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Take your phone to the Genius Bar. I did last week. The Apple rep looked it up on the computer and it said "known issue." They game me a new phone.

They can do it in front of you, as mentioned above, as well as you can do it:
Settings->General->Reset->Erase All Content and Settings.

Remember to back up before going to the Apple Store.
 
i've also got some cracks on my white 3g and i just called the austrian support hotline.
the hotline-guy told me they would repair my iphone. meaning a UPS truck would come by and fetch my iphone. they would then repair the unit and send it back in about 7 days. the catch here is i would be left without an iphone for these 7 days. not a nice idea!

i then told him that i've read of other people beeing sent a new iphone and then sending in their faulty units. his response was that this would also be possible but would cost me 25€ (euro)!!

am i the only one who would have to pay to get his iphone replaced or has anybody else had to pay as well??
thanks for any response.
 
I've got a white sixteen gig that was purchased 3/14. The 3rd/4th/5th digits of the serial reveal it to be a 2009 week 10 build, which makes me feel good because the phone was built merely a week before purchasing it.

It's perfect in every way.
 
I've got a white sixteen gig that was purchased 3/14. The 3rd/4th/5th digits of the serial reveal it to be a 2009 week 10 build, which makes me feel good because the phone was built merely a week before purchasing it.

It's perfect in every way.

Having looked at the rest of my Serial Number, mine is week 9 of 2009. Happy days!
 
Take your phone to the Genius Bar. I did last week. The Apple rep looked it up on the computer and it said "known issue." They game me a new phone.

Thanks everyone for the Advice.
I've also noticed I've been dropping calls(all bars full) since the crack was found. I live in the downtown Memphis area and I have never have reception problems in the past. Maybe they are tweeting the network? I'm not fully sure the dropping calls issue is due to the crack or what.

I have an appointment this Saturday..We'll see what happens..
MemphisDave
 
Ok i've been trying to figure this out but can't seem to get it. lol! Now how can you tell when the phone was made or what week? Just curious. :D

I think I may have asked this before but I can't remember.
 
I had to replace my first phone because of cracks appearing all over the case (along with light leak and dust under the screen issues). They sent me a second one and had to send it back because the clicker on the headphones wasn't working on it (it also had a crack at the headphone jack). They have now sent me a third one, which works great, but also has a crack at the headphone jack.

I looked at my friend's and brother's iPhone and they too have cracks. The ones I've seen at the Rogers stores have cracks as well. I'm beginning to think that all iPhone 3gs have or will develop cracks and is just something that you have to live with. Must be a design issue. No point in sending them back over and over again as any new or refurbed ones you get will just develop cracks. Doesn't bother me that much, because my phone works perfect for me. Just hope it holds together for the next 2 years.:D
 
Ok i've been trying to figure this out but can't seem to get it. lol! Now how can you tell when the phone was made or what week? Just curious. :D

I think I may have asked this before but I can't remember.

From what i have been told, the 3rd digit is the year it was made, and the
4th/5th the week - Mine begins 5K909... so its the 9th Week of 2009. Hope that makes sense!
 
I got my white 3g around September and I've been noticing a lot of cracks... Didn't really bother me at first but there Are around 5-7 cracks and I have never dropped my phone before.. If I want to get it replaced I should call apple iPhone support and they should ship me a new one right? Thanks in advance!
actually.. i bought the phone from a friend so i dont have the at&t 3g data plan... would it still be okay to call them to replace it? thanks
 
I bought my white iPhone back in November, and I am now starting to see cracks. I literally have more then ten cracks going up and down both sides of my phone. Then I have more then 5 cracks going along the top.
 
The guy at the Genius Bar tells me the crack looks like a compression crack. Since he could tell if dropped the phone at some point, he explained the previous drop(s) may have caused this area to weaken and it's not covered.
He was nice about it but tried to blame it on a previous drop...He said the crack will not spread further because the horizontal plastic molding on the inside. That's was i was more concerned about.

In all honesty, I didn't drop the phone to cause this crack...it actually happened while charging the phone over night. I immediately inspect the phone when it has been dropped it in the past
(2 times) and I've never seen anything more than a small scratch on a corner.
MemphisDave
 
hey guys anymore follow-ups on replaced iphone 3g with these problems ,
i also have 2 hairline cracks on my white one but very hard to see unless you really look at it ,so is it worth getting it replaced? i had it for a while with the 2 hairline cracks and doesn't seem to get any worse .i already went through hell getting the iphone unlocked ,jailbreaked ,installed many apps already .i don't really think it's a big deal since we all know that the housing is cheap anyway and it's pretty cheap to get a replacement housing on ebay from the chinese like the replica housings goes for $10.00 on ebay and the real oem housings goes for $25- $40

p.s i love my iphone 3g ,it works flawlessly since july 2008 ,and im anal about the condition of it but i dont think the hairline cracks is abig deal if it's tiny only if its really really noticeable or continues to get worse.
 
Took mine in on Saturday with cracks around the headphone socket and mute switch - walked out 10 mins later with activated replacement. :D

One thing though they were going to take it without deleting everything - so following the earlier suggestion in this thread I took it back and did the delete option but I didnt realise that took 2 hours!! I'm assuming once you start it you cant stop it even if you turn it off? Anyone know? :confused:
 
Cracks, Cracks, cracks

Hi

Im new to this forum, thought id just add my 10 cents worth....

