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Loose Home Button

Macdude2010

Macdude2010

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Mar 17, 2010
1,358
574
The Apple Store
I got a replacement iPad 2 last week for backlight bleed, and while the iPad is good on backlight bleed the home button is a little loose, it will rock back and forth when you put 2 fingers on it and rock them back and forth and also when you tap on the bottom of the home button it makes a clicking noise (not pressing in)

Here is a video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8CGh-APtR5c

Anyone else have this or should I replace the iPad again?
 
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Wirelessly posted (iPhone 3GS: Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_3_3 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/533.17.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.0.2 Mobile/8J2 Safari/6533.18.5)

I'd probably replace it again. If it's doing this now, it may get worse over time.
 
SandboxGeneral said:
Wirelessly posted (iPhone 3GS: Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_3_3 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/533.17.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.0.2 Mobile/8J2 Safari/6533.18.5)

I'd probably replace it again. If it's doing this now, it may get worse over time.
Click to expand...

One thing I am concerned about is that I brought my iPod touch 4th gen in for a home Button being loose and they said they won't replace it, got any suggestions
 
Wirelessly posted (iPhone 3GS: Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_3_3 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/533.17.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.0.2 Mobile/8J2 Safari/6533.18.5)

Macdude2010 said:
SandboxGeneral said:
Wirelessly posted (iPhone 3GS: Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_3_3 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/533.17.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.0.2 Mobile/8J2 Safari/6533.18.5)

I'd probably replace it again. If it's doing this now, it may get worse over time.
Click to expand...

One thing I am concerned about is that I brought my iPod touch 4th gen in for a home Button being loose and they said they won't replace it, got any suggestions
Click to expand...

I suggest bring it in to Apple and be courteous and maybe they will replace it. It never hurts to ask, I mean what do you have to lose?

But make sure to have a positive attitude when asking.
 
SandboxGeneral said:
Wirelessly posted (iPhone 3GS: Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_3_3 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/533.17.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.0.2 Mobile/8J2 Safari/6533.18.5)



I suggest bring it in to Apple and be courteous and maybe they will replace it. It never hurts to ask, I mean what do you have to lose?

But make sure to have a positive attitude when asking.
Click to expand...

Yes, I know that making a fit in the apple store dosnt get you anywhere (I saw this when I got my replacement iPad (the current one with the loose home button) for a replacement that had dead pixels)

The guy that helped me with the iPod said they can't replace Becuase there was no way to put in the computer "loose home button"
 
I don't know if this will ease your mind, but I have a small gripe with my home button as well. I don't have a "loose" home button (32GB 3G Black AT&T), but I did notice that it has a hollow, cheap, plastic feel to it. Like if I tap the surface of the button with my fingertip (without pushing it) , it sounds hollow and cheap, and very much different from the rest of the unit. It doesn't wiggle though, and otherwise the button is nice and clicky, and hasn't failed on me once - no missed clicks, no double-clicks.

I compared it to my sister's white 16GB Wifi, and hers feels completely different, much more solid and integrated into the unit. But then again, she has pretty bad backlight bleeding, and the button clicks are softer and more shallow.

Occasionally my OCD kicks in and I've considered a swap but I'm 99% sure the Geniuses will laugh at me. So I'll deal with it.

In your case, if you feel some wiggling and double-clicks, I would say that warrants an exchange (or at least an attempt at one).
 
rollingstart said:
I don't know if this will ease your mind, but I have a small gripe with my home button as well. I don't have a "loose" home button (32GB 3G Black AT&T), but I did notice that it has a hollow, cheap, plastic feel to it. Like if I tap the surface of the button with my fingertip (without pushing it) , it sounds hollow and cheap, and very much different from the rest of the unit. It doesn't wiggle though, and otherwise the button is nice and clicky, and hasn't failed on me once - no missed clicks, no double-clicks.

I compared it to my sister's white 16GB Wifi, and hers feels completely different, much more solid and integrated into the unit. But then again, she has pretty bad backlight bleeding, and the button clicks are softer and more shallow.

Occasionally my OCD kicks in and I've considered a swap but I'm 99% sure the Geniuses will laugh at me. So I'll deal with it.

In your case, if you feel some wiggling and double-clicks, I would say that warrants an exchange (or at least an attempt at one).
Click to expand...

Well mine also has that cheap feel to it (that's actually what I'm talking about+ it wiggles a bit) good to know that other people have the issue, I hopefully can get a replacement for it becuase for $829 I expect a solid home button
 
Yeah that does sound ******. When you bring it to them, be sure to point out it's basically the most used button the device, and any problem with it is sure to get worse.
 
Macdude2010 said:
Well mine also has that cheap feel to it (that's actually what I'm talking about+ it wiggles a bit) good to know that other people have the issue, I hopefully can get a replacement for it becuase for $829 I expect a solid home button
Click to expand...

