arguing with them, the “Genius” said the best he could do would be to say it had a battery issue and he would get me a replacement for $99. I took this deal since I knew Apple would never give me a new phone for free. I’m very frustrated with Apple right now and have lost all my faith in them. I will help support this cause in any way I can because Apple needs to be admitting to their design flaw and offer people an extended warranty or give them a 6S/6S+ since they resolve the issue in this model.
I have had four 6 Plus’s replaced by Apple due to this problem. And in my experience, I agree that flex is the source of the problem.
After much polite insistence, I was told by Apple Support that if my latest phone did it again they would give me a 6S Plus. That was four months ago and so far it’s fine.
I must admit that I am slightly skeptical as to the extent of the defects described. I personally cannot say I’ve ever seen this issue – and I work in a cellular retail location as the de facto tech on-site. I’m not saying the issue does not exist, only that it is likely not as extreme in its severity as described in the article.
https://discussions.apple.com/message/30558185?ac_cid=tw123456#30558185
Austin: If you haven’t seen the issue please take a look at the link above. I am an Apple fanboyz (that’s how you can describe me) but until i have the issue, I have full faith in Apple that they will always do the right thing. Even after the Jobs; Tim Cook hails from my Alma Mater, and Ivy (my industrial design idol). I googled and have seen so many people asking for the same issue. I felt like I am cheated, and even feel like Class Action (even though I believe US already has too many litigations). I can post the videos of the same issue. This is after two phones (One replaced new phone)
What a mess!
Reminds me of the Palm T3 digitizer fiasco. Then, though, a replacement digitizer took care of things.
As to this, going forward, a key solution is to always buy Square Trade ADH warranty protection with the iPhone. If you have, then, if you drop it, bend it, spill water on it, break it, etc.
They will fix it!
Or, cover the costs of repair by Apple or anyone else.
I don’t work for them, but am a happy customer.
Alas, it seems that Apple’s quality control has gone down, so such protection is essential!
This is a joke my phone was out of warranty for like 2 months and Apple wanted me to pay $350 to fix it. It’s not like the will go broke doing the right thing.
The HUMIDITY makes mine act up; I was in Tokyo Japan last week when it was extremely humid and hot and alway act up outside, but when air conditioned and cooled, the grey bar and the nonresponsiveness goes away. But when back outside in the heat and humidity the grey bar forms and the touch screen is non-responsive.
Now, anticipating the iPhone 7 being release very soon, and my plans to buy one are in place, I feel worried about my ability to resell my 6 Plus.. Mine works fine now… I hope this won’t affect the resale value.. :(
This happened to me and from searching around online and talking to Apple employees – it is indeed a wide spread issue.
If this is happening to you the best course of action is to call Apple Care tech support and politely complain about the issue. If the initial person doesn’t agree to replace for free – escalate to a supervisor. They can do the paperwork on their end and schedule an appointment for you. This way you don’t need to haggle with an Apple store employee – I was told that they cannot do much in store.
Hopefully the phone they gave me doesn’t get the same issue again :(
The issue seems to be more serious on iPhone 6 Plus with PCBs supplied by UMT. The UMT board itself is more prone to be damaged by bending, not only the solder balls, but the pads and wiring on the PCBs sometimes get pulled. Reworking does not fix these kinds of damage, you have to test the pads for open circuit and run a wire to fix the damage.
In China, repair shops usually refuse warranty or charge extra if they fix iphones with UMT PCB, because they are so easy to fail again.
Yes bring it to unofficial repairs so they can totally destroy your iPhone as it happens 90% of time!
iFixit is a great site (i’m a costumers too), sadly this propaganda and articles are pathetic. Not everybody SHOULD try to repair devices since 99% of population are clueless, stop this no sense. Apple do the right thing to don’t accept unofficial repairs, users always blame Apple omg someone else not their own stupidity, in my work at least one time a day i must talk to an idiot who blame Apple if his iPhone broke when he jumped for month on it or because it fell in water for just a minute… damn you are idiots, iFixIt staff too sadly.
I had a different problem on my iPhone 5s which was if you deleted a phone contact the next day it would come back Apple told me that you must switch off the contacts in the iCloud ,which I did but it was still happening it was only after the latest upgrade to 9.3.4 that the problem was cured
I am on my 3rd 6Plus. I have been given a “new phone twice, but now I am over the warranty (which is only the original phone’s first year! Each time, they told me there was nothing they could do but replace it. Mine has only lasted an average of 4 months each time, and now I have almost given up but for this article. They want me to pay 329.00 for a 4the replacement. Not only is that unacceptable, but I don’t want a 6 plus anymore. It will do the same thing in 4-6 months. Mine is a 128 gigabyte model, so every time has been a 1000.00 bucks worth of exchange for the same damn problem. You would thing Apple would have come up with a better policy on these phones than “oops your warranty is out”. I have been an apple fan since ’86, own Mac Pro’s, MacBook Pro’s, iMac’s, 5S, 6S Plus and have never been more disappointed!
I’m on my third 6+ in 18 months. Sounds like it’s only a matter time before I’m on my fourth!
I’m not sure I’d be happy to take my phone to an unauthorised repairer but let’s face it these phone aren’t cheap to replace if you don’t have any warrantee left.
People dismissing this issue or expressing skepticism obviously have no idea how often this is occurring.
Happened to me, now im the priud owner of a Galaxy S7 couldnt be happier OMG this thing has everything i was missing on my iphone, not going back now, besides i want a headphone jack and i dont need apple or anyone telling me i cant.
Luckily I have the 6S plus but if I had the problem I would not hesitate to send it to Jessa at Ipadrehab. She does great work, as does Louis!
Who puts a $700 phone in their back pocket? That just seems like the worst place for it.
This is why I’m glad I’ve always chosen the “S” models over non-S models.
The S models have tended to be a lot less trouble than the non-S models.
What took you guys so long? This has been happening since day one. It’s still a 1-2 per hour per tech issue in most stores. Keep putting this info out!
I’m on my 5 th IPhone 6plus. Lucky to have Apple Care Plus. The Apple Genius mentioned an internal company memo that addressed this problem, originating in one of four factories that manufacture the motherboard , so assuming it’s true probably 25% of all 6 plus models might experience this problem. The Apple Genius said they’ve been trying to weed out all the defective phones as customers brought them in . Not sure what happens if your warranty expired. Doesn’t seem right if they make you pay over $300 for a replacement. And even with the Apple Care Plus it’s been an inconvenience having to go through all the replacements.
It’s about time this issue got notice. I ended up cracking my screen doing the ‘bandaid’ fix for months, just got it repaired from Apple OOW, and of course, the display still is screwed up. Fortunately, I’ll probably be able to get a new one since I just paid $140 for a ‘display repair’ and got a new 90 day warranty on their repair, but we all know even a new one is probably not going to last until iPhone 7S/8 comes out. Apple, this is disappointing and should be an extended warranty repair for all affected units.
Wow. Happened to me yesterday. Exact issue with that strange bar at the top, then touch screen is largely unresponsive. Started on its own, without dropping or abusing phone. This “6 plus” turns out to be a big minus!
