Multitasking gestures on iPhone running iOS 5

[Macula]

I am about to invest in an iPhone 4S but, as a power user whose most recent iPhone (a 3G) suffered serious home button damage in spite of meticulous device care and a generally very "light touch," I am worried that this costly device will suffer the same issue: Siri and multitasking rely on the home button, and considering how much I would like to multitask with this new phone, I fear that the button will be broken within a year or so.

I am aware of the "assistive devices" functionality (on-screen "home button") but find the solution half-baked and clunky.

How exaggerated do you think my fear is?

Shall we hope that Apple will allow MT gestures on the iPhone in a future 5.x release, just as it did for the iPad 1 in 5.0.1?

Any other relevant comments?

Thanks!

 

[himynameiscody]

if you like to multi task remember the 4s has a dual processor. the build is much better. siri can be turned off. siri you hold down the home button, never got in the way for me. you get a 1 year warranty, plus if you buy from carrier you get a test period, minus restocking fee

 

[Macula]

Interesting—how is the 4S better built than the 4? Is this based on subjective impression or published facts?

Thanks.

 

[himynameiscody]

i meant against 3g which i though you were coming from. the build from the outside is probably the same as the 4. maybe they did a few minor upgrades that aren't noticeable..but pretty much it's the 4 on the outside. it feels much sturdier than my dads 3g, then again his is old, idk how it felt at the beginning

 

[bobright]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; CPU iPhone OS 5_0_1 like Mac OS X) AppleWebKit/534.46 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.1 Mobile/9A405 Safari/7534.48.3)

Good thread I've always wanted gestures on the iPhone. If not lots of gestures and commands as it is a small screen at least a simple swipe-up from the bottom to get to your multitask bar would be great. I wonder if there is a tweak for JB devices to allow that?

Nonetheless I will say the Home button on the 4S in comparison to the 4 feels rock solid so maybe it'll be fine.

 

[FreakinEurekan]

I fear that the button will be broken within a year or so.

I'm a relatively heavy iPhone user and never had a problem with my 3G or 4, but of course it is a weak point as a heavily-used control. If home button is a concern, there are a couple of ways you can mitigate this:

(a) Buy AppleCare +, which extends the warranty to 2 years

(b) If you don't get AC+ or have problems after it ends, home button repairs through 3rd party are pretty inexpensive. iResq is $79, local shops may be cheaper.

 

[Macula]

Very glad to hear that the 4S button feels more robust—though I'm curious if this is a statistically insignificant observation based on one phone alone.

I wouldn't be surprised if the omission of multitasking gestures from the iPhone were a marketing decision—postponing the feature until a forthcoming iteration of the device (perhaps with a slightly larger screen or the absence of a physical button in a new outer-shell design as an excuse).

But I am digressing—I meant this as a technical thread before I pull the trigger (or don't) on a pricey 4S purchase.

 

[himynameiscody]

Very glad to hear that the 4S button feels more robust—though I'm curious if this is a statistically insignificant observation based on one phone alone.

I wouldn't be surprised if the omission of multitasking gestures from the iPhone were a marketing decision—postponing the feature until a forthcoming iteration of the device (perhaps with a slightly larger screen or the absence of a physical button in a new outer-shell design as an excuse).

But I am digressing—I meant this as a technical thread before I pull the trigger (or don't) on a pricey 4S purchase.

if you can wait for the 5 do that if money is an issue at all...generally iphones have good resale value too so you could put it towards the next one....if you don't need the greatest/newest phone at least the 4s has a dual processor so it will be relevant in the future longer than previous iphones would

 

[Macula]

Reasonable advice. The thing is, I will buy it unlocked and unsubsidized in Europe (where I live). My iPhone 3G just broke and I need an iPhone of some sort immediately. The 3G had become unbearably slow anyway, and a real pain to use.

The 4S is a great phone, undoubtedly, but one has the feeling that the iPhone will be dramatically improved. And—call me obsessive if you will—but I'm very annoyed by the lack of multitasking gestures and the burden imposed on the home key as a result. I am reluctant to invest nearly $1000 (in Europe) for a device with a notorious Achilles heel (the button), especially now that iOS 5 taxes it more than any earlier version did.