Im now on my 4th Iphone 3g white for this very same problem, heres what I know so far :

Apple are fine in replacing the iphone at the apple store, they are though asking more questions everytime I go in and running diagnostics.

When I was in the store today I checked the 8 or so display models, most of the white ones have this crack (above the flick switch) it seems very comon, My last Iphone had the same and I got it swapped.

It seems like its just poor manufacture, the area around there needs to be stronger and more plastic so it doesnt crack! Apple are not bothered because its there manufacture's fault. I guess there is a huge and box of faulty cases in china and a load of people just swapping them over and sending the refurb units out.

I probably wont bother to go back to apple if the same thing happens again unless im selling the phone, its a comon problem, I had same issue with my macbook white. Just do what you want to do, I love apple products but I do think they should have spent more time getting this rectified....

Happy days!:)
 
I'm done with returning my phone for cracks as well. I think its a manufacturing issue. I've had multiple white iPhones and all have started to crack. I baby my phones. I only hope the new iPhone is built better than the current one. Apples quality control has really been awful lately. I never had these problems with my original iPhone.
 
i have a Black 8GB 3G from launch, never been dropped to my knowledge, it has scratches on the back, obviously the back isnt in absolute mint condition having it for nearly 9 months, but its not like there is a load of gouges in the back, Anyways looking at it this morning i noticed that theres some slight marking around the headphone jack, upon further inspection it looks like the metal around the jack is coming away and shining a light on it shows a few cracks or could be scratches and this is my thing, im not sure if they are scratches or actual cracks. Also theres also a slight crack next to the sim ejector slot.

i need to borrow a higher res camera to post it up, but do you reckon its worth a trip to a UK apple store, its an hour or so away, but im due to go that way next week, am i just going to be laughed at for being anal or will i get a replacement?
 
camera neurotica

Has anyone noticed that the camera in their replacement phone is of a poorer quality than previous phone? Screen def doesn't seem quite as sharp either.

I exchanged an August-bought white iphone - mute and volume switch cracks - at Southampton last week.

I'm just wondering if they're starting to skimp on the components? Or perhaps my unit - sensory perception - is dicky.
 
My latest iPhone has started cracking too.

I dunno - if it gets worse, I may take it back; but I'm pretty over taking this phone back to Apple because it's cracking. Boring and not fun.

The glass is uneven though and the LCD isn't centered inside the body, so I may take it back eventually.
 
Has anyone noticed that the camera in their replacement phone is of a poorer quality than previous phone? Screen def doesn't seem quite as sharp either.

I exchanged an August-bought white iphone - mute and volume switch cracks - at Southampton last week.

I'm just wondering if they're starting to skimp on the components? Or perhaps my unit - sensory perception - is dicky.

DUDE, you are imagining things. When they refurbish phones, replaced parts are the same as in the new ones. You think any company, specially Apple, is going to make two sets of parts for their items. "Yeah, lets build two sets of components, so that when we replace an item and refurbish it, it is of less quality" WOW, now how much sense does that make?????:eek:
 
My latest iPhone has started cracking too.

I dunno - if it gets worse, I may take it back; but I'm pretty over taking this phone back to Apple because it's cracking. Boring and not fun.

The glass is uneven though and the LCD isn't centered inside the body, so I may take it back eventually.

If you have all those problems, don't wait, just take it back to get replaced.
But, I'm just wondering, form what you describe, and I'm not even looking at your phone, but, I think you dropped it!!! HA, HA!!!:D
 
If you have all those problems, don't wait, just take it back to get replaced.
But, I'm just wondering, form what you describe, and I'm not even looking at your phone, but, I think you dropped it!!! HA, HA!!!:D

Uneven glass? Sorry man - known issue. (not even sure now a drop would do that)

Un-centered LCD? Sorry man - that's in there pretty good. Don't thing it's shaking around or moving around at all.

A million little cracks by the volume and silent switch? Sorry man - not from a drop.

I hear what you're saying (I'm suspicious of many users too), but stuff is not drop material.

I'm waiting for a bit for the cracks to grow more (they will) and so I can get a newer week build (hopefully with manufacturing improvements). Besides, I JUST got this damn refurb - don't feel like going to the apple Store at the moment.
 
Uneven glass? Sorry man - known issue. (not even sure now a drop would do that)

Un-centered LCD? Sorry man - that's in there pretty good. Don't thing it's shaking around or moving around at all.

A million little cracks by the volume and silent switch? Sorry man - not from a drop.

I hear what you're saying (I'm suspicious of many users too), but stuff is not drop material.

I'm waiting for a bit for the cracks to grow more (they will) and so I can get a newer week build (hopefully with manufacturing improvements). Besides, I JUST got this damn refurb - don't feel like going to the apple Store at the moment.

Apple replaced my iPhone with a brand new one box and all accesories. I will report back once the cracks start to develop again. Like I said this is my last iPhone 3G. I only hope the new iPhone is built to Apple's old standards!
 
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