In New Zealand, if an Apple product fails just outside their standard one-year warranty, or within a reasonable period thereafter, perhaps within the expected life of the battery, Apple cannot wash their hands of any liability.
Our Consumer Guarantees Act says products have to be durable, based on what a reasonable person would expect.
Slightly ITT reporting I think – Must be a US thing – I run a Repair company in the UK and have not once seen this issue . We repair over 100 iPhones phones a week
If this is just a “cracked solder” issue, why must the chips be replaced? Why not just clean off the old solder and resolder them back on?
If the problem is with the touch controller chips and replacing the screen doesn’t help, why does it manifest as a grey bar as well as lack of response to touch? The touch controller chips have nothing to do with the display driver or the connection to the screen. The touch sensitive layer in the display is on a separate ribbon cable to the RGB part, so why the grey bar?
Also as Kim says, if it’s just cracks in the solder joints, heating the board up to reflow the solder should fix it – no replacement chips needed.
It doesn’t seem like the causation / correlation has been completely figured out here, but bravo on becoming a world wide story…
I am on my 6th 6 plus with the same problem Everytime!!! I wonder why they won’t replace them with a new 6 +S just to take care of their customers?! It’s ridiculous!
I’ve had the same Touch Screen problem with my iPhone 6 six months after purchasing new, but without the flickering gray bar. I took it to the local Apple Geniuses Bar in Sarasota for repair. By now the phone was already out of warranty. Apple offered to replace the screen at a cost of $105 or new phone. Now that I read it’s not the screen itself, glad I did nothing. For the past year the problem raised it’s ugly head about once or twice a week. I have to do a hard reset to get it functional again. Sometimes one hard reset will not suffice. But the problem will usually repeat itself all day long. Very, very frustrating and annoying. Then the problem goes away for a couple of days or maybe a week and then return. I have enjoyed Apple products since 1981 (six Apple ll’s) and only wish Apple would honor the faithful by listening and fixing a well documented problem. Shame on Apple (as I was writing this on my iPad, suddenly everything got refreshed and the above was wiped out – but I had saved! Suspicious! Does Apple have control over complaints. :-).
On my second 6+ and this one has the same defect IC, went to the apple store here in Sweden and they told me to pay 350 USD to get an refurbished 6+. Apple doesnt take responsibility for their products so its seems !
this will be my last apple product…
This exact same thing happened to my iPhone 6 Plus last week. Touch screen became semi-responsive; then very quickly completely unresponsive, with the narrow grey band at top of screen flickering. Once the touch screen is non-functional, the iPhone was effectively useless: can’t use any apps; can’t initiate or receive any calls. Apple tech support via chat was not a good use of time. I went to Apple Store and they replaced my phone under Apple Care warranty (one month remaining). But a frustrating pain in the neck and time consuming problem to deal with. Come on Apple: if you know this defect is a widespread product defect problem, then own up to it and replace with phone versions that don’t have this continued problem. And take care of customers who are out of warranty. And whose replacements suffer the same fate.
My sons 6plus has this issue. Phone is pretty much bricked now. The touchscreen does not work at all. Warranty is out, so had to activate his old 4s. Took it to the Apple store and they said since not under warranty we would have to purchase a new phone. Sign me up for the class action lawsuit.
Same here! I hav to paid to get a replacement phone! So unfair! I loved apple product but this disappoints me.
I’m on my 3rd iPhone 6 Plus. The previous 2 having succumbed to the flickering and unresponsive screen issue. Fortunately, Apple had to replace them under UK consumer law as they were under 2 years old. But when you’ve paid nearly £900 for a phone and carefully looked after it, you’d expect to get more than 2 years use out of it.
This is happening on my iPhone6 and it seems to be getting worse. Just happened 2 nights ago in fact. My screen showed a weird green zigzag and was unresponsive, then turned off. I couldn’t restart for at least 5 minutes. C’mon Apple- admit your mistake and fix this.
I had exactly the same problem as this, but thankfully Apple replaced my phone for free (Apple Store, Palo Alto). Glad we’ve established this is a real problem and that I wasn’t the only one going through it.
Had this EXACT issue with my 6plus. Definitely a design fault. Apple were quick to replace it (although genius did say it was MY fault for keeping my phone in my pocket and saying I had slightly bent it over time). I did laugh; where else do men keep their phones if not in their pockets?! Anyway, exchanged for free and second one has been fine for now. If it happens again, out of warranty, I’ll know to push for a replacement.
I wouldn’t have thought replacing the chip is nesasary and I’m sure just a re flow would solve the problem, then maybe add a little metal plating for added strength to prevent further flex damage
I’m on my 2nd year with my original iPhone 6Plus. No hardware issues. I’ve taken it to go bike riding, the beach, several trips around the world. I accidentally dropped it a few times. Still works!
YMMV
Never had this problem, but I do have an issue with my Bluetooth headset. Apple acknoweldged last year, upon release of iOS9 that they are aware of the problem and that it is an APPLE issue. Also confirmed this with LG as a member of their executive office has the same issue.
The problem still exists. I know of others with the same problem. Yet Apple has kept quiet, refusing to warn consumers about potential BlueTooth issues.
Why is NO one talking about this? I’ve called and written to many Tech writers and no response. Is everyone afraid to report bad things about Apple?
My 6+ just started doing this last week. No Bueno…
My iPhone 6 plus has been doing this for the past week or so. Took it to the Apple store but they said they couldn’t do anything about it. I’ve been a loyal Apple consumer for a couple years now and recently I have been more frustrated with them than ever before.
I brought this great product when it launched for $900 64gb unlocked to last me atleast 3-4 years and now its unusable after only 1 year and 11 months.
Yes, I have the same issue, usually occurs on hot and humid days, I think Apple should provide a fix at their a cost, it is a most expensive phone. Car defects are fixed by the manufacturers so Apple should pay for this defect.
In response to the shop owners that claim to not have seen this problem in droves–seriously? Even shops that only fix MacBooks are getting people coming in for touch ic failure. Wake up!
In response to above comment about visual artifacts not being related to touch ic–not true. Pull a meson touch ic chip off the board or bridge any related touch cap–you will see lines in the display.
In response to folks insisting that reflow can solve. It doesn’t. Reflow is a band aid that works no better than paper shims and other easy fixes. We have been dealing with this problem for a year—those strategies definitely don’t work long term. The only robust solution to date is replacing the touch ics and adding a metal futureproof shield on the back of the board.
Unfortunately this affects also my 6s plus. Since I have the phone, I miss around 5% of the phone calls in locked state because of being unable to swipe (yes this is my first iPhone and I am very disappointed from this not even being able to use this AS A PHONE!). Screen always works fine after the call has been lost. At first I thought its the screen protector as I have barely any apps installed which could have screwed up the system… I just hope that this creates enough public pressure that they offer a free fix for this, a class action or I will sell this crap to make it someone else’s problem.
