iPhone 3G Sleep Button "Stuck"

[DjDATZ]

Beforehand, I've posted a similar thread to this in the iPhoneinCanada.ca forums, but I've received no responses, and my initial diagnosis of the issue was kind of off. So please post suggestions here rather than there.

So here's the problem:

It would seem that my iPhone 3G thinks my sleep button (the one on the top) is constantly being pressed. It's not actually, it's in its normal position and I can still press it down for that satisfying click. The button itself however does absolutely f****** nothing.

The resulting issues from it:
+ If the screen locks without being plugged in, this throws the phone into a perpetual reboot cycle.
- That means the screen always has to stay on all the time if I'm mobile, and I can't even lock it, so all my apps are exposed.
- To stop the reboot cycle, I have to plug the phone in to charge, whether into the wall, PC/laptop or car.
+ Screen on all-the-time means terrible battery life even at the lowest brightness setting.

The phone's a year and a half old now, and I missed buying AppleCare for it by a d**n week, which I'm still annoyed at myself for.

Other than heading to the Apple Store, are there any suggestions for me? Can/Should I open the phone up and see if there's something in there causing issues?

(If the two bleeped out curse words are against policy, let me know, and I'll take 'em out.)

 

[Gadgetgeezer]

I would suggest a new cable harness. Reckon the sleep button which is a membrane, is shorted since they are quite fragile. You need a local repairer if possible.

Regards

Spencer

 

[DjDATZ]

I would suggest a new cable harness. Reckon the sleep button which is a membrane, is shorted since they are quite fragile. You need a local repairer if possible.

Regards

Spencer

If I were to get the folks at the Apple Store to take a look at it and potentially fix it, how much could I expect it to run me?

 

[Gadgetgeezer]

Not sure since I am in the UK. Maybe somebody else can comment?

 

[DjDATZ]

If I were to get the folks at the Apple Store to take a look at it and potentially fix it, how much could I expect it to run me?

Anyone?

 

[courtney.bella]

Anyone?

They're not going to try to fix it. They'll replace it for $199, I believe. More experienced members can tell me if I'm right.

 

[AruMobile]

I have the exact same problem right now but I can tell you it's the mother board's problem. I replaced a mother board in the phone and it works fine, but when I switch back to the first one the power button becomes "stuck" again.

Did you ever get yours fixed?

I cleaned the #5 connector with alcohol real hard and the phone became "unstuck" but after a few minutes it auto turns off!!!!

 

[DjDATZ]

Got it replaced for $260 (~$220 + 15% tax). Planning on selling it for about $320-$350.

 

[DanL1]

Stuck sleep button

I know you've replaced yours, but for future troubleshooters, I just had a similar problem. The iPhone was dropped on its corner and a small dent held the sleep button in the pressed down state, rendering the on/home button useless.

I used a tiny eyeglasses screwdriver (flathead) to pop the button up just a tiny bit. I plugged the phone in, and when the apple logo appeared i held the home button down until the phone restarted. It came on!

The phone now works completely normally, except I can't use the sleep button at all--it is now stuck in the "up" position. In settings, I turned on the auto-lock to 60 seconds, so now when I am done using the iPhone I just have to let it sit for 60 seconds and it goes into sleep state. The impact is minimal on battery life--I just can't turn the phone to sleep mode the instant I want.