iPhone X not responding in cold weather? Apple's issuing a fix!

iPhone Home screen
iPhone Home screen (Image credit: iMore)

Following a Reddit thread involving iPhone X owners who noted their displays were non-responsive in cold weather, Apple has sent out the following statement:

We are aware of instances where the iPhone X screen will become temporarily unresponsive to touch after a rapid change to a cold environment," an Apple spokesperson told iMore. "After several seconds the screen will become fully responsive again. This will be addressed in an upcoming software update.

I've been using my iPhone X during late-night walks in frigid Montreal weather all week and wasn't able to reproduce the issue. Not until I got out of my car into the sub-zero evening and my keyboard stopped responding for about 8-10 seconds. That's the only time I've experienced it so far, but others have reported it more frequently.

iPhone X not only has an all-new OLED display but an all-new touch layer that ramps up to 120 Hz whenever a finger lands on it. My guess is that there's a glitch in the algorithms Apple's using to handle the touch recognition that's manifesting during extreme temperature changes. And that's why it can be fixed via software update. Which is really convenient for everyone involved.

Updated November 10, 2017 with more information on the issue.

Rene Ritchie
Contributor

Rene Ritchie is one of the most respected Apple analysts in the business, reaching a combined audience of over 40 million readers a month. His YouTube channel, Vector, has over 90 thousand subscribers and 14 million views and his podcasts, including Debug, have been downloaded over 20 million times. He also regularly co-hosts MacBreak Weekly for the TWiT network and co-hosted CES Live! and Talk Mobile. Based in Montreal, Rene is a former director of product marketing, web developer, and graphic designer. He's authored several books and appeared on numerous television and radio segments to discuss Apple and the technology industry. When not working, he likes to cook, grapple, and spend time with his friends and family.