Spread the word:
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/aug/24/touchscreen-chip-flaw-iphone-6-plus-touch-disease
The touch feature you have described is exactly the problem I am having. The AT & T store offered to sell me a new phone, or as another solution they suggested that I might wait and buy a new one in September or October. The only other suggestion was for me to take it to an Apple Store, but the closest one is over 90 miles away. I left The AT & T store as a very unhappy customer. There is an interesting article today in the Wall Street Journal about this problem. It is a huge problem for iPhone 6 users. This is the link: http://www.siliconbeat.com/2016/08/24/touch-screen-woes-plague-Apple-iPhone-6/
The Toys-R-Us and we don’t even know!
Fuck your use of quotation marks
The Problem here is USER. I have seen the comments on here but NO ONE has said how they use their phone. Well I will tell you. People put the phone (earpiece first) into their purse, backpack, or back pocket..
I see people doing this EVERY day. Now over time that part of the phone will be worn.. you can’t TELL me its a coincidence that the same area of the phone that will be in contact with the high wear especially given its in the back pocket.
Of COURSE a new iPhone 6 S will not have this problem.. YET.. you haven’t HAD it long enough for it to wear..
This is a USER related, misuse problem NOT a defect. PERIOD. ITs how people treat their phone which is lick a worthless trinket, not an expensive device that should be taken care of.
This is NOTHING more than attempted hype by iFixIt to extort either some attention from Apple or money or both… This is simply a matter of PEOPLE misusing their devices..
So tell me why is it ONLY at the top? huh.. it seems logical it should appear ANYPLACE on the screen if this is a “random” problem with the touch screen..
It’s not a random location and its not widespread (100 a month reported in different locations is hardly representative if the 100 million Apple has sold).. even collectively is a VERY small percentage.
This is a USER related issue not a manufacturers defect and if it *IS* a defect it should appear regardless but its not.. I have had my iPhone 6 Plus (not ‘S’) for 21 months.. and its fine because I have a case and I KNOW how to take care of expensive things apparently MOST people do not.
Therefore this is not an Apple problem probably why we have not heard a statement.. PEOPLE are the problem not the device.
Richard – that is ridiculous. People have been putting phones in their pockets, purses or backpacks since smartphones EXISTED and this has never been a problem. Why would a change in behavior NOW be necessary?
It IS ABSOLUTELY a defect, because phones have not done this before.
Also, the 6S has been out for nearly a year, and some of these people have gone through multiple phones in 18 months, so OBVIOUSLY they don’t all show up after a year of use. Your entire argument is beyond RIDICULOUS and you should keep your mouth SHUT.
Apple does not comment on things like this QUITE often, as they don’t want to draw ATTENTION until they cannot ignore it any more.
* use of CAPS LOCK was meant to mock you further, in case that went over your head too.
I had a iPhone 6 Plus that had this problem. Very very frustrating. I took it to the apple shop, 3 months out of 1 yr warranty. They seemed to recognise the issue straight away and said i had to buy a new phone but at a reduced price. And the new phone only carries 3 months warranty. All seems a bit of a con to me. Would be really interesting to know if they are made to fix the issue for phones that are post the 12 month warranty.
I have the exact symptoms described with my 6plus. I took it to the Apple Store and was told a new phone was needed.
Extremely frustrating. The phone is little over 2 years old.
I had 4 iPhone 6 plus’ replaced for this exact fault, they ended up giving me a 6plus s.
It took some serious effort to get apple to admit that all 4 definitely had the same fault, but the level of evidence i submitted resulted in them sighing and giving in.
After I bought my new iPhone 6 Plus, about 10 months later , I had noticed that my touch screen would not work all the time, took it to the Genius Bar and they replaced the screen. 3 months after that the problem keeps reappearing …. Now what ? my warranty is expired!
[quote]”It IS ABSOLUTELY a defect, because phones have not done this before.”[/quote]
No, but prior to the iPhone it’s blinding true that phones had other issues. I guess if you want to call them defects. I mean it’s one thing if the wheels fall off of your Corvette, it’s quite another if you constantly drive it on rough, uneven roads littered with debris and pot-holes. This isn’t to say that Apple should get a pass, but this is the first I’ve heard of the issue.
We had two iPhone 6 Plus phones my wife’s and mine. Both phones had this exact issues as you mentioned on this article. My phone was recently replaced and my wife was replaced last February. My phone is obviously okay sinced it’s just been replaced but my wife’s phone that got replaced last February is showing the same kind of problem again. I really think that Apple should acknowledge this issue and really should do something about it. We should spread the word out and maybe we can get Apple to listen. People who are having this issue needs to come forward and make there voices heard. We deserve a reliable iPhone like the iPhone’s that came before the iPhone 6 Plus.
Sounds like not putting your phone in your pocket is good preventative maintenance. I suggest putting your phone in an Otter Box the day you get it and leave it in there. Never put your phone in you pocket, I see chicks all the time with their phone sticking out of their back pocket. I just shake my head and go about my business.
I run a mail-in board repair business in Australia. (geelongmicrosoldering.com.au)
At any given time, i have minimum one of these on my desk. More often than not i have more than 5.
At this very point in time i have 7 in my queue and 5 on my completed shelf.
I get more sent to me every day. Its getting to a point where maybe 40% of the devices in my queue are touch ic, most of those 6 plus.
The “future proof” shielding definitely helps. Prior to the notion, which came from Larry Johnson at HandHeldRehab, the reality is that the return rate of iPhone 6 plus touch ics was higher than anyone wanted to talk about.
You could replace the IC’s but the structural issue that resulted in the original failure was bound to come back eventually.
So now we all replace both IC’s and add a metal shield to give the board some structure, and we rectify part of a design issue, and fix the issue without the need to completely replace the device.
Thats what independent repair is. A community of individuals who go the extra mile to find out how and why an issue exists, without hiding the details.
It will be interesting to see apples response this time, but i feel like they either have to admit there is an issue and offer a recall, or admit there is an issue and support independent repairers who are doing everything they can to rectify the issue, and not keeping it a secret at all.
I have experienced these problems recently with my 6s and I’m glad to find out it is a problem. I been going crazy trying to figure out what the heck is going on. One thing I hate is that if I go to Apple they will replace it with another refurbished phone and its a crap shoot if you actually get a phone that will have no problems or not. Why cant they replace it with a New phone that they know wont have these issues for sure rather than how than a refurbished one that may have the same problem. Yes it does happen. After all these phones aren’t cheap and you should be getting a quality phone to begin with. It would be nice if they just fix the problem but that would be asking a lot.
Richard Parker, you are wrong.
People have been putting their phones into purses, backpacks, and back pockets since phones existed.
Also, how do you know how many people are affected?
I’ve had people brought to me iPhone 6 Plus with this very issue.
I have to tell them: this is not an issue with the screen and I do not have the proper equipment to fix this. Sorry.
Who knows how many people went directly to Apple and paid $350 to get a refurbished phones with the same design defect.
@Ben Duffy
Apple never admitted to bendgate and I expect more of the same.
Yup, just had to replace my phone today because of this. Lucky covered by insurance, with a $99 deductable but still…
Yup. Midway through reading the article I had to do a hard re-start of the phone. That temporarily fixes it but I guess I will be buying another phone brand soon. To be honest Apple isn’t far and away better than the competition any more. Thanks for the article. At least I know I’m not alone!
