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Tempermental iPhone 4 home button 4.1

i have a 3gs and this also happens on my phone. i really dont think its just a ip4 issue. i noticed this only happens after updated to iOS4. when i was in the 3.1.2, it worked perfectly.
 
polobreaka said:
i have a 3gs and this also happens on my phone. i really dont think its just a ip4 issue. i noticed this only happens after updated to iOS4. when i was in the 3.1.2, it worked perfectly.
Click to expand...

Well that's what I say! This issue appeared when multitasking appeared. Just while I'm writing this I tried my girlfriends 3G and it also has a function behind doubleclick command but when I asked her if she had that issue, she did not. So only thing I came up with is that it is bug in multifuction bar and it is soft related. Older iphones and ipods also has doubleclick function but issue appears only on phones with multitasking ability.
One thing also made me sure its soft. When ip4 is in sleep mode and you doubleclick home button it opens ipod control panel without removing lock or going to home screen. I've noticed that issue does not appear with this function, only with multitask.
 
Agree on the statement of it taking it's toil on me - I'd add that it creates a confidence issue - I have this feeling that every time I press the button, it's going to give me a multi task bar. This feeling (of insecurity, perhaps?) is driving ME nuts!
 
Tcomcp33 said:
In my opinion if this issue would be hardware related it would have some kind of logic in it or at least it would be constant. I mean if you have ********d up button it would do it all the time. But if it's a soft bug then it happens randomly. By pressing button once you give a command to your phone to exit app, phone informs you with clicking sound that command was accepted, but when it tells this command to software it probably sometimes thinks that there was two presses on button. It's not so difficult logic in home button but it is much more difficult in software so there is more space for mistakes and bugs. And as noticed that home button is same as on all previous iPhones and iPods, I think Apple could not screw up with building it right now and only on ip4s. If the problem would be in button it would show up on 3G or 3Gs but it poped up on ip4 with 4.something OS.
I have same problem with button but in other ways it works as it should and does not make any other stuff except this multitask-bar-opening-thing so I think that there is some kind of bug with this new multitasking command.
That is ofcourse my personal opinion. Tell what do you think? Does my point of view make any sence?
Click to expand...
So according to you:

random occurrence = software issue
constant occurrence = hardware issue

I have to disagree with this logic. Here's my example to disprove your logic:
I have an Apple keyboard. One of the keys is smeared with jam. When I press it, sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. Is that a software issue or a hardware issue? It's a hardware issue. And how does one possibly fix it? By wiping it with an alcohol. So your logic is no longer valid.

My home button is a hardware issue, and it happens only randomly. It happens when trying to toggle iPod controls while the phone is locked, it happens when trying to exit an app, it happens when trying to toggle the multitasking bar, it happens when trying to turn on the display. It's been happening since day one and no software has ever fixed it.

Again, it's a hardware issue.
 
Tcomcp33 said:
In my opinion if this issue would be hardware related it would have some kind of logic in it or at least it would be constant. I mean if you have ********d up button it would do it all the time. But if it's a soft bug then it happens randomly. By pressing button once you give a command to your phone to exit app, phone informs you with clicking sound that command was accepted, but when it tells this command to software it probably sometimes thinks that there was two presses on button. It's not so difficult logic in home button but it is much more difficult in software so there is more space for mistakes and bugs. And as noticed that home button is same as on all previous iPhones and iPods, I think Apple could not screw up with building it right now and only on ip4s. If the problem would be in button it would show up on 3G or 3Gs but it poped up on ip4 with 4.something OS.
I have same problem with button but in other ways it works as it should and does not make any other stuff except this multitask-bar-opening-thing so I think that there is some kind of bug with this new multitasking command.
That is ofcourse my personal opinion. Tell what do you think? Does my point of view make any sence?
Click to expand...

I think Tcomp has a point here.

But the issue I have is that when I press the Home button once, the multi task tray appear. If it is a problem with double click, I can understand that it could be due to different people pressing the home button at different speed, therefore screwing up the software.