The more I think about it, the more inclined I am to buy an unlocked 8GB iPhone 3GS. It's exactly half the price of the 32GB iPhone 4S, and not so expensive as to make an upgrade to iPhone 5 prohibitive…

Thanks to everyone for the comments.

 

[Sensamic]

I have recently been deciding whether to sell my iPhone 4 and buy the Galaxy Nexus because my iPhone 4s home button has started to fail, and its only 1 year old!!!! Ive never had this type of problem with any phone before, and Im quite mad actually. I was planning on keeping the iPhone 4 for at least another 2 years since its a great phone, but when the home button starts to fail it makes the experience a lot worse.

I will wait for iPhone 5 because the rumors say it will have a capacitive button, or I will buy an Android next year with tactical buttons on the screen like the Nexus. Makes it more easy to use.

The iPhone 4 build is not quite excellent for the home button. The thickness makes you push the button further down than with a 3GS, for example, which in the end makes the button suffer more. I hate that my great iPhone 4 suffers from this stupid problem just 1 year later of buying it.

 

[Macula]

A telling report, Sensamic. Thanks for sharing.

 

[himynameiscody]

edit: mess up

----------

I have recently been deciding whether to sell my iPhone 4 and buy the Galaxy Nexus because my iPhone 4s home button has started to fail, and its only 1 year old!!!! Ive never had this type of problem with any phone before, and Im quite mad actually. I was planning on keeping the iPhone 4 for at least another 2 years since its a great phone, but when the home button starts to fail it makes the experience a lot worse.

I will wait for iPhone 5 because the rumors say it will have a capacitive button, or I will buy an Android next year with tactical buttons on the screen like the Nexus. Makes it more easy to use.

The iPhone 4 build is not quite excellent for the home button. The thickness makes you push the button further down than with a 3GS, for example, which in the end makes the button suffer more. I hate that my great iPhone 4 suffers from this stupid problem just 1 year later of buying it.

you have a 1 year warranty if you're still in that time. and if your phone is in perfect condition just the home button and it looks like it was a manufacture defect almost i'm sure they'll work with you. replacement parts aren't bad, also OOW phones aren't a bad deal if you wanna save your upgrade

 

[Macula]

It's a very old 3G. Probably 3yrs old? I bought it a few months before the release of the 3GS. No Applecare.

It has suffered a lot—a broken touchscreen and glass (replaced by me with unofficial spare part from eBay for 25USD or so). A battery that would hardly last a business day with very moderate use… Lately a dysfunctional home button AND a dysfunctional power button (I could not really reboot the machine).

The final blow was delivered a few weeks ago: I connected the phone to my Macbook for iTunes syncing. iTunes crashed and ever since the iPhone has been unable to wake up. Even connecting it to the charger and mains does not elicit a reaction from the phone—it is just dead. The broken power button (and nearly broken home button) don't help either.

What is an OOW replacement?? (UPDATE: I just looked it up on Google. Interesting.)

 

[himynameiscody]

It's a very old 3G. Probably 3yrs old? I bought it a few months before the release of the 3GS. No Applecare.

It has suffered a lot—a broken touchscreen and glass (replaced by me with unofficial spare part from eBay for 25USD or so). A battery that would hardly last a business day with very moderate use… Lately a dysfunctional home button AND a dysfunctional power button (I could not really reboot the machine).

The final blow was delivered a few weeks ago: I connected the phone to my Macbook for iTunes syncing. iTunes crashed and ever since the iPhone has been unable to wake up. Even connecting it to the charger and mains does not elicit a reaction from the phone—it is just dead. The broken power button (and nearly broken home button) don't help either.