We just had one of these from a customer. We could torque it a little and get the device to work. So we knew the chips were fine and therefore reflowed the two chips using some flux and it works again. Sure reballing may be ideal but a reflow in this case is acceptable especially since it wasn’t caused by heat (think rrod on an Xbox). I’m not in he camp of blaming apple. If you wanna wear skinny jeans and put your phone in your back pocket then it’s on you. If you treat your phone like the $800 piece of amazing hardware it is then this “disease” will not be something you will contract.
Mark T,
It’s clearly a design flaw.
Stop blaming the user.
Then we agree to disagree. Cant blame the manufacturer for everything.
On my second IPhone Plus. Apple Store only replaced it at the cost of new screen of $129 or so after I left them a poor review of my Genius Bar experience. The good news is this is my last IPhone purchase. Paid close to a grand and had the phone last for less than a year. Unacceptable!!! Also never do I put my phone in the back pocket nor was it ever dropped.
Mark T—bend or drop is not required for touch ics to fail. That is just how the cause of the problem came to our attention–the early failures when the phone was young were all bends and drops. Now—any 6 plus can get the disease, even ones sitting inside the Apple box unopened at the Apple Store.
You know what’s worse than blaming a user for a manufacturing defect? Reflowing a chip when you know (or should know) that reflow is not repair, charging the customer, and then trying to blame the ultimate failure on the fact that they actually use their phone.
Knock that shit off. This is the time for our industry to shine here. Fix the problem right, or not at all. Otherwise you’re no better than Apple taking $349 and handing over a refurb with a smile–even though they know full well it will likely fail in the same way after the warranty is up.
Our company fixes at least 100 of these every week, it’s a very common problem. It’s a shame it’s being buried by apple’s media pals. But it’s good business for us I guess.
If anyone wants some real evidence, email me.
Count me in as another one experiencing this problem. Its real, despite claims from so many Apple devotees (I USED to be one of them), insisting these articles are just “hit pieces” by Samsung or other phone OEM’s Marketing departments.
Same deal – a few mos out of warranty – never bent, dropped, wet or anything adverse, and Voila! it just stopped responding to touch input of any kind. Mine even started phantom keying hundreds of random keystrokes per minute, making it impossible to rest the phone or even enter a password. Here’s my 10 sec video to show it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-NtVJaFn6sw
Insane. You pay $800 for a phone that is useless months later. Not good Apple. DO THE RIGHT THING!.
I had my son’s 6plus screen replaced, admitting, not in the apple store. Now 2 month later this exact problem. The unofficial store was aware and explained it to me. I was very skeptical and thought they did not want to honor the screen warranty . This was last week. This morning went to Apple store. They did not want to even touch the phone since unofficial screen replacement but also claim to know nothing about the issue ( reported today in Belgian press and leaded me to this article). Immediately said it’s the unofficial screen without even looking at it. And yes, the phone is very slightly bend.
Thanks Apple. Hope you get a class action lawsuit over this.
Mine just started doing this yesterday and is now fully unresponsive. I’ve had the phone over a year now. I have had the phone in a super strong case as I have kiddos around. I am so disappointed in Apple and how they are handling this issue.
I’m on my third iPhone 6 after two hardware failures, one after only 3 weeks and another 2 weeks after that on the replacement phone. The first failure was a loss of the wifi adaptor followed by progressively more insane behaviour – crashes, random touch inputs, etc. The second was exactly this touch problem described here. Thankfully under warranty and my new device has been fine so far.
Same problem for me and I have the same experience with Apple Store Clerks as well as the online support… They told me to wait (and hope) that the error shows up on the exchange / repair page or pay for a new phone… well thanks… My Phone was always in a hardcover and is still perfectly unbended I don’t know what I could have done to prevent this but according to them I will have to pay for it…
I had the same problem up-to-date Apple still does not respond the systematic failure and acknowledge the problem. I am really disappointed with Apple’s quality now!
Hi,
I have the same problem with iPhone 6 plus.
where I can send this phone for repair?
Thanks
Zahid
You would think they would “Do the right thing”. Billion Dollar Corporation! Shame on them. Need to take a class action Lawsuite to resolve the real issue. “Hardware problem”. I had the Exact same problem with my Iphone 6Pluse and was told the exact same “Apple solution”. ” Would you like to buy an new Iphone” I was so frustrated, I purchased a Samsung Galaxy Edge “Nice phone”! Still getting use to it and it ROCKS!!! .
Will keep my eyes open for the Class action Law suite, Sign me up! $800.00 in the garbage! grrr…
Zahid,
Sent it to Jessa Jones. She’s the person in the video above.
Over time this happens !!!
Sheeple apple users damage the device by putting pressure on it and it bends and twists not by itself….. its like saying a gun on the table with no one touching it kills people !!! Even if its repaired what are the guarantees its going to still work ?
Oh wait its because people like Jessa and Louis say so what a bunch of crap !!!!
Ths is a design defect and there should be a class action lawsuit. I have abandoned Apple and their whole ecosystem because they built a product with a design flaw and will not address it. I am very happy with my Nexus6P and Sony Z4 tablet now. I will no longer buy their products. They know it is an issue and redesigned it in the 6S by putting the IC chips onto the back of the screen so the screen holds them in place and if they replace the screen they can fix it easily.
I’ve had a slightly different problem with my iphone 6 that seems to have begun earlier this week. I’m constantly encountering crazy over-sensitive reactions to most swipe related UI interactions (this is a major problem that makes the instagram and airmail apps almost impossible to use). My original hypothesis was that these bugs might be due to my hardware lacking 3D touch capabilities and the app developers letting my use case slip through the cracks during testing before pushing recent updates through. Any thoughts on this or advice? My Google searches only seem to produce results pertaining to the frozen screen problem outlined above. Thanks in advance!
Franks C: Incorrect. Jessa is right on both counts. You know why her and Louis have a following? Because most of the time, they’re right. People don’t agree with them because they follow them. They follow them because they agree with them. Reflow isn’t a solid enough solution, it barely qualifies as repair and is comparable to tightening a screw on a wobbly chair and saying you repaired the chair. Also the issue does not require bending. Just because someone’s aneurism bursts on a rollercoaster doesn’t mean the were going to be fine forever as long as they stayed away from the ride. It can be a catalyst, but the bending is a symptom of the phone’s other flaw(s), not the cause of the touch problem itself. Overall it’s a combination of a likely manufacturing problem with a lack of steps to protect the hardware that were taken on previous models that were absent on the 6 models.
I’ve had this problem as well for some time and it sucks. My phone would go act on it’s own and do it’s own thing. It would open apps and go in this continuous loop. I brought it in to the Apple Store and the support person said it was a common problem he’s seen on the the 6 Plus, but Apple doesn’t have a recall on this part. He said to me that 80% of his appointments were around the 6 Plus and this touch disease was many of them. This happened outside of my warranty and what they did was basically ask me to talk to a sales rep to buy a new one. Why isn’t there a governing body over electronics like the FDA for drugs/devices/etc.? Why does Apple get to decide on recalls? Apple is trying to hold off these recalls not just because of the cost for fixing many of the phones out there now but because this is a driver for the purchase of new iPhones.
