Face ID Not Working After Brief Plunge

[philrock]

iPhone XS, iOS 13.5.1

Last week my iPhone was submerged for less than one second in a few inches of water and now Face ID no longer works.

I have tried everything except a complete restore. When I try to set it up, it tells me to "Position your face within the frame" and "Reposition your face within the frame" then sometimes tell me to move the phone up or down but nada.

There is no visible damage. Nothing fogged up after the submersion.

I am planning to purchase a 12 once out but losing Face ID is tough #thestruggleisreal

Any thoughts? Thank you.

 

[BugeyeSTI]

Water seems to have entered the phone in some way and damaged the FaceID hardware. I doubt there's any remedy at this point and I wouldn't be surprised if other problems arise in the future due to the usual corrosion that occurs when water is left on circuit boards. You may be able to get a 3rd party repair service open the phone and try and mitigate any further damage but Apple will only want to replace the phone charging out of warranty repair cost..

 

[TiggrToo]

for less than one second

Gonna find that hard to believe. If it took an accidental dunk then it’s going to be several seconds.

That said, if the phone did get damaged just due to a quick shallow dunking then I’d have to ask:

1) Was there any other damage to the phone prior to this? Even a small crack can be the difference between life and death when it comes to a submerged iPhone.

2) Did you power it off immediately afterwards and let it totally dry out for, at minimum 12 hours?

3) How long after the dunking did you wait until you plugged the power cable in to charge?

 

[philrock]

Gonna find that hard to believe. If it took an accidental dunk then it’s going to be several seconds.

That said, if the phone did get damaged just due to a quick shallow dunking then I’d have to ask:

1) Was there any other damage to the phone prior to this? Even a small crack can be the difference between life and death when it comes to a submerged iPhone.

2) Did you power it off immediately afterwards and let it totally dry out for, at minimum 12 hours?

3) How long after the dunking did you wait until you plugged the power cable in to charge?

Calling me a liar? Harsh. If you'll note, I never said it was an accident.

1. No visible damage. Have had an Apple silicone case on since day one. Had a glass screen protector on for the first several months but took it off.

2. I did not. That isn't listed in Apple's guidance on what to do if your phone gets wet.

3. Proly 6-8 hours later. The guidance is 5 hours but this has nothing to the problem I experienced immediately after it got wet.

 

[TiggrToo]

Calling me a liar? Harsh. If you'll note, I never said it was an accident.

No, I questioned the “1 second” bit.

So, was this done deliberately?

1. No visible damage. Have had an Apple silicone case on since day one. Had a glass screen protector on for the first several months but took it off.

Why do you emphasize “Visible”?

2. I did not. That isn't listed in Apple's guidance on what to do if your phone gets wet.

Still good practice, irrespective of what’s on Apple’s web site. Water is conductive. So continuing to use it after it got wet has the potential to cause issues.

 

[Azathoth123]

There are a lot of instances like this and I do not recall any easy way out.

Best just to make a complete backup, take it to Apple and suck it up. It’s likely to be unreliable otherwise.

 

[philrock]

So, was this done deliberately?

Yes, I dunked it to wash some stuff off.

Why do you emphasize “Visible”?

I can't see any damage but clearly it is damaged or defective.

Still good practice, irrespective of what’s on Apple’s web site. Water is conductive. So continuing to use it after it got wet has the potential to cause issues.

Agreed.

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There are a lot of instances like this and I do not recall any easy way out.

Best just to make a complete backup, take it to Apple and suck it up. It’s likely to be unreliable otherwise.

Yeah, sounds like I am going to have to suck it up until the 12 comes out. I'm not buying an 11 at this point, I'll have to live with no face ID.

 

[Azathoth123]

If the repair costs aren’t workable due to the 12 coming soon, you could do an Apple refurb or even an SE with the idea of selling it when the 12 comes out. Get the one with the best resale value in the interim and sell the old one for parts.

You may come out pretty good though this approach will require some up front money.

 

[philrock]

Well heck. I can't believe I forgot I purchased AppleCare+, my memory isn't what it used to be. 🙃Now the only problem is all the Apple Stores are closed. I'll start a ticket and see what my options are.

 

[Azathoth123]

I’m not sure that water damage is covered under AppleCare, but it’s worth a try.

 

[JRobert@macrumors]

This sounds like a product failure (seals) unless there was prior damage to the phone. The specs for the XS include: "Rated IP68 (maximum depth of 2 meters up to 30 minutes) under IEC standard 60529", from this Apple Support page.

 

[philrock]

I started the support request. The tech had me do some stuff and did a remote diagnostic on my phone. According to the test everything is working correctly. I did a backup and installed 13.6, now I need to call back to take the next step which likely will be express replacement as all the stores are closed.
Now my debate is do I want to spend $99 so I can use FaceID until the 12 is released...

 

[Azathoth123]

$99? Heck yes. You’ll want to do something with that phone when you get the 12, and if you trade in or sell as-is, it will be worth a lot more than $99 less.

 

[Apple_Robert]

This sounds like a product failure (seals) unless there was prior damage to the phone. The specs for the XS include: "Rated IP68 (maximum depth of 2 meters up to 30 minutes) under IEC standard 60529", from this Apple Support page.

Seals are not guaranteed for the life of the warranty, as they degrade over time.

Since water damage is not covered, the OP will have to pay the fee, unless Apple has mercy on him.

 

[Lucas284]

So for $99 you get a totally new unit of the XS? Yes dude go for it. I don’t really understand why you want the 12 but hey to each his own. The XS is a really great phone that can last at least 4 years maybe 5.

 

[philrock]

So for $99 you get a totally new unit of the XS? Yes dude go for it. I don’t really understand why you want the 12 but hey to each his own. The XS is a really great phone that can last at least 4 years maybe 5.

I'm pretty sure it's a refurbished model. I agree the XS is a great phone but I'm looking for 5G... hoping to get rid of home internet service.

 

[philrock]

Replacement arrived today, it appears to be new and Apple put a $900 hold on my card... Doing the transfer now and will ship my old one out tomorrow. Found an Apple leather case on Poshmart for $13, I'm set.