Curious question...

I've seen reports about the iPhone 6 and 6+ "touch disease", contributed to a design defect in these smartphones; among other places, at the ifixit.org website:

http://ifixit.org/blog/8309/iphone-6-plus-gray-flicker-touch-death/

There has been a class action lawsuit filed for these iPhones as well:

http://www.siliconbeat.com/2016/08/30/apple-faces-class-action-lawsuit-iphone-touch-disease/

The design fault cited is lack of protection for the Touch IC chips on the logic board, that allows the soldering to loosen up and lose contact with the logic board.

The iPhone 5 and 6s series are not impacted by this "touch disease"; the 5 series has metal cover over the Touch IC chips, while in the 6s series the chips moved in to the screen in itself from the logic board.

And the curious question...

Does anyone with iPhone 6 or 6+ experienced the "touch disease" as described in the articles referenced above?

I have an iPhone 6 and have not experienced this issue yet. I have been having an issue recently (about 2 weeks) when entering my passcode where one of the keys will stick(?) and I will have to swipe back and forth to be able to enter my passcode again. I have had my phone since April last year and have had no issues with it until now, and I really haven't spent anytime trying to troubleshoot it yet.

I have a 6+ and so far so good. For more information regarding the class action law suit and particulars about the iPhone 6 "touch gate", I suggest you log on to the MacRumors site and read their blurb. There is also a myriad of replies from users who have experienced the problems and what Apple thus far has done about it.

Note: If your iPhone 6 or 6+ is out of warranty, Apple will not repair it for free and will only sell you a refurbished replacement. If you are still within warranty, Apple will replace the phone as there is currently no fix for the problem.

Really?

If it were not for lawyers, we wouldn't need lawyers.

Ask Randy.

harryb2448 said:

Really?

If it were not for lawyers, we wouldn't need lawyers.

Ask Randy.

Click to expand...

I usually don't agree with a lot of the class action lawsuits I read about as most of them are frivolous, however, this is one I agree with. Too many folks are having the problem mentioned in the lawsuit and Apple has refused to even acknowledge that there is a problem. Not only that, but there is no fix except replacing the phone. And Apple will not replace a phone that is out of warranty.

After paying $800 or more for an iPhone, the buyer has a right to expect more use from it than what most of the folks who are experiencing "Touch Gate" have gotten from their phone. I'm in good shape since my iPhone 6+ is under warranty until Aug 5, 2017. I have not as of yet, experienced any problem. Apparently, it doesn't happen to every iPhone 6.

I have an iPhone 6+ and I have a friend who has one. Neither of us have had an issue.... But - we both have our iphones in cases and we don't sit on them which could bend them. I am not saying that is the cause but it seems a logical conclusion.

I have had my iPhone since Nov. 2014 and I have applecare+ which means it will be out of warranty 11/2016. I had not planned to get an iPhone 7. I would like to wait until the iPhone 8(?) comes out but we shall see. If it starts acting up and is out of warranty, I will be upgrading.

Lisa

lclev said:

I have an iPhone 6+ and I have a friend who has one. Neither of us have had an issue.... But - we both have our iphones in cases and we don't sit on them which could bend them. I am not saying that is the cause but it seems a logical conclusion.

Click to expand...

That seems to be the common cause for this issue, in addition to dropping the iPhone. Fittingly, some people calling this "Bendgate 2.0"...

While people should take better care of their devices, iPhone can bend a little without experiencing this issue with the pre and post the 6 series. In my view, that in itself strongly indicate that there's a design flaw with the 6, 6+.

I have had my iPhone since Nov. 2014 and I have applecare+ which means it will be out of warranty 11/2016. I had not planned to get an iPhone 7. I would like to wait until the iPhone 8(?) comes out but we shall see. If it starts acting up and is out of warranty, I will be upgrading.

Lisa

Click to expand...

I am wondering, if the "touch gate" gets wider media coverage how it'll impact the resale value of the iPhone 6, 6+?

@chscag...

I get your point about class action lawsuits and yes, in this case, it seemingly it is necessary. Unfortunately, the settlement, if there's going to be any, will not be iPhone owner friendly. Like in other class action lawsuits, the 6, 6+ owner may get a coupon for purchasing an iPhone 7, 7+, while the lawyers pocket 1/3 of the total value of the settlement in cash. At least that what has taken place for me in couple of class action lawsuits I've been part of. Some of them I didn't feel like going through all of the requirement just to have a coupon for the same brand. There had been only one instance, memory price fixing, where they've sent me a check for 20 bucks without doing anything.

I'd rather see a settlement, where the lawyers also get coupons, instead of cash, for purchasing the brand in question...

Don't know if anyone is following the Samsumg Note 7 phone issue (the issue where the phone gets very hot, swelling, bursting, fire, etc.). It has been confirmed that it is a battery issue. Samsung has issued a recall I believe.