But pressing once? It can't be due to how hard or soft each of us press, right? It's binary: 0 or 1. If I press, then the electric current goes through. So the software knew it is one press. How could it interpret that as two presses unless the circuit in the button is telling it differently.

Regardless, I do agree that the easiest way to fix is a software fix. Don't need expensive product exchange.
 
ringgit said:
I think Tcomp has a point here.

But the issue I have is that when I press the Home button once, the multi task tray appear. If it is a problem with double click, I can understand that it could be due to different people pressing the home button at different speed, therefore screwing up the software.

But pressing once? It can't be due to how hard or soft each of us press, right? It's binary: 0 or 1. If I press, then the electric current goes through. So the software knew it is one press. How could it interpret that as two presses unless the circuit in the button is telling it differently.

Regardless, I do agree that the easiest way to fix is a software fix. Don't need expensive product exchange.
Click to expand...
There's no software fix.

How can double-click speed setting ever fix it when single clicks sometimes don't even register???
 
PBF said:
So according to you:

random occurrence = software issue
constant occurrence = hardware issue

My home button is a hardware issue, and it happens only randomly. It happens when trying to toggle iPod controls while the phone is locked, it happens when trying to exit an app, it happens when trying to toggle the multitasking bar, it happens when trying to turn on the display. It's been happening since day one
and no software has ever fixed it.


Again, it's a hardware issue.
Click to expand...

I aggree that it is pssible that it's a hardware related since I'm not an expert. But how it can be explained that on previous models of iphone and ipod touch without multitasking, there is no such issue? I'm curious to know if latest ipod touch has this same issue. At least I haven't seen any topics about iphone 3G or ipod touch 2nd gen with that kind of problem.
But as I already stated, I'm not an expert. We'll see if 4.2 or later update will fix this, if not I still have 11 months of warranty on this device so I'll be able to get it replaced with working unit.
 
Tcomcp33 said:
But how it can be explained that on previous models of iphone and ipod touch without multitasking, there is no such issue? I'm curious to know if latest ipod touch has this same issue. At least I haven't seen any topics about iphone 3G or ipod touch 2nd gen with that kind of problem.
Click to expand...
Simple: Apple could have started using a different kinda material underneath home buttons that sometimes starts deteriorating from too many clicks.
 
PBF said:
Simple: Apple could have started using a different kinda material underneath home buttons that sometimes starts deteriorating from too many clicks.
Click to expand...

Have anyone asked from Apple service about new material? Maybe they know something? If I understood correctly this is quite major problem on ip4 and appears to be on many devices arround the world.
 
in my mind, its undoubtedly software related.... I have only been on 4.1 for a couple weeks and have never had these problems before...
 
problem still exists...


I have an appointment tomorrow... I gave it lots of time to fix itself. Tomorrow I'll have my replacement, or else. Never had to take back a phone until now.
 
I'm still on iOS 4.1. But I turned off a couple of things:
1. I reduce Spotlight search to only index my Contacts
2. I turn off Location Services

So far, the problem seem to be gone.

What clues me in is that I find that when I have this single-click-open-multitask-tray issue, it is when my single click also give me a slight delay in response. It's like the phone is doing something in the background. Once I turned these off, it works fine so far (by this I mean almost one full day without any problems)

Try it out.

Also, there is a 8 page discussion topic on this in Apple's website.

I'd like to share what John P said in the forum:
"I just came across this thread and thought I'd share an anecdote.

My iPhone 4 had this issue where the home button would intermittenly fail to respond. I did a full restore and went without any apps for a few days--it worked flawlessly, no issues.

I started to add apps back onto the phone, then the problem started again. I went into the Multitask Bar (or "Task Bar", whatever Apple calls it) and removed all apps, restarted the iP4, and the problem didn't surface until I started using the Camera application. Again, another full restore....set up as new phone (as before) and until I started using the Camera app, it seems I didn't have a single problem with the Home button.

I finally sold it but after a few weeks, I missed my iP4 so I bought another one--I'm using that phone now and I haven't had a single problem with the home button.