What is an OOW replacement?? (UPDATE: I just looked it up on Google. Interesting.)

edit: when i mentioned how long u had it i was reading someone elses post, then i deleted but you got to it quickly


i'd take it to apple....i imagine you tried starting it in that alternative mode there is (no idea what this is, just heard others speak of it) and also i'm sure you tried a hard reset

but take it to apple, hopefully they can save your info on it if you cannot or don't have a recent back up

out of warranty replacement. <$200 as long as your phone isn't in terrible condition or water damage

 

[wrinkster22]

if you like to multi task remember the 4s has a dual processor. the build is much better. siri can be turned off. siri you hold down the home button, never got in the way for me. you get a 1 year warranty, plus if you buy from carrier you get a test period, minus restocking fee

How does the dual core make the botton better?

 

[Macula]

Very tempting, and it would serve me perfectly until the release of iPhone 5, but I doubt they would do me the favor considering the condition of the device (there is also a crack on the plastic back, in addition to the self-repair, which is I guess verboten). The fact I am in Scandinavia at the moment, where rules are generally interpreted as literally as possible, doesn't help either.

 

[himynameiscody]

How does the dual core make the botton better?

i got a thread/post mixed up...i was referring to if a 4s was worth getting or waiting for the 5....i'm saying the dual core and specs will make this phone relevant longer (most likely) than the single core iphones were on their release

 

[Sensamic]

My Apple warranty is over, but I still got 9 months of warranty from my carrier, but I have to admit Im not to confident on their service. I would have to wait 20 days without my iPhone and who knows if they send it back the same, worse or give me a refurb one. Ill probably do this next year, when the button turns out even worse.

I feel like when repairing the iPhone they could open it up and dust would enter inside the screen and stuff like that.

Anyway, I was 100% happy with my iPhone 4 a few months ago, and now, because of this problem, Im down to like 50% happy. You can feel the button not in place when pressing it sometimes.

 

[himynameiscody]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; CPU iPhone OS 5_0_1 like Mac OS X) AppleWebKit/534.46 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.1 Mobile/9A405 Safari/7534.48.3)

My Apple warranty is over, but I still got 9 months of warranty from my carrier, but I have to admit Im not to confident on their service. I would have to wait 20 days without my iPhone and who knows if they send it back the same, worse or give me a refurb one. Ill probably do this next year, when the button turns out even worse.

I feel like when repairing the iPhone they could open it up and dust would enter inside the screen and stuff like that.

Anyway, I was 100% happy with my iPhone 4 a few months ago, and now, because of this problem, Im down to like 50% happy. You can feel the button not in place when pressing it sometimes.

If apple or whoever doesn't replace it in store still consider the warranty you have if it's a manufacture defect that way you can at least resell it

 

[apollo1444]

Get the damned iPhone, you can activate touch assist so that you don't have to click the home button everytime

 

[Macula]

Yes, assistive touch is one possibility. But you have to live with that very ugly semitransparent circle at one of the corners of the display. Also, going home involves two taps: one on the corner of the display to toggle the overlay, which includes the 'home' virtual button, and a second one for the button itself.

You know, I'm getting tired of Apple's marketing tricks. Until a few months, MT gestures on the iPhone 4 were possible without jailbreaking through the well-known 'xCode' backdoor. And they worked really well. There are no hardware limitations!

This dilemmatic situation, coupled with the tiresome marketing tactics of Apple, have diminished my enthusiasm for the 4S to some extent. I was just about to make a very utilitarian purchase instead and buy the 3GS earlier today. But my cousin warned me that under iOS 5 it becomes unbearably slow when more than 3-4 apps are loaded—therefore not an option for my usage scenario. So I am at a tiresome standstill.

Apple was supposed to be the leader in (and largely, the inventor of) multitouch. Why are they so frugal (stingy) now in their implementation of the feature in their flagship phone?

 

[Sensamic]

I really wished apple introduced the capacitive button on the iPhone just like most androids have. Its way better than the home button of the iPhone. Feels like it could last waaaayyy longer.

I have no problem on trying Android. My problem is not iOS or apple, since Im quite happy with both. My problem is the home button. Just 1 year after buying it and look what happens! Is this suppose to be apple quality hardware? Was it really difficult to introduce the capacitive button on the 4S? I would have bought it in a hurry.