I think most of us are establishing a pattern of errors that concur with this article. I also have this issue with a 6+ 128gb.
Not to be too overreactive, but what are we going to do about this? In similar Apple-neglects-glaring-design-flaw situations, consumers have banded together via change.org petition to add momentum for a class action suit. I’m in the camp that Apple will only address this under legal pressure.
So, who volunteer to start then petition? And who with device evidence will sign it? Seriously, who? Someone lead us to gatheribg a list of names of the thousands of us who are being overlooked, neglected and downright deceived… please!
same problem in my 6+ and no warranty this is my last iPhone
Steve P
Believe them if you want but it is NOT a permanent fix !!!! They bash apple …why do uou think its there business if apple was perfect no problems at all ? what would they talk about or repair samaung ? Lg ?
They wouldn’t kniw were to begin !!! Think for yourself !!!
Richard Parker
Yiu got it right but jessa and Louis make a living off bashing apple and there idiot followers believing there bull crap !!!!
It is the USER issue NOT apple ….so not there issue at all !!!
Apple will destroy the civil suit in court food luck with that
Its reminds me what jessa said about error 53 its a hardware issue lol it was software related !!
I have the same problem or even worse. (6plus) I don’t have that grey bar on my phone but it started like a 1 month ago with the screen totally freezing it didn’t feel my touches but now it’s just getting worse sometimes my phone is acting like it’s possessed it opens apps randomly types randomly so it’s totally unusable. The issue is so random sometimes it’s working you. I’m out of warranty as my phone is nearly 2 years old. I can’t wait to buy iphone7 though I have lost my trust in apple a bit but how can I sell my phone like this….apple is not doing anything how can they do this as it affects I guess nearly everyone. I think everyone having the same issue should post to as many sites as they just can to let apple know that it’s time to do something.
Frank C,
Even if Apple designed great iPhones and MacBooks, Jessa and Louis would still have their handful.
There will still be plenty of people dropping their iPhones into the pools and spilling sodas on their MacBooks.
They don’t need to lie.
Yes the design on this 2 models make the motherboard easy to bend, this type of repair should only be performed by highly skilled level micro-soldering technician. There are many good technician around the world and if you do not have any near you, most of us offer mail in services. http://www.stgrepairs.com is also helping many customer with this issue., like many other good technicians. On instagram you can also can find the gallery of pictures regarding this issue.
I also had a touch disease on my 6 Plus, and because it was out of one year warranty I had to pay around 300$ for a replacement unit in Toronto
After reading comments I decided to add my 2 cents, and hope management in Apple is paying attention.
I am a career IT guy, know how to test and analyze hardware/software issues. This “hardware issue” issue is real, and apparently becoming fairly widespread.
I purchased the 64gb iPhone 6+ shortly after they were released, AND, placed it immediately in a thick hard case to protect it. It worked well up until about 3 months ago. The grey bar mentioned in the article started appearing randomly, and over time got worse and worse. I found ways to temporarily (for a few seconds/minutes) make it stop, but that no longer works either. The iPhone is now a useless brick. I took it in to a local Apple service center, THEY KNOW about this issue and said that nothing they’ve tried works to permanently fix it. The tech told me my only option was to buy a replacement iPhone ($350) since my warranty is expired. Ridiculous, I don’t care to pay for my phone twice and risk having the same issue reappear. I’m currently using my old iPhone 5 to get by.
I have been a satisfied user of multiple iPhones since iPhone 3. However if Apple decides to ignore this problem then I will think twice about what phone I will buy the next time my service contract becomes renewable.
Tek365 in Milwaukee Wisconsin has fixed this issue dozens of times. In addition we add an extra shield to prevent flex in that area.
I dont understand why those chips are put at the weakest point of the iPhone 6 and 6 plus frame where the volume buttons are without a shield.
We fix many of these issues at our vermont repair shop. Check us out http://www.wirescomputing.com/micro-soldering/
I like apple idont understand why u attack them I never had this problem but my screen cracked and apple said but a new one but ifixit wouldn’t fox it for me they don’t even fix anything why are they called ifixit they don’t fix anything but steve and time will make it they are way better then android crap they suck and are so cheap omg dont be poor
Merkin – wtf?
I think Apple should just fix this problem soon. They’re losing loyal Apple fans. Losing money now is better than losing money and fans in the long run. BTW, Merwin, do you have an iPhone 6? If you do, you elk probably hey the touch disease soon. Good luck then. We aren’t trying to attack Apple, we also like Apple to have bought the iPhone6. We just wish Apple would take responsibility.
I just started having this same problem about a month ago on my 6 Plus about two years out from purchase. Pinching the right upper hand screen will sometimes make the screen responsive again but its a painful annoying work around.
I went to the apple store in grand central NYC and they were all aware of the situation. They offered to give me a new phone for $300+ which is BS. If there is a class action, sign me up.
This exact issue has forced me to go the the Apple store in Atlanta 5 Freakin’ times in the last year!!
And now my 5th replacement 6plus is out of warranty!!
Nice work Apple.
This is the story of my f*cking life. Ive had two bent 6 pluses other two cracked by immaculate conception and my 4th and latest one was bendy as hell to the point where I lost my cellular network connection only can use wifi, and as mentioned had to bend the phone in the top right, but my phone was so trashed that I even replaced the lcd 3 times and they all cracked not from dropping but because my phone was no longer straight and my internals pressed against the screen from doing this bending trick. I refuse to give my insurance company another $175 deductible for a replacement , I’m waiting for the 7.
Just replaced 2 iPhone 6 Plus with new units at 329$ a piece! No responsive displays with a gray bar. Genius says Apple is doing nothing but replacing the phones. I hope there is a class action suit serves them right for not stepping up. No more iPhones for us and I have purchased every single version since it came out.
Apple should be sued for this if they ignore this annoying design failure.
has happened to me twice.
ATTORNEY ADVERTISEMENT
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My name is Matthew Gately and I am an attorney with Cohn Lifland Pearlman Herrmann & Knopf LLP in Saddle Brook, New Jersey. My firm is currently investigating potential hardware/design issues involving the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. If you have experienced issues regarding loss of touchscreen functionality, “grey bars” appearing at the top of your screen and/or “phantom touches” and would like to discuss this issue further, please feel free to contact me at clphk@njlawfirm.com or at 201-845-9600.
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i literally had to replace my iPhone 6 plus on 8/22/16 because of this issue // i went to the apple store in santa rosa, ca and the apple team said i had to buy a new one because 1) “fixing the screen wouldn’t fix the issue” and 2) i didnt have apple care (after 3 years) and couldn’t be replaced using that service // so i couldnt really afford a new 6 plus or 6s plus or even a 6 outright (i dont like the ATT next plan to pay monthly) so instead opted for the 5 SE // i hope i can be compensated in some form when this happens and it goes through // thoroughly annoyed
Seems expected in a screen navigation device to have touch work? How can Apple pass it off as not an issue?
