iPhone 13 Users Are Experiencing Touchscreen Failures

Some iOS 15 users with older devices are reporting similar issues

By
Rob Rich
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Rob Rich
News Reporter
  • College for Creative Studies
Rob is a freelance tech reporter with experience writing for a variety of outlets, including IGN, Unwinnable, 148Apps, Gamezebo, Pocket Gamer, Fanbolt, Zam, and more.
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Updated on September 29, 2021 01:02PM EDT
Fact checked by
Rich Scherr
Rich Scherr
Fact checked by Rich Scherr
  • University of Maryland Baltimore County
Rich Scherr is a seasoned technology and financial journalist who spent nearly two decades as the editor of Potomac and Bay Area Tech Wire.
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Some iPhone 13 users, as well as people with older devices using iOS 15, are reporting their touchscreens won't always react to their inputs.

It's unclear exactly what the problem is, but several people are experiencing issues with the tap-to-wake feature. Reports of the bug are popping up on Reddit, on Apple Support, the MacRumors forums, and in various tweets on Twitter, with no official response from Apple yet. Sometimes, simply pressing the power button to "wake up" the phone is enough, other times a full restart is necessary.

Frustrated woman using her smartphone

Westend61 / Getty Images

Reddit user paranoidaditya says tap-to-wake on their iPhone 13 hasn't worked consistently since launch, and installing the iOS 15.1 beta hasn't helped. However, other Reddit users like Twintale say their touchscreens won't react after unlocking via Face ID.

The problem doesn't seem to be limited to the iPhone 13, either. Some users report their iPhone 11 and iPhone 12 models also are acting up, suggesting it could be an iOS 15 issue. But then MacRumors forum member Tal_Ent says their iPhone 13 and iPhone 12 are running the same OS, but only the iPhone 13 is being difficult.

Woman looking at smartphone

Chainarong Prasertthai / Getty Images

Thus far, it doesn't seem as though Apple has directly acknowledged the problem, though it recently posted a help page about intermittent touch response. Between the help page and several people contacting Apple Support on Twitter, it's likely Apple is aware of the bug and looking into a fix.

We can only hope Apple will roll out a fix in the near future. In the meantime, if you start to experience touchscreen problems, you might have to get used to occasionally restarting your device.

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