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iPhone 13 Pro Max Does screen register a “touch” without actually touching it?

I posted below but I'm glad to hear I'm not alone.

forums.macrumors.com

Ghost touches when using my new 13 mini. Could static be the issue?

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/does-screen-register-a-touch-without-actually-touching-it.2315376/?post=30538477#post-30538477
forums.macrumors.com forums.macrumors.com

It's really really driving me nuts, and my finger has occasionally been 1-3mm away from the screen.

It'll be incredibly hard, but I'm going to try and film the issue occurring somehow.

AdzWings said:
I’m glad it’s not just me having this issue, thought I was just being paranoid. My iPhone 13 Pro registers a touch sometimes when my finger is just above the screen so if I’m scrolling through messages for example, as the scrolling stops it will sometimes take me into the message under my thumb. It doesn’t happen all the time but it’s enough to be annoying. Got an appointment at the Genius Bar on Saturday so fingers crossed. Not that they will have stock to exchange on the day!
Click to expand...

Keep us posted!

The diagnostics all came back fine for me but they still replaced the screen the first time I went about it (which is partially why I'm not convinced it's just the digitiser), and the 2nd time (at a different Apple Store) the "Genius" was an arrogant elitist fool who thought I was imagining it.

I've never had this issue with previous iPhones so I'm left baffled.
 
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Ghost Gate...
All jokes aside I have had this happen to all my Apple devices but it wasn't obvious enough to warrant a replacement it was more random than anything.
 
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There’s no doubt this phantom touch from close to the screen is worse with my iPhone 13 Pro Max than any other iPhone I’ve owned, and I’ve owned every single iPhone since the first gen. Very peculiar indeed. It reminds me of the Nintendo Switch which has had this issue since its release. It’s not a dealbreaker but it is annoying at times.
 
This is more likely to happen when the iPhone is cold and your fingers are warm (or vice versa) and your finger is close enough to the screen but not actually touching it. It’s happened on rare occasions but it’s not a problem
 
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bushman4 said:
This is more likely to happen when the iPhone is cold and your fingers are warm (or vice versa) and your finger is close enough to the screen but not actually touching it. It’s happened on rare occasions but it’s not a problem
Click to expand...
It's just odd it hasn't happened on my previous iPhone models, no?

Something isn't quite right in my opinion.
 
Just to update everyone. Went to my appointment today and the staff member was really good. He did a diagnostic on it but it came back fine. He said sometimes it can be a bug after restoring from a back up though. However, he advised to reset and restore and if that didn’t work they would swap it for a brand new phone. (I’m still within 28 days). I have now reset and restored it but it hasn’t worked so it will be an exchange for me. It’s happening to often to live with and I’ve never experienced it with any other iPhone or iPad.
 
I notice this with my 11 Pro Max. Its very rare but I swear it registers a click I didn't do. Only thing I could think of is my finger is so close it registers without me feeling it. I can not replicate it however focusing on a sensation such as touch makes testing virtually impossible.
 
AdzWings said:
Just to update everyone. Went to my appointment today and the staff member was really good. He did a diagnostic on it but it came back fine. He said sometimes it can be a bug after restoring from a back up though. However, he advised to reset and restore and if that didn’t work they would swap it for a brand new phone. (I’m still within 28 days). I have now reset and restored it but it hasn’t worked so it will be an exchange for me. It’s happening to often to live with and I’ve never experienced it with any other iPhone or iPad.
Click to expand...
Did you try and demonstrate the issue?

Glad to hear you’ll get it sorted!

I’ve recorded a video of the issue happening so I’m going to go back to the store I got it from and hope for the best. If I get a replacement and it still happens I know it’s me, but I don’t want to waste money on a faulty product if that isn’t the case.
 
Otamin said:
Did you try and demonstrate the issue?

Glad to hear you’ll get it sorted!

I’ve recorded a video of the issue happening so I’m going to go back to the store I got it from and hope for the best. If I get a replacement and it still happens I know it’s me, but I don’t want to waste money on a faulty product if that isn’t the case.
Click to expand...
Hi, I didn’t no and to be honest it had only happened a few times that morning. I just explained that I don’t think I could demonstrate as It didn’t happen all the time. I did explain the practical issues it was causing though just to show how it was affecting use. Turn out to be a costly trip though as I ended up buying the new airpods!! ?
 
AdzWings said:
Hi, I didn’t no and to be honest it had only happened a few times that morning. I just explained that I don’t think I could demonstrate as It didn’t happen all the time. I did explain the practical issues it was causing though just to show how it was affecting use. Turn out to be a costly trip though as I ended up buying the new airpods!! ?
Click to expand...
I should’ve done the same and not tried to show it. I know for a fact my finger didn’t hit the screen multiple times, but the “Genius” was an arrogant elitist arse.

Hopefully your next phone doesn’t have the issue!

I’m really hoping I can get it sorted within the next couple of weeks. I have 20 more days of AppleCare, but I’m reluctant to get AppleCare+ in case I can only get it sorted out at the shop I bought it from (unfortunately they’re out of stock at the moment).
 
