iPhone 5 "Planned obsolescence" errors.

[ProjectManager101]

I have my iPhone 5 and I have been dealing with strange problems for the last year.
1. Touch screen does not respond
2. Is not getting charged
3. Volume/alarm icon shows as if I was muting the volume even I am not touching it
4. Headphone jack acts as if it was broken (cold contact)

All these symptoms happens for periods of times and then they fix themselves. They are all software related if Apple wanted them to happen. The reality is that my iPhone has not a single scratch and has never being repaired except for a battery recall program 2 years ago.

The headphone jack was until last week and was for two weeks. It was giving me distortions and audio out of phase as if the headphone cable was broken. I used to push the headphone jack just a bit and it was fine, when push it all the way in, the problem of "out of phase" came back. I came to the Apple store and tested my headphone with another iPhone and they were just fine, I tested the my iPhone with some other plug (non Apple) and it was fine. And after an hour my headphones and my iPhone 5 were friends again, no issues anymore.

And I was thinking... this feels like Apple wanting me to think "this phone is getting old, lets get a new one".

The touch screen works fine sometimes and other time you have to tap several times. The sensibility is random. But then... it works just fine for several months.

Each issue can last for 2 months and then fix itself with no system update or anything. But they are in that range of things that for the regular person will make you thinking in getting a new phone.

 

[eyoungren]

You went to an Apple store and didn't ask them to check the phone?

Their diagnostic is free. At minimum they could tell you what the pricing is to fix things.

Perhaps you didn't want to discover that you may have a hardware fault as it would not sit well with your software based planned obsolesence theory?

Don't get me wrong, there is some truth in your words. But Apple has always pushed the customer towards the new. For Goddsake, the iPhone 5 (the first iPhone I ever bought new) was only the flagship for ONE year before Apple retired it!

I've had two replacement iPhone 5s. That said, the last one is doing just fine for me on iOS 9.0.1 (jailbroken). Everything works and it serves as my media device.

 

[C DM]

Sounds more hardware related than anything else really.

 

[joeblow7777]

Don't get me wrong, there is some truth in your words. But Apple has always pushed the customer towards the new. For Goddsake, the iPhone 5 (the first iPhone I ever bought new) was only the flagship for ONE year before Apple retired it!

Every model is only the flagship for 1 year. When they retire it is pretty irrelevant. The 5 was for all intents and purposes reincarnated as the 5c. If anything that actually increased the value of your 5.

In any case, I don't think that "planned obsolescence" is as much an issue as people make it out to be. Hardware ages. That's just a fact. I'm generally pretty impressed by how long Apple supports their devices. I still know and see people using not just the iPhone 5, but even 4/4s series.

 

[PortableLover]

hardware related, I know people with 5 and the 5S that have no problems or compliants atm.

 

[eyoungren]

Every model is only the flagship for 1 year. When they retire it is pretty irrelevant.

That is true. But the 3GS was not retired when it's run was over. Nor was the 4, the 4s, the 5s or the 6. Each time a new phone was introduced Apple kept making the older phone.

Only the 5 was killed at the end of the year. If you wanted to buy a 5 it was either through a carrier or a third party.

The 5 was for all intents and purposes reincarnated at the 5c. If anything that actually increased the value of your 5.

And I have a very strong dislike for both the 5c and the 4 and 4s which were NOT discontinued when the 5c and the 5s arrived. Only the 5 was.

Unfortunately, value of the 5 being increased because of the 5c doesn't mean anything to me at all. We don't sell our phones, so I'm not going to make any money off that increased "value."

 

[joeblow7777]

That is true. But the 3GS was not retired when it's run was over. Nor was the 4, the 4s, the 5s or the 6. Each time a new phone was introduced Apple kept making the older phone.

Only the 5 was killed at the end of the year. If you wanted to buy a 5 it was either through a carrier or a third party.


And I have a very strong dislike for both the 5c and the 4 and 4s which were NOT discontinued when the 5c and the 5s arrived. Only the 5 was.

Unfortunately, value of the 5 being increased because of the 5c doesn't mean anything to me at all. We don't sell our phones, so I'm not going to make any money off that increased "value."

So, out of curiosity, why does it matter to you that the 5 was discontinued?

 

[eyoungren]

So, out of curiosity, why does it matter to you that the 5 was discontinued?

It matters because sometimes I'm a stupid sentimental idiot and the iPhone 5 was my very first buy on my own, all-in pre-order, launch day delivered Apple purchase.

I was expecting Apple to move the 5 down to replace the 4s when the 5s arrived, just like the 5 had moved the 4s down.

It offended my sensibilities that I had gone all in on this for the flagship iPhone and a year later Apple decided to redo it by coating it in plastic while still actively promoting the one series of iPhone (4/4s) I don't care for at all.

