iPhone 7 Home Button Requires Capacitive Touch to Work

[MacRumors]

As discovered by Myke Hurley (via Daring Fireball), some iPhone 7 and 7 Plus users are going to have a tough time unlocking their devices during wintertime. As it turns out, the new "solid-state" Home button on the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus requires skin contact or the right kind of capacitive gloves to function.

If you put on a pair of gloves or cover your finger with the sleeve of a shirt and attempt to open the iPhone 7, access the Home screen, exit out of an app, or activate multitasking, the Home button will not respond to a press unless it's touching skin. And because the iPhone 7 uses the redesigned Lock screen in iOS 10, there's no quick and easy way to bring up the passcode entry screen to unlock the phone manually (the quickest way sans Home button is to swipe to the widgets screen and tap one).

We tested with a pair of gloves that are designed for touch screens and while we could unlock the iPhone 6s Plus with the gloves and use the touch screen, that wasn't possible with the iPhone 7 Plus -- the Home button wouldn't activate. There are mixed reports on Twitter from people with capacitive gloves, and while some work, others do not appear to. It may vary based on the material and construction of the gloves. Latex gloves also do not activate the Home button, but will activate the display.

So here's a thing. Cover your iPhone 7 home button with material (like from a t-shirt) and try to click it. 😑 - Myke Hurley (@imyke) September 16, 2016

The redesigned Home button in the iPhone 7 is no longer a physical button -- it's flush with the iPhone and uses haptic feedback to give the sensation of button presses. Because it's requiring capacitive contact to unlock the device, it's likely the iPhone 7 is using the Touch ID fingerprint sensor to register touch.

While capacitive contact is required to unlock the phone, the new "Raise to Wake" functionality still allows the Lock screen to be viewed without a touch, so it continues to be possible to view incoming notifications. Fully unlocking the phone will require a free finger that's unobscured by fabric or one of the brands of capacitive gloves that are functional.

Update: As MacRumors forum members point out, there is the option of turning on AssistiveTouch in Accessibility, which offers a way to bypass the home button with screen-only control options.

Article Link: iPhone 7 Home Button Requires Capacitive Touch to Work

 

[zigmund555]

Buttongate.

 

[trifid]

Glovesgate

 

[btrach144]

Not sure how this is really an issue. All you could do before, assuming you have touch ID enabled, is check the lock screen by pressing the button with gloves on.

 

[Christian 5G]

I don't know if I'm the only one but I keep having trouble pressing it twice quickly to bring up apps so I can close them.

 

[penajmz]

Whoa just tried his and wow... that's all I'm going to say.

 

[Peepo]

Doesn't matter because if one uses Touch ID then needs skin contact anyways.

 

[larrylaffer]

The other 92% of the surface has the same restriction, so uh, I don't really care.

 

[york2600]

Would it work with the gloves that have the metal threading? You have to have those anyways to use a phone in the winter.

 

[tuslaw12]

"You're touching it wrong"

 

[SockRolid]

Not to worry.
Iris-unlock next year (if the rumors are correct.)

 

[Paddle1]

Press the power button instead?

 

[powertoold]

Uh, can't you just use those touch screen friendly gloves? Why would you use regular gloves to press the home button anyway? You can't use the phone after anyway...

Plus, you can still tap on the power button with your gloves.

What the **** is this?

 

[CE3]

There are lots of gloves out there that work with touchscreens.

 

[pilot3033]

With raise to wake, though, that's pretty similar to how it already works. I suppose you could press the 6S button with a glove then use your nose to enter a passcode and get what you want? I always just took my glove off if I needed to get to my phone that desperately in the cold. Usually in those cases I had headphones in and just used siri, though.

 

[SockRolid]

Not sure how this is really an issue. All you could do before, assuming you have touch ID enabled, is check the lock screen by pressing the button with gloves on.

Agree. Touch ID requires direct contact with a fingerprint.
How is this news?

 

[penajmz]

Press the power button instead?

The problem would be to unlock the phone.

 

[oldwren]

The touchscreen also requires skin contact... so is this really an issue?

 

[A MacBook lover]

Need new winter gloves now to go with my case.

 

[Glassed Silver]

Yeah, I'll take the headphone jack.

Seems like the Taptic Engine is using up a lot of space we could use for a UNIVERSAL connector that is compatible with the widest range of audio accessories.

On top of that, you can now unlock your phone under all conditions.

Only Apple could have done this.

Glassed Silver:mac

 

[jgreg728]

Made an account just to vent at this nonissue. You can't use the phone period with gloves anyway. Buy touchscreen contact gloves and you're fine.

 

[Spink10]

Not sure how this is really an issue. All you could do before, assuming you have touch ID enabled, is check the lock screen by pressing the button with gloves on.

no - certain gloves design for touch screens worked. Not it doesn't. Read complete article.

 

[Spink10]

Uh, can't you just use those touch screen friendly gloves? Why would you use regular gloves to press the home button anyway? You can't use the phone after anyway...

Plus, you can still tap on the power button with your gloves.

What the **** is this?

no - as article says

 

[surfingarbo]

Remember folks, some people wear gloves ALL THE TIME...

 

[Roxy Balboa]

Just wear genuine leather pants and you will be fine.