Actually since iPhone 5 I have noticed dead spots in iPhone screens and was always told it’s just crap on screen. Clean your screen and it will fix it. Yeah, that never worked, and I could tell certain spots were just dead. I still like my iPhone SE and don’t for a second think though Apple is trying to get out of a big defect recall. Apple just has never been into its customers after the sale anymore. Those days are done.
I’ve replaced two 6pluses for this exact reason. The 6s (both sizes) have improved design but apple will only replace (both times at a cost) my 6plus with an original refurbished 6plus. The second time took hours of persuasion and guilt on the manager’s behalf because I was 400 miles from home and my phone was my GPS. They beat Apple’s system by retroactively applying Apple Care and then charging me replacement costs. Two different markets 400 miles apart and they all knew what the issue was the second I walked in the door. The first phone failed over a month of being able to apply pressure while the second failed within days of first symptoms.
I’m dealing with the same thing here in Toronto. My first iPhone 6+ stopped a month out of warranty they tried to do a screen replacement weren’t able to and replaced with a refurb total cost of $200. Immediately put the new phone in one of those military grade cases and a tempered glass screen protector. 5 months later I have the same thing happening again. This time I’ve been told I’m SOL as its only a 3 month warranty and it’s $429+tax to replace. Anyone know a place in TO that can do the repair? Can’t afford to spend that much right now.
I had been experiencing this exact same set of issues for a week with a nearly-two-year-old 6+. Super frustrating after not having had any other issues with this model.
After Apple chat/phone support took me through an unnsuccesfful software upgrade/restore (twice) to try and address it, I booked an appointment at my local Apple Store. Was seen within 5mins, and the Genius I spoke to recognised the issue immediately.
Despite the phone being out of warranty, he had it replaced under ‘EU consumer law’ coverage. No money to pay- brand new iPhone in hand. Couldn’t have been happier with how they dealt with it.
Hope that others have the same response.
I had a similar problem on an iPod-Touch 4 after 5 years of use.
It first started with a flickering screen and then I had flickering bars on my screen afterwards had touch response issues.
I just checked on it right now and it’s completely gray and failes to respond in the slightest (auditive feedback, tried tapping buttons, unlocking and playing music, one of those should have worked even on hard reset)
It seems as if this is not only related to the size of the phone, but has some deeper production issues.
#plannedObsolescence #CookSpoilsApple
So friggen glad I decided to wait for the 6s plus with the way stronger build..shame on you apple. Will only ever buy the s versions of your phones.
I have been experiencing similar defects with my iPhone 6. Usually rebooting the system had solved the problem. – albeit momentarilly as I still occassionally get a recurrence.
It took a few days, but the lawyers are here!
https://joinsuit.com/apple-touch-screen-defect-class-action/
What the heck, I was never offered a replacement or to fix my phone😡 I have been putting off getting a new phone when someone told me about the iPhone 7plus, but now I might think twice about it.. And sell off my Apple stock.
A friend of mine recently has her phone having this exact issue, and I’m glad there is a way not to pay 300 bucks to get it fixed. This is wonderful news to her.
On the other hand, I don’t get the logic behind replacing the chips when the problem is cracks in the solder bonds (assuming this *is* the reason behind). To me, it’s like instead of tightening a screw on a wobbly chair, the whole leg and seat are replaced in additional to tightening up the loosen screw. The “true repair” kind of ego aside, what is the real physical reason(s) behind replacing the components in order to help fix a pure mechanical defect? Is a second solder reflow that damaging to these chips? If it is, should all the chips on that PCB be replaced at the same time, too, not just the touch ICs? Would someone be kind enough to shed some light here for people like me who does not understand much about electronics and semiconductors?
I had this exact issue on an iPhone 6 plus. Never put it in my back pocket. Apple replaced it quietly. Once it started it progressively got worse.
I had this same exact issue three weeks ago with my 16 month old 6+ and the only option given to me was a $250 credit on a new iPhone. I now type this message using my new and very small iPhone SE — the cheapest option available.
The rediculous part of it all was the “genius” played this off like it wasn’t a widespread issue. Yet within 30 seconds I was given the exact explanation outlined in this article — bad logic board, you need to buy a replacement.
This is how you lose loyal customer Apple. You know what you need to do so do it.
Exact same problem with my I phone 6 plus, I’ve had to go back to my old iPhone 4s as no one could fix the phone, this happened a month after my warranty finished, gutted. Apple should do something about it it’s theft, selling dodge phones.
Just purchased an iPhone 6 Plus from groupon.com two weeks ago and already have touchscreen issues and the gray line! I can,t find a shop that says it is even possible to fix here in Tacoma, WA!
I AM SURPRISED THAT WE ARE JUST NOW GETTING AROND TO TALKING ABOUT THIS. WHY DID WE WASTE MONTHS OF PEOPLE’S TIME SENDING THEM BACK TO THE APPLE STORE? PLEASE JOIN IN THE CONVERSATION ABOUT THE FEASIBILITY OF MORE PERMANENT REPAIRS OR FURTHER ACTION ON THIS. https://talk.ifixit.com/t/touch-ic-issues-badly/2732
BTW we repair this VERY SUCCESSFULLY. We evolve to repair with the safest and most permanent solutions available. Let’s all talk.
we have fixed lot of iPhone 6 plus with same touch and flickering problems, and once both ics are replaced properly we have not even a single customer come back with same problem, as far i believe it is just the solder balls underneath the ics which are not made strong enough to bear, long life here is a good article to read http://www.applefix.co.nz/blog/iphone-6-plus-touch-screen-failure/
I have the same issue happening with my iPhone 6 plus. Unfortunately it is out of warranty. I have been searching for the root of the issue and speculated that it was a screen issue then I saw a post on msn.com stating that ifixit started a class action lawsuit. I wonder if my phone will last until the results of the lawsuit are in.
How do I join the Class Action Lawsuit? Im in the same boat.
this has happened to my iPhone 6 Plus but i thought it was something i did. My phone freezes and I cant do anything. It is happening more often. The phone is a year old.
I have had this issue with my Iphone 6+… I am on my 4th new phone because of this issue. It takes me almost 2 hours to drive to the nearest Apple store. They were all too aware of the problem and would just instantly give me a new phone. On one trip, the issue started in my new phone that they had just given me on my way home!!!!!!! In about 3 weeks time it was almost unusable. My last trip there, I was told to call Apple and explain what all has happened and what I had been through and hopefully they would send me a different model completely free of charge. I was told that Apple was not aware of this being a known issue or defect! We argued for almost an hour and I never did get a different model Iphone but was offered a $100 trade in for my Iphone 6+!! Ridiculous!!!! They did however give me an extra 1-year warranty… Obviously I will need it!
Just went through this problem last month. Apple tech. said phone is slightly bent so its physical damage and Apple will not do a thing about it. Since I did have insurance I had to make a claim but that still cost me $150 deductable to replace phone. I was concerened about the fraility of the phone when I purchased it just less than a year ago so I bought the LifeProof case for it and it has been in that case since the day it came out of the box. Apple’s dismissive attitude toward this issue has convinced me to never buy another iphone again.
My wife’s 6+ started doing this shortly after downloading Pokemon Go. Naturally we started to assume this software was the culprit as it seemed to only appear when playing the game. Now, she’s seeing it more often and my research brought me here.
