Apple Launches iPhone X Display Module Replacement Program to Address Touch Issues

[Macaholic868]

I can’t help but think that AppleCare is a scam. Having to pay that much for what essentially is a one year extended (two year total) hardware warranty is just dumb in most cases. If they gave you three years overall I’d be all over it but having to pay that much for what amounts to a two year warranty is a joke.

I will say this though. My iPhone X basically became unusable for phone calls. With the phone up to my ear I could only hear who I was talking to if I was in a totally silent room. It started about 3 weeks ago and luckily for me the phone was still covered under the standard one year warranty. I called support, let them know I’d tried all suggested software based fixes, they set me up with a Genius Bar appointment and they took my device and replaced the display (which contains the speaker you hear when you are using the phone as a phone) with no questions asked.

I’ve been an iPhone owner since the first iPhone was released and this was the first time I had an issue with hardware not related to being an idiot and dropping the phone causing the display to shatter.

I’ve relied on the insurance I get from my carrier up until now and for $8 a month and the number of times I’ve had to use it it’s been well worth the price.

I would only consider AppleCare if they made the terms longer. Two years isn’t enough. I paid over a grand for the X and it’ll be my daily driver for another 2 - 3 years at a minimum.

If Apple wants to sell insurance they’ve got to do better than two years total at that price point.

 

[Chazzle]

I can’t help but think that AppleCare is a scam. Having to pay that much for what essentially is a one year extended (two year total) hardware warranty is just dumb in most cases. If they gave you three years overall I’d be all over it but having to pay that much for what amounts to a two year warranty is a joke.

I will say this though. My iPhone X basically became unusable for phone calls. With the phone up to my ear I could only hear who I was talking to if I was in a totally silent room. It started about 3 weeks ago and luckily for me the phone was still covered under the standard one year warranty. I called support, let them know I’d tried all suggested software based fixes, they set me up with a Genius Bar appointment and they took my device and replaced the display (which contains the speaker you hear when you are using the phone as a phone) with no questions asked.

I’ve been an iPhone owner since the first iPhone was released and this was the first time I had an issue with hardware not related to being an idiot and dropping the phone causing the display to shatter.

I’ve relied on the insurance I get from my carrier up until now and for $8 a month and the number of times I’ve had to use it it’s been well worth the price.

I would only consider AppleCare if they made the terms longer. Two years isn’t enough. I paid over a grand for the X and it’ll be my daily driver for another 2 - 3 years at a minimum.

If Apple wants to sell insurance they’ve got to do better than two years total at that price point.

I think you are forgetting that AppleCare adds physical damage protection. That's what makes it worth the price considering the repair costs without it.

 

[Martius]

Still waiting for the "touchbar replacement program for 15inch MBP". You know, a program where you can get classic function keys instead of that bloody touchbar.

 

[4jasontv]

Would this include issues where I am unable to extend the text selection in one direction? I constantly have problems where I can't select text I want to copy or replace. I never considered it was my touch display not working and I just assumed it was iOS not liking how some websites were coded.

 

[mikeheenan]

I don't have touch issues that I know of, however I have noticed that with my phone in my right pocket, sometimes Siri goes off randomly but I've figured that was more due to pressure on the power button on the right side?

 

[5105973]

Can't wait to see "some" iPhone XS/XS Max and XR models start having "issues" around the same time next year after iPhone XI comes out

My Xr already has shown signs of this. I think it’s now a day out of the two week return. Oh well. I’ll wait and see how it goes. I’m not sure it wasn’t just a software snafu in my case.
[doublepost=1541869198][/doublepost]

Would this include issues where I am unable to extend the text selection in one direction? I constantly have problems where I can't select text I want to copy or replace. I never considered it was my touch display not working and I just assumed it was iOS not liking how some websites were coded.

No I have that on iPad and 8 Plus and Xr. It’s annoying af.

 

[ronno]

Interesting. For those with problems, is it app-dependent? I've noticed that my X tends to freeze much more frequently recently, almost always when using Safari. You can tap the screen/webpage all you want, but nothing happens. That said, I think I'm usually able to exit..

I experience the same thing on my X AND my 7 - this seems to be an annoying Safari issue.

 

[nebo1ss]

I am waiting on them to offer some sort of fix for the iPhone 8 on which i am having a similar problem. What happens is a total lack of response to the screen or any of the buttons. It always seem to come back after 2 to 3 minutes but during the freeze i am unable to do anything except wait.

 

[anthonyondre]

I can’t help but think that AppleCare is a scam. ....

AppleCare is not optional as quality in Apple products is not at all what it was 10 years ago. Consider AppleCare part of the cost when you look at alternatives and pricing.

You need AppleCare because AppleDoesntCare about building a product that works longer then you want to keep it. Apple quality is why people used to pay the premium for Apple products. While Apple quality is much better than other vendors, it now falls closer to the range "sucks less" rather than "insanely great".

I bought 2 XSs and 1 X.

 

[Momof2.1107]

I am waiting on them to offer some sort of fix for the iPhone 8 on which i am having a similar problem. What happens is a total lack of response to the screen or any of the buttons. It always seem to come back after 2 to 3 minutes but during the freeze i am unable to do anything except wait.

I had my screen on my X replaced almost 2 months and notice this happening at least once a day. I usually have to let my phone sit for a few minutes and hope it unfreezes itself. I kept figuring it was a software issue, since I am on iOS 12.1.1 beta 2.