It's irrational, makes no sense and has people looking at me like I'm off my nut. And intellectually I know it doesn't matter one bit. But it's what I felt after having made my first real Apple purchase.

Lots of people remember fondly their very first car and for me it's a lot like that. I still have my first car. It doesn't run, but it's in my garage. I tend to attach myself to things that way.

 

[joeblow7777]

It matters because sometimes I'm a stupid sentimental idiot and the iPhone 5 was my very first buy on my own, all-in pre-order, launch day delivered Apple purchase.

I was expecting Apple to move the 5 down to replace the 4s when the 5s arrived, just like the 5 had moved the 4s down.

It offended my sensibilities that I had gone all in on this for the flagship iPhone and a year later Apple decided to redo it by coating it in plastic while still actively promoting the one series of iPhone (4/4s) I don't care for at all.

It's irrational, makes no sense and has people looking at me like I'm off my nut. And intellectually I know it doesn't matter one bit. But it's what I felt after having made my first real Apple purchase.

Lots of people remember fondly their very first car and for me it's a lot like that. I still have my first car. It doesn't run, but it's in my garage. I tend to attach myself to things that way.

No, it's not logical, but I hear you.

 

[maflynn]

hey are all software related if Apple wanted them to happen.

Tbh, they sound like hardware then software. Why not have Apple check the phone out running their diagnostics - it can't hurt.

 

[ProjectManager101]

Tbh, they sound like hardware then software. Why not have Apple check the phone out running their diagnostics - it can't hurt.

Because the problems are gone, it has been working just fine since Saturday. They came in waves and on different areas and they fix themselves. and they are not as bad to call it a problem but bad enough to consider "this device is getting old".

The touch screen has been working just fine, there was a time when I had to tap several times but that was until December. Before that was problem with power, power sign was blinking as if the connector was faulty, it was like that for 3 months and then perfect even I still using the same cables for the last 3 years.

And during 3 weeks the audio had this distortion that was not anagogic but digital, this last weekend I was going to the mall and is was when the plug felt damaged like no stereo or audio out of phase. By the way, I know a load about sound engineering because my Dad was one and I was the only person he can talk to at home and he used to show me all the different plugins and when audio was analog and digital and all that stuff. So any way, I was able to tell this feels like "inflicted by software". And I went to the Apple store and we did the test, my headphones were fine and after an hour the iPhone was just perfect.

So... it feels strange, the behavior feels strange.
[doublepost=1457551693][/doublepost]Actually, for the touch screen I went to the Apple store. I showed them the screen was not responding right in the lower right corner, I was tapping like 30 times and nothing. They ran a tests and the screen was fine, If I wanted to changed was almost $200 or $100 (I do not remember) and after that it was fine. Now the problem during November was when using Apple Maps but it was fine since mid December. And now was the audio.

 

[C DM]

Because the problems are gone, it has been working just fine since Saturday. They came in waves and on different areas and they fix themselves. and they are not as bad to call it a problem but bad enough to consider "this device is getting old".

The touch screen has been working just fine, there was a time when I had to tap several times but that was until December. Before that was problem with power, power sign was blinking as if the connector was faulty, it was like that for 3 months and then perfect even I still using the same cables for the last 3 years.

And during 3 weeks the audio had this distortion that was not anagogic but digital, this last weekend I was going to the mall and is was when the plug felt damaged like no stereo or audio out of phase. By the way, I know a load about sound engineering because my Dad was one and I was the only person he can talk to at home and he used to show me all the different plugins and when audio was analog and digital and all that stuff. So any way, I was able to tell this feels like "inflicted by software". And I went to the Apple store and we did the test, my headphones were fine and after an hour the iPhone was just perfect.

So... it feels strange, the behavior feels strange.
[doublepost=1457551693][/doublepost]Actually, for the touch screen I went to the Apple store. I showed them the screen was not responding right in the lower right corner, I was tapping like 30 times and nothing. They ran a tests and the screen was fine, If I wanted to changed was almost $200 or $100 (I do not remember) and after that it was fine. Now the problem during November was when using Apple Maps but it was fine since mid December. And now was the audio.

At least some of that sounds like quite a bit of stories of people's ports having lint or something else in them over time. Something similar along the lines of perhaps some previous damage (perhaps some moisture damage or physical damage even from a small drop or just continued wear in some less than usual way) could potentially relate to some part of the screen having some occasional issues.

 

[laudern]

The problem might be gone for now, but they leave an error trail behind which a diagnostic test can pick up.

 

[lordofthereef]

Because the problems are gone, it has been working just fine since Saturday. They came in waves and on different areas and they fix themselves. and they are not as bad to call it a problem but bad enough to consider "this device is getting old".

Hardware problems don't necessarily manifest themselves 100% of the time. A problem coming and going is not evidence that it cannot be hardware. The touch screen issue is particularly a good example of this. Some of this even sounds like symptoms of water damage (not claiming that's what you have, but I do know water damage issues can "come and go", especially with the touch screen.