Check out Kay’s article here and her forum post below that article to this class action lawsuit link…
Article: http://ifixit.org/blog/8309/iphone-6-plus-gray-flicker-touch-death/#comment-44443
Lawsuit: http://mccunewright.com/iphone-6-touchscreen-defect/
Ironically (coincidentally?) as I write this, our marketing associate just called me to report that their iMac just GSOD’d (Grey Screen of Death). SIGH, all technology is amazing and sucks at the same time. But, as IT Manager, it’s job security! :)
I have a same problem on my iPhone 6 Plus. how to join the suit?
I just read this on my brand new iphone6s. My iPhone 6 was diagnosed yesterday with a “bad logic board”, that made the screen unresponsive and then randomly dial / press buttons. If there’s a class action lawsuit, please count me in.
I commented back on Aug 24th about this issue with my 6S. Since them it has gotten worse and now completely unresponsive. I am frustrated with the multiple Apple “Genius” that told me that my phone was out of warranty etc…
This is not user error folks, my phone, like my my old iPhone 4, was put in an Otterbox Defender since day one. I have never had a cracked screen. I am a middle aged tech savvy person. I don’t drop it in water and have never had a cracked screen. It is in my purse or on the desk next to me. Not my pocket.
I am now using my work phone, a Samsung, not as intuitive as iphone, but I guess it is time to change the way I think anyway.
Thanks ifixit for the article. And I am very glad that someone it taking apple to court.
My iPhone 6 Plus has had this problem since June and I got the same answer from Apple Genius Bar folks, $349 replacement because it was out of warranty. The Apple Store people did tell me I could get a normal trade-in value for the phone if I upgraded to the 6s Plus, which sounded good, but I didn’t want the 6s and wanted to wait until the next phone update. My phone has been a major pain in the %&@# since JUNE and I have been waiting on the iPhone 7, okay it’s about to be announced this coming Wednesday 9/7/16, so I was at an Apple Store today, I asked the clerk if I was going to be able to get a trade-in value for my iPhone 6 Plus when the new model arrives and they said NO! Because they will not take any trade-in iPhone 6 with problems like the flickering screen! She actually said they are being more aggressive to only take phones in more pristine condition! Please, prove me wrong, take you touch diseased iPhone 6 to your local Apple Store and ask if they will give you trade-in value for your device. The clerk told me to contact Apple Care at 800 275-2273 and I did, but after talking to 3 different people up the chain of command, it went nowhere and they said, sorry your phone is out of warranty. Finally, I said is there anyone else that I may explain my grievance to… they said, that I could have the “executive relations department” contact me (normally reserved for celebrities for direct access to Apple), by writing a letter to Apple at their ONE INFINITE LOOP headquarters address requesting them to contact me (even though, I’m a regular person and not a celebrity)! And then ACTUALLY saying,… “I shouldn’t have told you that, shhhh”.
Wow, who knew writing a letter and mailing it to Apple Headquarters was the secret access that celebrities use ;)
My iphone6+ also started having this issue yesterday. I had taken it out of its case to clean it and this is when i first noticed the problem. Hard re sets sometimes worked, sometimes not …. played around for a day and almost gave up. In the end i popped it back in the case and strangely all was well again with the World (well the iPhone anyway). It seems that just removing an iPhone from these snap on cases flexes / bends the phone as they fit so tight and are not easy to remove. Putting the case on, it being so tight, seems to have “straightened” the phone out
What to expect when you start seeing the flickering gray bar at the top of the screen- just know that the problem progressively gets worse and worse, there is no real home remedy solution (resets, presses, twists, bends, etc), but you will try all of these and one or more of those actions will make it “work again” for a short time, BUT it gets harder and harder to make it work, that’s the frustrating part of it. If you read the technical details of the problem you will understand why it gets harder and harder to make it work. Mine even worked okay for a whole month after adding some padding under the small metal plate where the 3 ribbon cables plug in to the logic board (based on a YouTube video). I thought it was fixed… but it came back again about a month later and now is worse than ever. Okay… I found that doing the hard reset (Home+Power buttons until the Apple logo appears) most of the time will allow the touch screen to work for several minutes, maybe longer… once you give a little pause touching the screen, it stops responding again! Anyhow, I’ve lived with this for several months now and it’s basically a brick that does stuff on it’s own… sometimes it opens apps and does random things, sends text messages… beware! I watched it open SMS and type random text which spell check turned into real words and it clicked SEND! Yesterday, I watched it swiping through my app pages (in the home screen), pick an open it, random clicks on it, close it, slide backward to the first page of apps, pick the phone icon, clicked contacts, and started dialing a random contact and I could not stop it… had to press and hold the power button to turn it off!
This is a User/Manufacturer two step.. Apple put design before practicality (thin>robust) and some User’s ignored the requirement to allow for the greater fragility of the new design: Hey, why isn’t this alloy as tough as a thicker, metal sandwiched between two layers of Gorilla glass design?. meh, I’m going to treat it as though it’s made of Vibranium anyway, then bitch like hell when it breaks.. and why do my knuckles have calluses, just because I drag ’em along the ground?
The best way to combat this I have found so far is simple enough to do. If you grasp the phone top and bottom with your fingers then place your thumbs in the middle of the back of the phone and gently flex it outward toward the touchscreen then restart phone. It may take more than once but usually works well after the second restart. Once you place the phone in a pocket where it gets movement, the process will need to be repeated.
I gifted an iPhone 6 to my sister. In just 2 months iPhone started acting-up, not sure if her phone had the exact issue you described but it would be unresponsive at times and would start flickering randomly.
Apple support asked her to do some regular fixes but it dint work. Finally they replaced it.
I guess the new phone is working fine since then.
I have to appreciate iFixit and the author for doing this. This is one bold post from the writer with good research and effort. Its good to see blog posts that speak on behalf of the users.
Iphone 4s had wifi greyed out issue and that was an hardware defect too. Surprised at the trend still continuing. There was an online petition signed for that and Apple did nothing.
Apple takes its customers for granted by deciding a better product is available and time to switch. Hardware doesn’t have to be outdated if the software is made to support it.
It is time people realize value of hardware units and that’s where ifixit is doing right. I am glad i bought the 4s battery repair tool kit.
This happened to my iPhone 6 + after about 7 months. I totally agree that bending the phone is what causes the problem. I found that I could temporarily ‘FIX’ the problem by putting pressure on one corner of the display (which corner,I forget…)
Class action time!
I have this issue on my iPhone 6 plus bought in September of 2014. It started out mild about the end of August of this year and touch was working about 95% of the time with the gray bar at the top. Now a week later, and touch response is working about 20% of the time and the gray “bar” now sometimes flickers across the entire screen depending on how much pressure is applied to the top-right of the phone! Apple get your s#!t together and fix this issue! I wouldn’t have paid nearly $1000 for a phone had I known it had a manufacturing defect that would make it inoperable less than two years into its life.
