iPhone 5 Troubleshooting
Mục Lục
iPhone 5 screen is shattered
Oh no! Your iPhone 5 glass did not survive your unintentional drop test!
Broken front panel
Take a deep breath and see if your iPhone will turn on and operate normally. In most cases, the iPhone is still functional but now a cosmetic disaster. Unfortunately, the iPhone 5’s glass and display are fused together and must be replaced as one piece.
The iPhone 5 displays do not change based on the model, but be sure to order the correct color! The white one is here, and the black version here.
The iPhone 5 screen replacement guide can be found here.
iPhone is frozen or unresponsive
Even after furious button mashing and screen smashing, your iPhone 5 doesn’t respond.
Restart iPhone
Sometimes all it takes is a restart for the iPhone to become responsive again. To force restart your iPhone, follow our iPhone 5 force restart guide to press and hold the sleep/wake and home buttons until the Apple logo appears (~10 seconds).
Very low battery
It is possible for an iPhone to become unresponsive if the battery drops to an extremely low level. Plug the iPhone into your computer or wall charger and allow it to charge for at least 20 minutes before using it again.
iPhone 5 will not charge
Plugging in your iPhone 5 does not bring it life.
Bad cable connection
Check the USB cable for damage and dirt, especially at the ends. Then try using the wall charger, as this will provide greater power input than the computer/USB.
Broken charger or USB cord
Try using different chargers to see if you may have a problem with your charger or cord.
Obstructed/bad dock connector
Inspect the Lightning port at the bottom of the iPhone for dirt, lint, and damaged pins. Clean out the port very carefully with a tooth pick or soft toothbrush. If the dock connector is too worn, you will have to replace it. You can find the dock connector cable part here and you can follow the Lightning port assembly replacement guide here.
iPhone will not turn on
You cannot get your beloved iPhone 5 to turn on.
Drained/dead battery
Plug your iPhone into your computer or wall adapter to charge. If it does not charge when connected to either of these, you probably have a dead battery. The battery will need to be replaced; you can buy a new battery here, and follow the iPhone 5 battery replacement guide here.
Dead display
It is possible that it appears nothing is happening because the display is bad. If the iPhone sounds like it is working properly but nothing is visible, it is possible the display is faulty and must be replaced. Unfortunately, the LCD and glass panel are fused together, and must be replaced as one unit. Grab a new display—the white one is here, and the black version here. If plugging your iPhone into a power source causes it to endlessly vibrate or sound the “connected to power” chime over and over while the display remains blank, you have a display problem that may require further troubleshooting.
Then follow the iPhone 5 screen replacement guide here.
Bad logic board
If nothing else works, your logic board is probably bad and needs to be replaced, you can use this logic board replacement guide and you can buy the part here.
“This accessory is not optimized for this iPhone” or “This accessory may not be supported” message
An error message appears as if you have connected an unsupported accessory to your iPhone
Obstructed/bad dock connector
Check the dock connector at the bottom of the iPhone for dirt, lint, and damaged pins. Clean out the dock connector very carefully with a tooth pick or soft toothbrush. High concentration isopropyl alcohol (at least 90%) and a cotton swab should be used to clean any debris that does not come off with a tooth pick or soft toothbrush. If the dock connector is broken, you will have to replace it. You can find the dock connector cable part here and you can follow the Lightning port assembly replacement guide here.
Dirty or corroded logic board connections
After an iPhone has been submerged in a liquid, there may be some corrosion or debris on the logic board connections that cause this error message. Follow the Lightning port assembly replacement guide to remove the logic board and clean all of the contacts with a soft cotton swab and high concentration isopropyl alcohol (at least 90%).
Weak or lost wireless connections
You have trouble connecting to a wireless network or your calls are suddenly dropped.
Dirty antenna grounds
If your iPhone has been disassembled before, it’s possible that finger oils were left on the grounding locations for the Wi-Fi or Bluetooth antennas. These oils will cause grounding issues for the antennas, which could lead to a weak signal or no connectivity at all. Be sure to clean all grounding points with an electronics cleaning solution before reassembling your iPhone to prevent grounding issues. Follow the display assembly guide to open the phone to access most of the phone’s contacts.
No audio or distorted audio through speakers or headphones
Your iPhone 5 turns on and appears to work, but when you plug in headphones or speakers, the audio doesn’t play properly.
Bad headphones/speakers
It’s unlikely your headphones or speakers are bad, but it’s worthwhile to eliminate these as the source of your problem at the beginning. Try your iPhone with another set of headphones or speakers just to make sure that the problem is with the iPhone.
Obstructed/bad dock connector
Inspect the auxiliary port at the bottom of the iPhone for dirt, lint, and damaged pins. Clean out the port very carefully with a tooth pick or soft toothbrush. High concentration isopropyl alcohol (at least 90%) and a cotton swab should be used to clean any debris that does not come off with a tooth pick or soft toothbrush. If the dock connector is too worn, you will have to replace it. You can find the dock connector cable part here and you can follow the Lightning port assembly replacement guide here.
