Can I fix a "dead spot" on my phone?

December 6, 2021 11:38 AM

I have an old cell phone. The (replacement) glass is in one piece with no cracks or visible damage, but it is non-reactive in a few spots, which wouldn't be problem, except that one of those spots is directly over "call answer" button. Oh, and I mainly use my phone as a phone.

It's an iPhone 5c. I can and will replace the screen if necessary, but if there is something I can to do treat it or fix it, I'll try that first. It tends to work a teeny tiny bit better when I've just wiped it down with screen cleaner.

I really don't want to dump a pile of money into the phone. I'd replace it if there were decent replacement options out there, so if somebody wants to recommend a mid-priced (in Canadian dollars) phone with a headphone jack (absolute requirement), go ahead. Good call and voice quality are my top priorities, although a decent camera would be a nice bonus.

Oh and when I say "non-reactive" I mean no matter how I touch it it swipe at it, I can't get the phone to connect the call when it rings. '

(And yes, I know the OS is outdated, but I don't use any apps. As mentioned above, I use the phone mainly as a phone, and as an e-reader, with some light Googling, so I'm not too worried about security.)

posted by sardonyx to Computers & Internet (9 answers total)

Not sure how it compares to your cost for replacing the screen but you can get an iPhone 5s in "very good" condition from Orchard (getorchard.com) for about $100 CAD. They ship of course but you can also buy in-person by appointment in Toronto. 90 day warranty and the pics of the phone on their site are of the exact unit you will receive. No affiliation, but I have bought multiple devices from them.
posted by Lorin at 11:56 AM on December 6, 2021

You can fix it by opening it up, checking the connections, and replacing the screen if necessary. I don't think you're going to fix a touch-screen issue any other way.
posted by pipeski at 12:48 PM on December 6, 2021

This might be worth trying to see if it's helpful (or not).

You can configure the accessibility settings in iOS to auto-answer calls.

Go to Settings > General > Accessibility > Call Audio Routing, and turn on "Auto-Answer Calls."

IIRC, it might be under "Touch" in the Accessibility menu on older versions of iOS.

You'll not be able to screen calls this way since they're going to be automatically answered, but it does allow for setting the interval between the time the call comes in and when auto-answer kicks in.
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 2:20 PM on December 6, 2021 [2 favorites]

With most wired or bluetooth phone headphones, you can answer a call by tapping a button on the headphones. Would that work for you?
posted by moonmilk at 4:00 PM on December 6, 2021 [1 favorite]

According to this page

If you enable VoiceOver in Settings>General>Accessibility>VoiceOver, double-tapping the screen with two fingers answers an incoming call. Doble-tapping again hangs it up. You can enable tripple-clicking the home button to turn VoiceOver on and off by going to Settings>Ganeral>Accessibility>Accessibility Shortcut and setting it to VoiceOver.

posted by jamjam at 4:07 PM on December 6, 2021 [2 favorites]

You may have a hard to see screen protector sheath over the screen and sometimes if a tiny bit of water gets between the screen and the protector it will be impossible to make buttons work. You might try your thumbnail over the screen to see if there is.
posted by The_imp_inimpossible at 5:29 PM on December 6, 2021

Response by poster: Thanks all.

It looks like a visit to the repair shop is on the agenda. I just tried the double-tap, VoiceOver approach and that didn't work. I'm running 10.3.3 and I actually don't see an AutoAnswer option under either Touch or Call Audio Routing--I was really hoping that was going to work because I try to answer every call (even if I suspect it's telemarketing), as that's part of the job. I don't have a screen protector, so that definitely is not the problem. Oh well. thanks for the suggestions.
posted by sardonyx at 7:44 PM on December 6, 2021

If the VoiceOver trick didn’t work, it’s probably not a dead area on the screen.

Apparently, iPhones that can’t "receive" calls after updating to 13.3 is an issue — though not precisely your issue as nearly as I can tell — and here is a page describing an escalating series of steps to attempt to cure the problem.
posted by jamjam at 2:53 AM on December 7, 2021

Response by poster: Oh, it's definitely not a receiving calls issue. I actually just hung up the phone after receiving a call. When I can activate the button, it will take calls just fine. It's just that the touch response where the button is located doesn't always work.
posted by sardonyx at 9:12 AM on December 7, 2021