At the end of the day, the idea that Apple is CAUSING your phone to malfunction is farfetched, particularly because there are presumably tens of thousands of people using an iPhone 5 or older that are not claiming these issues. As has already been said by nearly everyone before me, go have them run a diagnostic even if you cant reproduce the issues. They can tell you if any hardware comes back as faulty. They may even take care of faulty hardware for you. I have had them replaced a nearly five year old laptop motherboard for free out of warranty. I didn;t even have to ask; they just offered.

 

[darrylcn]

I've got a 5 here (which my 6S Plus replaced at Christmas), and a 3GS for that matter, and both work fine save for the mute switch on the 3GS. I've had good luck with phones lasting for what it's worth.

 

[scaredpoet]

Because the problems are gone, it has been working just fine since Saturday. They came in waves and on different areas and they fix themselves. and they are not as bad to call it a problem but bad enough to consider "this device is getting old".

Intermittent issues happen all the time with devices that "get old." THis is not an Apple-specific thing, nor is it any indication that this is deliberate on their part. If there had been code specifically intended to artificially cause failures, there's a good chance a developer or jail breaker would've discovered it by now... And Apple would be on the hook with district attorney's in New York or California for fraud.

The touch screen has been working just fine, there was a time when I had to tap several times but that was until December. Before that was problem with power, power sign was blinking as if the connector was faulty, it was like that for 3 months and then perfect even I still using the same cables for the last 3 years.

A common issue with the Lightning port over time has been dust and lint getting trapped in there. It can be cleaned out and then the port starts working good as new again.

And during 3 weeks the audio had this distortion that was not anagogic but digital, this last weekend I was going to the mall and is was when the plug felt damaged like no stereo or audio out of phase. By the way, I know a load about sound engineering because my Dad was one and I was the only person he can talk to at home and he used to show me all the different plugins and when audio was analog and digital and all that stuff.

Wow, sorry about the sad home situation. But with all due respect, that's like saying you can do brain surgery because your dad showed you pictures of brains when you were a kid.

So any way, I was able to tell this feels like "inflicted by software". And I went to the Apple store and we did the test, my headphones were fine and after an hour the iPhone was just perfect.

If there was a grand conspiracy by Apple to make you buy another phone, do you not think that the diagnostic would've failed, and the people at the store would've pushed hard for you to dispose of this phone and buy a new one?

So... it feels strange, the behavior feels strange.

It's hard to tell what you were listening to exactly, but it's entirely possible that corrupted software, or a corrupted audio file, caused the distortion you were hearing. Bit rot happens just as much in new hardware as it does old hardware. The solution is to replace the corrupted data with new data, not replace the phone with a new phone. And the fact that this distortion stopped as randomly as it started would suggest that a software update along the line probably took care of the corrupted data, and the problem resolved itself.

[doublepost=1457551693][/doublepost]Actually, for the touch screen I went to the Apple store. I showed them the screen was not responding right in the lower right corner, I was tapping like 30 times and nothing. They ran a tests and the screen was fine, If I wanted to changed was almost $200 or $100 (I do not remember) and after that it was fine.

Again, if this was some conspiracy by Apple to convince you to buy a new phone, that test probably would have failed. And they would have tried to charge you more than $200 and pushed hard to convince you to buy a newer model phone, not an identical-model replacement.

 

[Max(IT)]

seriously .... planned obsolescence ? Seriously ?

 

[laudern]

For the first time ever my iPhone 5 wouldn't turn on. I had to hold the power and home button for it to turn back on. Totally weird. Anyone know why this happens???

 

[C DM]

For the first time ever my iPhone 5 wouldn't turn on. I had to hold the power and home button for it to turn back on. Totally weird. Anyone know why this happens???

It's a computer essentially, something just crashed and/or got stuck. It can happen.

 

[aPple nErd]

Sounds typical for one of the first few iPhone 5 batches. My first 5 did all of these things but my 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th were fine and the 5th was the best one by far.

 

[Jimmy James]

32 bit problems. Not enough bits to last this many years.

 

[darrylcn]

Exactly. 64 bit devices have many more bits and shouldn't run out for some time. My 3GS probably only has a few left by this point but so far so good.

 

[AustinIllini]

I'm amazed people expect an iPhone to run forever. It's not planned obsolescence, it's just obsolescence.

 

[aPple nErd]

32 bit problems. Not enough bits to last this many years.

Exactly. 64 bit devices have many more bits and shouldn't run out for some time. My 3GS probably only has a few left by this point but so far so good.

Not sure if serious

 

[darrylcn]

Haha no, was joking. I was going to use the Not Sure if Serious on the post above mine but didn't get around to editing. I was also going to mention you can buy 3rd party bits and pour em in the headphone jack.