Bad headphone jack
The most likely cause of audio output problems on iPhone 5 is a bad audio-out jack. Unfortunately the headphone jack is part of the Lightning connector cable assembly, so you will need to replace the whole unit. If you have determined that the problem does not lie in your external speakers, you should replace the headphone jack assembly. You can find the dock connector cable part here and you can follow the Lightning port assembly replacement guide here.
iPhone unresponsive or displays a Restore iPhone 5 warning
Your iPhone is behaving erratically or displays the text “Use iTunes to restore” on startup
Corrupted software
It isn’t often that Apple gives specific directions about how to fix your problem! Restoring the iPhone 5 will erase everything on it, so make sure everything on the iPhone 5 is stored elsewhere prior to restoring. To restore, connect your iPhone 5 to a computer with iTunes installed. Click “Restore” on the iPhone 5 summary page (click on your iPhone icon on the left menu to find this page). Follow the directions to restore. If your iPhone 5 displays the text “Please wait. Very Low Battery,” leave it plugged in. This charges the iPhone 5 enough to be able to restore. If the iPhone 5 hangs on this screen for long periods of time, you may need a new battery. You can buy a new battery here, and follow the iPhone 5 battery replacement guide here.
Force restore mode
If your iPhone 5 is hanging with an Apple logo, or exhibiting some other software problem that prevents iTunes from recognizing it, you can force it into recovery/restore mode and then use iTunes to restore the software.
If the device is powered off, plug one end of your USB cable into the iPhone 5 and leave the other end disconnected. Press down on the Home button, and keep holding it down while you plug the USB cable into your computer. After 5-10 seconds, you should see a “Please Connect to iTunes” image on the iPhone 5, and iTunes should prompt you to restore the software; follow the prompts and the instructions given above.
If the device is powered on, hold down both the power and home buttons until the device reboots and displays the “Connect to iTunes” image (generally, 5-15 seconds).
iPhone has water or liquid damage
After an accidental spill or a drop in the sink, your iPhone no longer works correctly.
Liquid damage mitigation needed
As soon as possible, perform the following:
- Immediately remove the iPhone from the liquid (if safe to do so). Minimize the length of time your device is in contact with liquid to prevent corrosive damage.
- Turn the iPhone off. (If it was off already, do not turn it on.)
- Skip the rice. Contrary to what you may have heard, rice is not an effective or lasting fix for water damaged electronics.
- Open the iPhone and disconnect the battery. (See your iPhone’s battery replacement guide for the correct procedure. You don’t need to completely remove the battery; simply disconnect the battery connector from the logic board.)
- Liquid damage may complicate disassembly. Beware of cables and connectors that may be “adhered” to other components in unexpected ways.
At this point, inspect the interior of your iPhone and try to determine the extent of the liquid damage.
- If your iPhone’s interior looks completely dry:
- Whew! You may have dodged a bullet. Check the water damage indicators, look around the ports and SIM card tray, and inspect the battery connector carefully for signs of liquid or corrosion.
- If you notice any sign of liquid intrusion, skip to the next section below.
- If everything looks bone dry, you might not need to do anything further. Give your phone a couple hours to air out, re-connect the battery, power it on, and test all functions. If you notice any problems, continue to the next section below.
- If you see only a little liquid inside the phone:
- Follow the rear case replacement guide to begin removing components.
- As you remove each component, check it carefully for signs of liquid or corrosion damage. Wipe any liquid and/or corrosion away carefully with isopropyl alcohol and a clean, soft nylon brush, such as a toothbrush, and allow it to air dry.
- Continue disassembling until you no longer see any signs of liquid intrusion.
- When all components are clean and dry, re-assemble your iPhone with a new battery.
- Do not attempt to re-use a battery that has been in contact with any liquid.
- Power on your iPhone and test all functions. If you notice any problems, continue to the next section below.
- If the interior components are mostly (or totally) covered in liquid:
- Follow the rear case replacement guide to take your iPhone apart completely.
- Clean each component, cable connector, and socket carefully with isopropyl alcohol and a clean toothbrush.
- Submerge the logic board in isopropyl alcohol (or use an ultrasonic cleaner, if available). Allow it to soak long enough to loosen hardened residue, and to displace any remaining water or other liquid.
- Use the toothbrush to scrub visible corrosion and residue from the logic board. Clean all connectors, chips, and fuses.
- Repeat cleaning if necessary, or if traces of residue are still visible.
- When all components are clean and dry, re-assemble your iPhone with a new battery.
- Do not attempt to re-use a battery that has been in contact with any liquid.
- Power on your iPhone and test all functions.
- For any particular function that fails, replace the associated component with a new part, and then re-test.
- If problems persist, a board-level repair may be necessary. We don’t yet have comprehensive guides for board-level repair, so you may wish to consult a microsoldering specialist for more options.