I hesitate to say it was a hardware issue because it only manifested when I had a lot of apps running or used the Camera app. However, I'm doing all those things on my current iP4 and I'm not having a single problem with the home button. If it is indeed a hardware problem, I think it was internal and not the button itself. Otherwise, if it is a software problem, I cannot put my finger on what it was since I'm running the same 4.1 on this iP4 that I had on the original one.

I probably could have brought the phone back and gotten it exchanged but the guy who bought it off me wanted one so badly that I just sold it to him. I asked him if he's had any issues with it, he claims none and it's the best phone he's ever had.... maybe it's just me. :-\ "
Click to expand...
 
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PBF said:
So, has iOS 4.2.1 fixed your temperamental home button? Nope.

I'm tellin' ya, it's not a software issue. How hard is it to understand?! :rolleyes:
Click to expand...
No one is overruling that it is a hardware issue.

It's just that for many of us who do not have access to a Apple Store, returning for a potentially refurb unit or having to travel far to return, may not be worth it if it is something that could be fixed by software. By fix, I think, is to put an option to measure the double click duration like how Windows measures the mouse double click.

The thing is, if Apple, don't see this issue, they will not fix it in the software.
 
Checked out som webstores today with ip4 spareparts and noticed that there is possible to purchase home button assembly. Now I'm wo dering if there's someone who have tried to replace nonworking button with new one. If someone has then he might know is it hard or soft issue.
 
Tcomcp33 said:
Checked out som webstores today with ip4 spareparts and noticed that there is possible to purchase home button assembly.
Click to expand...

Even if it's a hardware issue it's not the button.

To prove, lock your screen then do single clicks. It will never open iPod controls. Then do double clicks it will always open iPod controls. No exception. Button is working perfectly ok.

Some sort of a memory problem causing this issue, I suspect.
 
Sharp75 said:
Even if it's a hardware issue it's not the button.

To prove, lock your screen then do single clicks. It will never open iPod controls. Then do double clicks it will always open iPod controls. No exception. Button is working perfectly ok.

Some sort of a memory problem causing this issue, I suspect.
Click to expand...

Valid points. I have not seen the iPod control coming out. Not once! So maybe it's not the button.

Could it be that the iOS software intelligently record your double clicking behavior? Like learning it as time pass? See, my iPhone 4 settings were migrated from the old iPhone 3G. Since each phone will be slightly different, it's very likely that Apple built in that learning algorithm.

I wonder if this issue is unique only to people who migrate settings from older iPhone?

I'd like to try Resetting all my settings. Let me research if that would wipe data as I wouldn't like that and will not reset.

Edit: ok, so I have done a "Reset All Settings" which returns everything to factory default but maintain the data (sms, music, etc).. let's see if this fixed it
 
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Tcomcp33 said:
Checked out som webstores today with ip4 spareparts and noticed that there is possible to purchase home button assembly. Now I'm wo dering if there's someone who have tried to replace nonworking button with new one. If someone has then he might know is it hard or soft issue.
Click to expand...

Someone posted in the Apple support forum that they run a iphone repair service. He has serviced several hundred iPhone 4s to date and has actually replaced the button and ribbon cable for some of these phones to see if it fixes this issue. According to him, not once did he see an improvement by changing out the button and ribbon cable the connects it. It has to be something else, and I am still betting on it being software.

I have restored my phone to brand new, not using backup twice now. Both times, it fixed the issue totally for two or more days, whereas before it would occur multiple times daily. Also both times, after a few days, the problems would start again with the home button. If it was hardware, then the restores should not help at all. Why would it?

Just my experience and what I have read from others. :confused:
 
Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_2_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/533.17.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.0.2 Mobile/8C148 Safari/6533.18.5)

As others here I too am starting to strongly suspect it's software, not hardware. Just about every single time this happens on my iPhone 4, it seems to be accompanied by some slight graphical stutter in the animation (for example, the transition from app to folder screen, or from folder to home screen) which suggests some memory or processor strain at the time of occurrence.
 
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