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Otamin said:
I should’ve done the same and not tried to show it. I know for a fact my finger didn’t hit the finger multiple times, but the “Genius” was an arrogant elitist arse.

Hopefully your next phone doesn’t have the issue!

I’m really hoping I can get it sorted within the next couple of weeks. I have 20 more days of AppleCare, but I’m reluctant to get AppleCare+ in case I can only get it sorted out at the shop I bought it from (unfortunately they’re out of stock at the moment).
Click to expand...
It really doesn’t help to get somebody like that, luckily the person I spoke with was really good. I do wonder if the new phone could have the same issue but fingers crossed. Hope you get yours sorted, we pay a lot of money for our phones and they should be perfect t!!
 
AdzWings said:
It really doesn’t help to get somebody like that, luckily the person I spoke with was really good. I do wonder if the new phone could have the same issue but fingers crossed. Hope you get yours sorted, we pay a lot of money for our phones and they should be perfect t!!
Click to expand...
As much as I like Apple products, he's the embodiment of everything I hate about the company. I'm glad to hear your experience was good!

Cheers! I think I've decently demonstrated it using my camera so I'm going to go to the store I bought it from and either get a replacement or ask for my money back.

Keep us posted on how your replacement is!
 
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Otamin said:
As much as I like Apple products, he's the embodiment of everything I hate about the company. I'm glad to hear your experience was good!

Cheers! I think I've decently demonstrated it using my camera so I'm going to go to the store I bought it from and either get a replacement or ask for my money back (they're not currently in stock unfortunately).

Keep us posted on how your replacement is!
Click to expand...
Yeah I know what you mean. I can’t face going to Android and to be fair I’ve had very few issues with Apple at all. Hope you get sorted and I’ll update when I’ve swapped. Could be a while of course depending on stock levels!
 
If you have a problem with the digitizer (and I think this is true in the majority of cases of ghost touch) then it will happen at random intervals even if your hands are in your pockets. Hovering near the screen is just what you do all the time with a phone, and it has nothing to do with the issue (if the problem is the digitizer malfunctioning).
The way I demonstrated it to Apple was by videoing the iPad while it was doing it.
The best way to do that is to create a new Note, then select the scribbling tool (the pen tool), select the largest brush possible (i.e. the yellow marker at the largest size possible) then put the phone on the table and observe whether a mark appears on the screen spontaneously.
Depending how often you get the problem, this might not happen for a while (or even for hours) but if your problem is serious enough, you will see marks appearing, often in a particular area of the screen only (the defective area).

Obviously I wouldn't recommend you lose sleep over this.
If your problem is serious enough, it will happen at some point.
In my case it seemed to be happening in bursts, so the best way to catch it was to go straight into Notes after I experienced the problem during normal use.
Sure enough, I would be able to capture with the notes app.
 
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AdzWings said:
Yeah I know what you mean. I can’t face going to Android and to be fair I’ve had very few issues with Apple at all. Hope you get sorted and I’ll update when I’ve swapped. Could be a while of course depending on stock levels!
Click to expand...
Yep! I've been an Apple user since I was about 3 years old and this is the only time I've ever had an issue regarding one of their products.

Thanks and fingers crossed it all goes well for you!

Wando64 said:
If you have a problem with the digitizer (and I think this is true in the majority of cases of ghost touch) then it will happen at random intervals even if your hands are in your pockets. Hovering near the screen is just what you do all the time with a phone, and it has nothing to do with the issue (if the problem is the digitizer malfunctioning).
The way I demonstrated it to Apple was by videoing the iPad while it was doing it.
The best way to do that is to create a new Note, then select the scribbling tool (the pen tool), select the largest brush possible (i.e. the yellow marker at the largest size possible) then put the phone on the table and observe whether a mark appears on the screen spontaneously.
Depending how often you get the problem, this might not happen for a while (or even for hours) but if your problem is serious enough, you will see mars appearing, often in a particular area of the screen only (the defective area).

Obviously I wouldn't recommend you lose sleep over this.
If your problem is serious enough, it will happen at some point.
In my case it seemed to be happening in bursts, so the best way to catch it was to go straight into Notes after I experienced the problem during normal use.
Sure enough, I would be able to capture with the notes app.
Click to expand...
I'm not entirely sure if my problem is necessarily digitiser related then since my screen was replaced.

The majority of the time my finger can hover over something and cause touches about 1-2mm away from the screen, and sometimes the gap between my finger and the screen is around 4mm which is what I'm trying to capture (I've already captured the former).

Could some iPhone models be more prone to static than others? I just find it strange I never suffered with this previously.
 
Hasn’t happened on my 13, but I do notice when I’m scrolling over pictures or posts (mostly here on the Tapatalk app) if I start a swip up on a picture it will open that picture instead of scrolling. It’s irritating.
 
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I went back to the store I got the phone from (not an Apple Store), and the tech woman I spoke to said the same thing happens on her new phone (not an iPhone).

I'm assuming it's just my fingers since when I tried other phones the same thing was happening.

I guess the colder weather is the main culprit behind it, and maybe screens nowadays are a lot more sensitive than they were previously? I'm not sure.

I'm hoping I'll be able to get a screen protector that will lessen/stop it from happening, but we'll see.
 
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