Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

tubeexperience

macrumors 68040
Original poster
Feb 17, 2016
3,192
3,897
Earlier this month, I reported that the touchscreens of thousands upon thousands of iPhone 6 Plus devices are failing due to an engineering flaw. And while Apple the company has yet to publicly acknowledge that these phones are breaking under normal use, employees who work at Apple’s retail stores tell Motherboard that the company is well aware of the flaw and has left its in-store “geniuses” to be the bearer of bad news to customers.

Two Apple store employees, one current and one who recently quit, contacted Motherboard after we initially published our story about iPhone 6 Plus touchscreen problems. They both told me that they have been informed both explicitly by their supervisors and subtly by the company’s internal repair tracking system that so-called “touch disease” is a known issue.

I go into detail in my earlier story about what has caused iPhone 6 Plus touchscreens to stop working, but, essentially, an engineering flaw associated with “bendgate” allows the phone’s logic board to flex ever-so-slightly whenever the phone is pulled out of a pocket, or put into a case, or is dropped. After thousands of flexes, the phone’s two “Touch IC” chips become unseated from the logic board, causing the touchscreen to work intermittently or not at all. Often, the problem causes flickering grey bars to appear along the top of the device’s display. The flaw, which repair experts previously told Motherboard is due to a fundamental issue with the design of the iPhone 6 Plus, was fixed for the iPhone 6S.

http://motherboard.vice.com/read/ap...one-6-plus-touch-disease-truth-from-customers
 
  • Like
Reactions: AppleDior31

calvy

macrumors 65816
Sep 17, 2007
1,271
9
I just went through this with my wife's 6 Plus. We were out of warranty, Apple wouldn't do a damn thing for me but offer a $325 replacement. Both on the phone and in store they told me they wished me luck in getting something via a class action suit.

So I found a video on youtube that claimed to fix touch disease with no soldering. Basically you just put a piece of electrical tape on top of the Touch IC controllers on the logic board so that when you put the phone back together, there is pressure pushing the chips onto the board.

I wouldn't rely on that for a long term fix, but it worked long enough for me to trade it in at the AT&T store for $650 in credit. So it's no longer a problem for me. I'm still not happy about the way Apple treated us through it all, but I'm thankful I got out of a bad situation without losing much money.
 

resaka

macrumors 6502
Sep 10, 2016
265
338
Scottsdale, AZ
I just went through this with my wife's 6 Plus. We were out of warranty, Apple wouldn't do a damn thing for me but offer a $325 replacement. Both on the phone and in store they told me they wished me luck in getting something via a class action suit.

So I found a video on youtube that claimed to fix touch disease with no soldering. Basically you just put a piece of electrical tape on top of the Touch IC controllers on the logic board so that when you put the phone back together, there is pressure pushing the chips onto the board.

I wouldn't rely on that for a long term fix, but it worked long enough for me to trade it in at the AT&T store for $650 in credit. So it's no longer a problem for me. I'm still not happy about the way Apple treated us through it all, but I'm thankful I got out of a bad situation without losing much money.

I'm really sorry to hear about that all. Did the employees provide a reason to you at all?
 

TheRealAlex

macrumors 68030
Sep 2, 2015
2,860
2,016
I'm really sorry to hear about that all. Did the employees provide a reason to you at all?

I recently had a 6 Plus which was exchanged twice before for "Touch Disease " took it in Out Of Warranty it failed the Diagnostics and Apple Genius girl was very nice and generous got Authorization to Make an Exception and they gave me 6 Plus good as new. This was about a Month ago. Flipped it on Craigslist for $420 bucks, and Walked Right in to a new iPhone 7 Plus Matte a black
 

evoga

macrumors regular
Sep 9, 2014
114
50
My wife took my iPhone 6 Plus which is over two years old into the Apple Store yesterday as it finally had touch disease.

They swapped it for a brand new one for free. Very impressed with the service.
 
  • Like
Reactions: billybill

AppleDior31

macrumors 6502a
Sep 14, 2014
750
355
This happened to me about three months ago. I still had applecare so I got the phone swapped with no issues. When I was there another customer had the same issue with their plus but I saw them shell out money. My genius rep said they know it's a known issue however, without applecare, I would have had to pay to swap it out. The phone they gave me was intermittently starting to do it too sadly so I'm super happy with the 7plus.
 

billybill

macrumors newbie
Jun 23, 2010
19
5
But without applecare, people got charged for a replacement for a "known" defect. That's not right.