If you do decide to get an exchange, then good luck, and please keep this thread updated with your results. If I happen to luck out myself, I'll do the same.
 
Good luck all the iPads I came across (4) had tight snug home buttons, first thing I noticed compared to iPhones which are usually loose as heck.
 
Just an update: I'm at best buy now and I tested the iPad 2's on display and they feel the same as mine, now I am starting to think it's not worth an exchange if some other ones do it too
 
Thanks for posting the video. Yes, my button is identical, maybe the same to very slightly less wiggle, but same hollow sound. Maybe we need more data points to verify, but I'm thinking others have the same "issue", or the same type of build but haven't noticed.

I don't know, maybe it was a certain factory/build week, maybe part of the fix to alleviate backlight bleeding (we both don't have this issue with our iPads), maybe different factories are using different manufactured buttons. An interesting note -- my iPad is a week 7 iPad (based on the serial number) delivered by Apple in week 20, which I found odd. Maybe I got a re-manufactured iPad, but who knows.

I stand by what I said earlier, though, I'm not sure Apple will allow an exchange on something like this IF the button is functioning 100% properly, but as mentioned earlier, it doesn't hurt to ask. I like the fact that my button is responsive, and works every time I want it to. And if I can't exchange it, I have a warranty.
 
rollingstart said:
Thanks for posting the video. Yes, my button is identical, maybe the same to very slightly less wiggle, but same hollow sound. Maybe we need more data points to verify, but I'm thinking others have the same "issue", or the same type of build but haven't noticed.

I don't know, maybe it was a certain factory/build week, maybe part of the fix to alleviate backlight bleeding (we both don't have this issue with our iPads), maybe different factories are using different manufactured buttons. An interesting note -- my iPad is a week 7 iPad (based on the serial number) delivered by Apple in week 20, which I found odd. Maybe I got a re-manufactured iPad, but who knows.

I stand by what I said earlier, though, I'm not sure Apple will allow an exchange on something like this IF the button is functioning 100% properly, but as mentioned earlier, it doesn't hurt to ask. I like the fact that my button is responsive, and works every time I want it to. And if I can't exchange it, I have a warranty.
Click to expand...

well mine is a DLXFW so i don't think it has anything to do with the week it was manufactured, i guess this is the tradeoff for backlight bleed :)
 
Macdude2010 said:
Another Update: Tested a friends iPad 2, No home button Wiggle

Going to the Apple store this week to see what they will do
Click to expand...

Yeah, there is definitely a difference between ours and the others I've looked at. And I can completely understand why you would be annoyed by this - the button doesn't feel well constructed at all. TBH I'm still teetering on whether or not to exchange it, especially with the bleeding issue seemingly still out there. If it's ever convenient for me to stop by (my closest Apple store is ~20 mi out of the way) I think I'll drop by.

BTW, we both have iPads manufactured at DLX factory, for what it's worth. Good luck!
 
rollingstart said:
Yeah, there is definitely a difference between ours and the others I've looked at. And I can completely understand why you would be annoyed by this - the button doesn't feel well constructed at all. TBH I'm still teetering on whether or not to exchange it, especially with the bleeding issue seemingly still out there. If it's ever convenient for me to stop by (my closest Apple store is ~20 mi out of the way) I think I'll drop by.

BTW, we both have iPads manufactured at DLX factory, for what it's worth. Good luck!
Click to expand...

Thats it! I think it might have to do with the factory

My apple store is less then 10 minutes away from me so I can just stop by when I need to, plus for $829 I would want better quality for somthing I know is a defect, another thing, my iPad still does have a little bit of bleed, the home button problem (obviously), there is a lag for it to turn on, loose volume buttons, sometimes there are lines across the screen when waking up, for $829, I don't want any of these issues, so I hope apple replaces it
 
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Just talked to apple care, they said everything but turn on lag is a problem, they told me I should have no trouble getting it fixed
 
Sounds like they'll get you a replacement, congrats! But no to the Home button issue? If so, I had a feeling that would be the case, especially if it worked within specifications. Oh well, guess I'll live with it until it fails :(
 
rollingstart said:
Sounds like they'll get you a replacement, congrats! But no to the Home button issue? If so, I had a feeling that would be the case, especially if it worked within specifications. Oh well, guess I'll live with it until it fails :(
Click to expand...

Well, I'm not going to leave the store until I get a good one
 
rollingstart said:
Sounds like they'll get you a replacement, congrats! But no to the Home button issue? If so, I had a feeling that would be the case, especially if it worked within specifications. Oh well, guess I'll live with it until it fails :(
Click to expand...

No, they said that the home button should be solid
 
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