 

[dontwalkhand]

I have been experiencing a little bit of it and I have always thought it was the app.

I’m afraid to bring it in though because of the decreased water resistance

 

[whirldy]

May we just get a whole iPhone X replacement IF our X is still under warranty?

 

[GoodWheaties]

Indeed, what’s not to like. Having said that I haven’t experienced any issues with my iPhone 7. Perhaps I’m just careful with my things as I can’t really recall having problems with any electrical device going back 50 years.

It’s not always just being careful that prevents problems with devices. I know people whose bodies literally seem to cause problems with electronics.
I had a friend whose phone would glitch out every 3-4 months almost like clockwork. His brother couldn’t wear watches as the batteries would die in days. I have a family member who has had his phone mics fail often enough to seem like more than a coincidence.
Maybe some of our bodies are just more compatible with electronics than others.

 

[the-msa]

my wife is on her second iPhone 7. both broke with the same microphone defect. it just doesn't work.

at the same time i never had any issues with any android i ever owned.

as soon as we get the second broken iPhone 7 replaced, I'll sell it and get my wife the Nokia 7 or something. my wife is sick of iPhones. *shrug*

 

[ApfelKuchen]

May we just get a whole iPhone X replacement IF our X is still under warranty?

By request? No. It's not up to the customer to stipulate the remedy - just read the warranty. That's the document that, among other things, explains the remedies available to the customer. As in any warranty, from any company, no matter how "premium" the product, the company, not the customer, gets to determine the remedy.

Whole-unit replacement is always a possibility, based on Apple's decision. Traditionally, if they're not able to do the display replacement in a reasonable amount of time, they may choose to offer a replacement. However, on a day-to-day basis, a display replacement will be Apple's first choice, because overall it's more efficient and cost-effective.

Should I bore you with the details? First off, if whole-unit replacement was the standard approach, every store would have to have sufficient inventory of replacement units matching every configuration. Specifically in this case, every amount of Flash storage, but depending on the model, every cellular radio type (GSM or CDMA), too (color is a variable in nearly every case). Since the same display module is used regardless of Flash storage, only two parts need be maintained in stock (space gray or silver display) instead of four (space gray 64 GB, space gray 256 GB, silver 64 GB, silver 256 GB). For models that come in more colors and more Flash configurations, it gets even worse (typically, even when there are three or more colors of case, only two display module colors are typically required - white or black, based on the bezel color).

You'd likely think it'd be stupid for a car company to issue replacement vehicles instead of repair a defective part. Why is it so much harder for people to understand the same principle applies to iPhones, too? In the case of iPhones there aren't a lot of parts that can be economically repaired on site, but when those parts can be replaced efficiently, they're going to be.

Based on the comments of many others in this thread, who feel that the more expensive solution is preferable... This is Economics 101. The estimated cost of warranty service is built into the price of the product, just like the cost of physical components, labor, shipping, advertising, etc. The more expensive warranty service is (due to either defect rates or cost of repair), the higher the initial product price must be. In other words, if, as a matter of course, brand-new units are provided as warranty replacements (even when module/part replacement is all that's necessary), that higher cost must be factored into the original price of the product. As always, the customer will be happier to get more at the same price - who wouldn't be? However, since that would require the company to take a lower profit, and the only motivation any company has to be in business is to make a profit... what are the chances?

 

[tallscot]

Always skip the beta iPhones and wait for the second iteration. It's been like that since the 3G, I think.

 

[MrX8503]

Apple has always had the best support. Good luck getting this kind of support with any other device.

 

[BradWinterton]

My iPhone X had this fault about a month before I upgraded to the XS Max. A quick test in the store and the screen was replaced in an hour.

 

[Lankyman]

I think you are forgetting that AppleCare adds physical damage protection. That's what makes it worth the price considering the repair costs without it.

Why when you can simply claim on your house insurance. If the product is as premium as claimed then there's no need to extend the warranty.

I would never consider extending a warranty on anything that was an extra cost to me.

 

[kylelerner]

WOW. Sheer coincidence that they launch this program right outside the included 1-year warranty period from when it launched, much? It better honor this regardless of warranty status, or that’s just messed up.

 

[Salazes123]

Luckily I do not experience this kind of issues on my X. It it worth to book an appointment to perform some tests and might have some components be replaced by new one ?

 

[Jimmy Bubbles]

iOS 12 is buggy enough with graphical anomalies that I honestly can’t tell if it is software or hardware issues.
I was seeing graphical anomaly of swiping on lower part of the screen, but seeing keys from the keyboard show up, instead of the screen swiping to left/right. Am I alone in this? I’ve reset all settings and still reoccurring.

 

[gwaizai]

No wonder Apple products are so expensive: buy one and they have to swap out multiple new devices
before you get one that works.

I really wanna upgrade from my 5s, but this stuff stops me. Maybe I'll get an 8.
Can't imagine spending premium dollar for such a shoddy experience.
Hats off to all of you who have to deal with this sh*t.

 

[capandjudy]

May we just get a whole iPhone X replacement IF our X is still under warranty?

I took my iPhone X to Best Buy's Geek Squad. I was having all kinds of screen issues such as apps launching themselves at times and other problems. The tech ran a diagnostic with no definite identifiable problem found. The phone was under warranty. BB just went in the back and gave me new phone. It may be a refurbished phone but it works.

 

[AppleWarMachine]

I had an appointment today at the apple store (due the the non responsive issue - iPhone X) and because I have Apple Care they replaced the entire phone at no cost