Last Friday I walked into the Apple store with my iPhone 6 Plus that was suffering from the touch disease. I told the Apple genius that I was on my 3rd 6+ and I wanted to speak to a manager. The manager came over I told him what was wrong and how many times it had been replaced for the exact same problem. He looked at the device, confirmed the stuttering screen and said we'll replace it for free.

After swapping out the device I thanked him and he looked at me and said you'll never hear Apple admit to this problem but it's just not right and I want to make this right for you. You've had multiple devices with the same problem and even though its out of warranty I feel obligated to replace this for you based on your experiences over the past 2 years.

I walked out with my refurbed 6+ and I'm happy for now... The wait is on for my JB 7+ but hopefully this tides me over until it arrives sometime in "November".

It's incredible that Apple won't admit to this problem and if you're out of warranty you are SOL unless you find a gracious Apple employee who does the right thing.
 
  • Like
Reactions: AppleDior31

evoga

macrumors regular
Sep 9, 2014
114
50
But without applecare, people got charged for a replacement for a "known" defect. That's not right.

I had it free without any AppleCare even though the phone was over two years old and looked very worn. You need to speak to someone else in the store.
 

tubeexperience

macrumors 68040
Original poster
Feb 17, 2016
3,192
3,897
If you will read the above, there are many who are getting replacements, even if out of warranty. It is how Apple has always been and what made them what they are today.

And what about the people who weren't offered free replacements for a well know defect?

Also, are you saying that replacing failed units because a known design defect is somehow praiseworthy instead of an obligation?
 
  • Like
Reactions: AppleDior31

Bob Coxner

macrumors 6502a
Mar 24, 2011
854
58
And what about the people who weren't offered free replacements for a well know defect?

Also, are you saying that replacing failed units because a known design defect is somehow praiseworthy instead of an obligation?

And, what about people like me where the nearest Apple store is 100+ miles away? It's hard to find a sympathetic Genius when you have to mail it in.
 

calvy

macrumors 65816
Sep 17, 2007
1,271
9
I spent a Saturday evening and Sunday morning back and forth with supervisors trying to get my wife's 6 plus replaced at a reasonable cost. I offered to buy AppleCare retroactively, and they still said sorry, the best they could do was an out of warranty repair at the $300 something dollars. My wife took it into our local apple store the following Monday and pleaded with them to do something better than the $300, and they too refused. Having wasted a bunch of time, I gave up.

Luckily I came across the method of fixing it and was able to trade it in for the $650 credit. So all's well that ends well I guess.

I've been an Apple customer for 12 years now. Their customer support used to be stellar, but the iPhone ruined it. The Genuis bar became an iPhone swap station and too many people took advantage. I don't blame Apple for getting a little tighter on things. But this touch disease is a manufacturing defect, and they damn well know it. So the whole experience left a bad taste in my mouth.
 
  • Like
Reactions: AppleDior31

Indian Devil

macrumors regular
Mar 3, 2014
121
37
I don't get a strutting screen but sometimes when receiving a call the slider just won't work. I tried with different fingers to make sure that it's not due to moisture or anything but it's the same with all and it works after 8-10 swipes.

Is this same (touch disease) or my issue is different?
 

Shark5150

macrumors 68000
Sep 24, 2014
1,618
1,509
Dallas, Texas
I don't get a strutting screen but sometimes when receiving a call the slider just won't work. I tried with different fingers to make sure that it's not due to moisture or anything but it's the same with all and it works after 8-10 swipes.

Is this same (touch disease) or my issue is different?
Nope
 

google

macrumors 6502
Sep 13, 2007
256
70
I don't get a strutting screen but sometimes when receiving a call the slider just won't work. I tried with different fingers to make sure that it's not due to moisture or anything but it's the same with all and it works after 8-10 swipes.

Is this same (touch disease) or my issue is different?

I have had the same issue on my iP 6 and I would think it is related
 

Indian Devil

macrumors regular
Mar 3, 2014
121
37
I have had the same issue on my iP 6 and I would think it is related
That would be a problem for me then, as I bought this in USA and now I wont go back there till May 17. By that time the problem may increase and apple might stop giving replacement for this issue (read that they are giving replacement to most having this issue)
 

Pez555

macrumors 68020
Apr 18, 2010
2,285
775
if you went into the apple store or spoke with someone via the phone and were adamant enough they would replace it for free. Even if you had to speak to someone different, there are employees out there for Apple that bend over backwards to help.
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.