Yes, this has happened to my phone. The phone freezes about 15times a day and I have to do a hard reset which sometimes makes it work again. Apple refuses to take blame. i took the phone to the apple Genius Bar , 2 wks after my warranty expired and the guy was very rude , basically saying tough luck for not having apple care. This infuriated me as I expect an iPhone that costs £600 ish to last more than a year. He says I have to pay £220 for another phone. Their customer service was diabolical and rather than paying the £220, I’m now going to use that money to buy a Samsung phone. Apple customer service is getting worse and they wonder why they are losing market share
Mine has been doing it for a while, too. I have insurance on my phone so it was replaced immediately for free. However, as soon as I put my old one in the box to send back my new one starting doing it way worse than my original. So frustrating! Guess I’ll have to keep getting a new one every few days until it’s made right!
Good article. I will be dealing with a few of
these issues as well..
Same thing happened to me , and Apple wouldn’t fix it they said it had one year warranty and it was year 2. I was literally watching a YouTube video and then it started. Wasn’t doing anything to the phone
My iPhone 6+ have same problem too.
I just wondering why they (the apple people)want tospit on the face of Steve Job who
is on other side. Mr Job might says we have to do the right for our customers.
I love Apple please do it right for customers.
Here is a video I made of replacing the Touch IC. Its 1 min timelapse. I do these every day!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTwANTElN00
You can send me the iPhone for repair if need, a lot cheaper than apple and you keep your data http://iFixLogicBoards.com
My iPhone 6 plus has the same problem “touch disease” or as Apple Store workers are instructed to refer to it as “Flickering”…the other day I asked an apple store employee if they had heard of “Touch Disease” and I was told no. Hmmm. “Flickering” though, yes the’ve heard of that.
Have an appointment at the store for my 6 plus to be diagnosed, after reading all the replies and complaints here and at mac rumors, should be interesting. We shall see.
I had 3 iphone 6 plus, all had the same problems. I got some iphone to replace, same issue. The one I am having issue now was the 3rd replacement phone. Apple’s quality is so bad now!!
I have seen many iPhone users that are having the issues with the screen. There was a time when the apple company was famous for the cell phone quality. But with the iPhone 6 screen issues the users will think twice before buying the iPhone 7. I am sure that apple has fixed the screen issue in iPhone 7.
I upgraded this year to an Apple 6s plus. This was in April or may of this year. When I received my phone in the mail it was already having issues with the touch screen. I reset it, did everything to trouble shoot it. Finally I went to the Apple Store and they replaced it with a refurbished phone. I was pretty angry considering I am paying close to $1,000 For this damn phone and yet I can’t get a brand new one.. I think for everyone who is having issues, apple should give us a new phone. We are paying for it. My referbished phone is now having issues with the touch screen.
Just went to an apple store today.
My phone has suffered from bendgate and since it was out of warranty I just let it be even after trying to get a free replacement.
But I recently experienced some issues with the touchscreen. No gray bar at the top but some wierd flickering when I was scrolling down a webpage for example. Or when I played a game, the touch input responded as if I touched the screen completely on another location on the display.
Anyway, explained this exact issue to the apple genius today and he basicall said, yeah, replacing the touch screen display might not fix the probem (since he obviously saw my phone was bent but wouldnt mention it right away). So he said the only option is to get a replacement phone and he offered it to me even though the phone was well out of warranty which i was pleasantly suprised.
So there you go, if your phone is bent, and you have some touch display issues, bring it in to an apple store you’ll most likely get a free replacement, even if out of warranty. At least thats what happened to me, hope this helps guys!
My phone is having the same issue. Took it to the Apple Store. The tech pushed on the screen and it was working momentarily. He said 1) my otterbox caused it to bend and not to use otterboxes, they sell this brand? 2) then he said my phone had a very very small bend? Apparently so small to the naked eye? I guess I need to be a Apple tech to see it. I’ve been on the phone with ATT and Apple support and have an appointment Friday to talk to a supervisor. I have taken very good care of my iPhone. Bought a otterbox. No scratches. Looks brand new. $350 to buy a new phone! Fingers crossed they will give me a replacement for free Friday. My only issue is if given a replacement I will have a phone that I have to treat as fragile which is bothersome. I have not had issues with any other Apple product so I agree this a bad design flaw.
We see that Apple made 4 bad design decisions:
1. Designing a thin case that can bend,
2. Placement of the Touch IC chip in a place where it is subject to flexion pressure,
3. Lack of underfill in a ball grid array solder joint,
4. Lack of rigid metal EMC protector.
Apple compounds these bad decisions by not fixing this defective electronics. I have often questioned why any sane person would buy a device from a company like Apple, which purposely designs their electronics to be unfixable black boxes based on planned obsolescence. Unfortunately most of the electronics industry is now following Apple’s lead in designing unopenable cases with non-standard screws, non-removable batteries, RAM and NAND Flash memory soldered to the motherboard, and lack of expandable memory, so that electronics will be junked rather than fixed or upgraded to extend its lifespan. However, we should boycott Apple since it was the company which initiated the bad practices. In 2001, Apple was the first company to create an MP3 player which did not have a replaceable battery. In 2008 with the Mac Air, Apple was first company to make a laptop where the RAM, harddrive and battery were not replaceable. In 2009, with the Macbook Pro and its unibody case, Apple was the first company which designed a laptop case which could not be opened without using a special screwdriver. In 2007 with the iPhone, Apple was the first company to design a phone for mass consumption which did not have a removable battery. (For the record, Vertu was the first phone with a non-replaceable battery in 2006, but it was a luxury phone that cost $5000.) Apple was also the first company to promote high-end phones without a microSD card or any other expandable memory. Apple was also the first company to design a phone with an all glass front cover and very thin bezel around the edges, so that the screen is liable to crack if dropped. 23% of iPhone owners report that their screen has been cracked. Apple set the trend in the industry of designing easily-breakable devices and the rest of the industry followed its lead. Apple’s design decisions have significantly shortened the lifespan of electronics, which leads to increased electronics manufacturing and more e-waste. We see planned obsolescence in Apple’s decisions to be the first to get rid of the floppy disk, the optical drive, and now the 3.5mm phone jack, which the rest of the industry has followed and rendered obsolete millions of floppy disks, CDs, DVDs and headphone sets. Its decisions to use non-standard ports and protocols (Firewire instead of USB, Lighting instead of USB 3, proprietary SSD connector instead of mPCIe/mSATA/M.2, AirPlay instead of MiraCast, etc.) has caused millions of devices to be junked because they aren’t compatible and caused millions of special adapters to be needlessly fabricated. For environmental reasons alone, we should boycott Apple and send a message to the rest of the industry to not follow its lead.
After updating to iOS 10, my iPhone 6S Plus just started having Touch issues and being unresponsive, with 2-3 taps to finally open an app.
But the iPhone has been super buggy since the update. It had been working fabulously while in iOS 9.
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And you people get angry at samsung for admitting there was a problem and recalling every single phone in less than 3 weeks, and then having a full replacement phone for everyone who purchased their phones withing 4? Yet out in cuppertino, apple has continued to deny the problem more than 2 years after they discovered their design flaw. Not only will they not admit their flaw, but they bully customers into buying new devices rather than fixing them.
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