iPhone 12 Mini owners reporting lock-screen sensitivity issue

By Trevor Mogg Published November 15, 2020

A number of iPhone 12 Mini users have been reporting a sensitivity issue with the device’s lock screen.

The smallest handset in Apple’s new iPhone 12 line-up started landing in customers’ hands on Friday, November 13, and soon after messages started landing on online forums pointing out the problem.

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The issue seems to be occurring when trying to swipe up to unlock, or trying to activate the camera from the lock screen. In such cases, the display fails to respond.

Forum posters are reporting a range of experiences, with some saying the problem is only occurring when the phone has both a case and screen protector on, while others claim that it’s the use of a screen protector alone that’s causing the unexpected behavior.

Others have pointed out that it sounds like a grounding or conductivity issue, with some able to get the phone working by plugging it in.

It’s hard to say how widespread the issue is but posts on the forums have been increasing in the three days since the iPhone 12 Mini started shipping.

Apple will by now be well aware of customer complaints but the tech giant is yet to respond publicly about the apparent problem.

Digital Trends has reached out to the company for more information and we will update this article when we hear back.

The iPhone 12 Mini launched alongside the iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro, and iPhone 12 Pro Max. As its name suggests, its 5.4-inch screen makes it the smallest of the four devices, with the 12 and 12 Pro featuring a 6.1-inch display, and the Max coming with a 6.7-inch display. The frame of the iPhone 12 Mini is also smaller than that of the recently launched iPhone SE, as well as the iPhone 6, 7, and 8.

The Mini is expected to be a big seller as many Apple fans have been calling for a smaller iPhone that they can stick in their pocket and operate comfortably with one hand, after recent launches just felt too big for many customers.

Contributing Editor

Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…

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