Last I heard...there were 35 reported cases of this issue world-wide. 35 reported cases is not so many world-wide (of course there are probably many unreported cases). Doesn't take long when the media jumps on something like this + YouTube + internet forums + etc...before a company needs to act.

I think that the number of folks with iPhone 6/6+ "touch disease" issues is much greater than the Note 7 at this point (iPhone 6 & 6+ owners that have gone to Apple stores with issues). The iPhone "touch disease" certainly is not quite as dangerous as the Note 7 issue...but certainly an issue that needs to be addressed. Since in both cases (Note 7 fire or iPhone touch disease)...a replacement phone is pretty much the solution.

- Nick

Nick -

I will say this - if I had the Samsung Note 7 I would be demanding a new non-overheating phone IMMEDIATELY! With the iPhone 6+ I can hold out as it is working perfectly for now.

As for a class action suit, we shall see. I have been involved in a few. The only one I ever got anything of substance from was the Amazon refund from over charging for e-books. I buy a lot of e-books. ;D

Lisa

I would hope that Apple will finally admit that there is a problem and offer to replace the phones for free whether or not they're still in warranty status. In other words, do something for those iPhone owners the same they're doing for MacBook Pro owners with GPU problems.

According to what I have read about the problem, it has nothing to do with bending or whether or not the phone is in a case. It has more to do with usage of the phone - folks who are always texting, streaming music, videos, etc. In other words, heavy usage.

From what I can tell, I think Apple usually waits until the Apple Care Extended warranty runs out before they admit to a problem or create a process to resolve the issue. So I would assume, around the three year mark for the iPhone 6 or 6+ is when something may be announced, if anything is going to happen.

We all know, so many users do not keep these devices that long either. So that mat be why they hold off the announcement.

At least they aren't exploding like a certain other manufacturer's phones.

bobtomay said:

At least they aren't exploding like a certain other manufacturer's phones.

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And what, a whole 35 actual reported cases so far out of from a few million sold … hmmm…

I sure give some of the Asian manufacturer's manufacturing product pride a great deal of credit compared to some others.

At least turning on and/or charging iPhones on the airplane is fine, while FAA strongly advises not to do that with some Samsung devices:

http://www.cnet.com/news/faa-strongly-advises-against-using-galaxy-note-7-on-airplanes/

Three Australian airlines went further and banned them...

I believe in "touchgate" - maybe a slightly different one or cause(?).
I have a 6s and look after it, in a case, don't sit on it or leave it exposed, no screens cracks (I shouldn't have said/typed that because it will happen now) and always update IOS - I pay for my phones outright and look after them.
However, the 6s locks up on me from time to time when texting (this may be a whole different issue?).
I hold the phone in a horizontal position with the home button on the right and type with my thumbs.
But regularly, sometimes at the start, sometimes mid text my keyboard refuses to recognise my thumbs - so I have to use another digit.
(I try physically changing the phone around - the vertical position, upside down and any other way but nothing.)
After a few letters or a couple of words, it may or may not recover. But generally the next text it's back to work as usual..........?
Anyone with similar issues Or a solution

harryb2448 said:

Really?

If it were not for lawyers, we wouldn't need lawyers.

Ask Randy.

Click to expand...

On the one hand, you are correct, I've seen way too many class action lawsuits (not against Apple) where the collective class gets pennies on the dollar for their injury, and the attorneys get tens of millions of dollars. My feeling is that the class should be "made whole" (i.e. they should be compensated commensurate with the damage they have suffered) and that the attorneys should be compensated entirely separately by the defendant in the case. In fact, I've sent in an amicus curiae brief (a "friend of the court" brief) to recommend just that in the case of a couple of class action suits I've heard about. Unfortunately it ended up being a waste of my time, the court simply ignored me.

On the other hand, there have been about a half dozen times that Apple products have had widespread defects, and Apple refused to acknowledge the problems until someone filed a class action suit. In every case, Apple relented soon after the case was filed and instituted an extended warranty to cover the problems. That's really how you want a class action case to work. You don't want it to go to trial, you want things to be handled fairly and expeditiously by the defendant to make the case moot. It's great that Apple didn't drag those cases out (though the cases shouldn't have had to a have been filed in the first place, Apple should have acknowledged the complaints of their customers sooner), but it's also great that there were Attorneys who were willing to take on Apple (it's is extremely hard to go against a company that his limitless funds to hire battalions of lawyers if they really want to fight) for the benefit of all of us. So, at least sometimes the class action process works.

It is in Apple's best interest to make these cases disappear as quickly as possible (before the general public even knows that there was a lawsuit) and do what's right. That way Apple ends up looking like they are good guys wanting to help their customers, rather than bad guys.

I wouldn't be so quick to become pessimistic about the current lawsuit against Apple. My bet is that it won't be long at all before we hear that Apple has instituted an extended warranty to cover the problem.