Sounds like they'll only partially be able to compensate for it with software...
Which means I'll return the 5S. Boo!
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iPhone 5s accelerometer/gyroscope/compass values incorrect
- Thread starter tharepairguy
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Sounds like they'll only partially be able to compensate for it with software...
Which means I'll return the 5S. Boo!
I am going to sit this out and enjoy my phone. I don't play games, so that part doesn't affect me personally. I never use the compass, and panorama pictures work fine. The screen rotates as it should and the phone is perfect otherwise. If it weren't for this thread, I, like a lot of others, probably would never have noticed. I am sure it will be a software fix, but if it turns out to be hardware and we all have to exchange our phones, then so be it.
I thought Apple would had acknowledged this by now. Since they have not, I don't expect them to.
I'm not surprised a bit. They're a corporation with shareholders to please. Most people haven't noticed this. It doesn't affect the user experience of most users. Most of those whose experience is affected have been told that it's a software fix that is forthcoming. Apple would be DUMB to issue some kind of press release, prompting thousands of returns over something that will be fixed in a relatively short amount of time.
Having in my possession a good 5S, I can say that this issue has a lot to do with bad factory calibration. Knowing Apple, who has never provided any calibration tools for their screens (we all know it's a long-awaited and needed feature), I don't think we'll see any software related fix for this problem.
I'll be pleasantly surprised if they prove me wrong though.
I'll be pleasantly surprised if they prove me wrong though.
It is easy.
I would bet they are being cautious, as they should be. They'd be fools to rush a fix, hardware or software, and have it not properly and fully resolve the issue.
I spoke with an employee at the Genius Bar who said the issue was brought up at a staff meeting and every 5s in the store had the same calibration problem. Looks like I'll be returning the phone if there's no fix before my return period is over. Also, has anyone seen a photo of a 5s with no sensor issues? Or the tooth fairy or any talking m&m's...
I agree. If this was purely a software issue, then they might acknowledge and quickly issue an update like they do with security issues. They wouldn't get flack for that because software coding usually has errors and no one would give them too much grief. However, when it is a hardware issue and the lack of calibration of the new piece of hardware, and Apple were to acknowledge it, they would appear to be a hapless company with no QC or poor engineering. The media would nail them. It would be like an automaker admitting sending their cars out to customers without ever testing the brakes before they left the factory, and worse, never tested by R&D. Right now, that is exactly what Apple did.
I went into the Apple store in Brighton UK today to get a case and while I was there speaking to the sales guy I calibrated the compass (My apartment is a basement and i don't need a spirit level to know its not level!) anyway it was 2 degrees out, and he insisted on speaking to a genius about it. I did mention it was all over the forums and tons of people had the issue anyway he came back and said that they are aware of it and an update would be released soon to fix it.
Mine is fine. No fairies involved
That is nice to hear that there are actually phones out there that are not "off".
Could you maybe tell us where and when it was produced ?
You can look it up in the internet here:
http://www.chipmunk.nl/klantenservice/applemodel.html
I have a question. Regardless of the 14 day period from Apple, if in a few weeks there hasn't been a software fix am I right to think that you could still go to an Apple Store and request an exchange? A few people now are saying they're getting phones that are right so I imagine eventually exchange/replacement units will also be right (as Apple may make subtle manufacturing changes to prevent this error but would never tell us). Obviously it wouldn't be brand new but a refurbished unit that looks/works like new in a month or two seems better to me than constant exchanges now while we don't really know what's happening. At the end of the day you get a 1 year warranty which covers hardware. If your phone is led on its side and is off by 5 degrees then it's faulty and you're entitled a repair/replacement.
That's what your 1 year warranty is for. If anything goes wrong with your device then take it to the Apple store or phone up Applecare and they'll replace your device.
I don't see anything wrong with refurbished phones. Yes, it's not brand new but why should you get a brand new phone if you've been using it for a few weeks/months? Anyway, those refurbished phones could fool me...they look brand new. I believe the screen/casing are brand new but the internals are the parts that are re-used except of course the battery which is also brand new.
As i said in my previous posts, i got a replacement in a white box a new one and not refurb, and it is now perfect zero level as it should have been since the beginning. I compared it to a level and iphone 4s no difference it s right for one week and no drift. I have a pic with the old one at -3. Now have to make pics to show you, not all 5s have this issues but most have .....
You can request it all you want. But Apple could take the position that "+/- 5 degrees is normal operation" and refuse an exchange because your device is "within tolerances" (because, after all, THEY specify the acceptable tolerances for their product). Or, they could decide to just keep telling people "the problem is software, an update will be coming eventually, so our policy is not to exchange for compass/level errors."
So if the inaccurate orientation is a "deal-breaker" for you, and you are within the 14 days, the safest route would be a return. Of course that assumes there is some other phone out there that has the feature set you need and doesn't have any "deal-breaker" malfunctions of its own.
Personally, I am keeping mine. The orientation problem IS a big issue for me (particularly in astronomy apps), but I like everything else about the phone. And I expect there will be some sort of resolution -- if not from Apple, then from app developers who will start adding their own calibration routines to apps that need it. I would prefer a fix from Apple, rather than having to calibrate every individual app using multiple developers' procedures, but if Apple doesn't step up then I expect developers will.
Of course with the exception of the few folks here that have time-travelled to the future and returned, nobody knows how this will play out.
Technically speaking if you got a launch day 5S the reburb unit would be the same age or newer. It's only when you buy 6 months does it suck.
Interesting read...check out the articles.
http://www.technologytell.com/apple/125063/supplier-could-be-to-blame-for-iphone-5s-accelerometer-problems/
http://www.cultofmac.com/250011/the-real-culprit-of-the-iphone-5s-wonky-levels-is-a-new-accelerometer/
http://www.technologytell.com/apple/125063/supplier-could-be-to-blame-for-iphone-5s-accelerometer-problems/
http://www.cultofmac.com/250011/the-real-culprit-of-the-iphone-5s-wonky-levels-is-a-new-accelerometer/
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Supplier to blame? I don't think so. I have read the data sheet for the Bosch sensor, and it appears to be functioning exactly as advertised - which includes a pretty low resolution and pretty high bias, which coincidentally corresponds to the 3-5 degree orientation error many 5s owners are seeing.
I admit we don't have all the data yet, so it is possible there is some malfunction at the component level that could be blamed on the supplier. But the information so far suggests that the component is functioning exactly as Bosch says it should. That places any " blame" on the engineers that selected the component, not those who made it.
Yep, the specs were known.
Quite definitely, the answer is that these issues exist due to hardware design.
For Apple it will be much easier to fix (err, coverup) if they required developers to include calibration in their apps that require the use of the gyro, etc. As far as Apple's own camera app, it would be easier to just turn off the code that uses the gyro. When it comes to actual pictures it takes, what you see on screen is what you get. Same with Pano.