Earlier I accidentally grabbed my iPod headphones instead of my iPhone headphones and I think I may have jammed them in there too far. Because now I can't hear any of the keyboard clicks or sounds and when I receive a text message there's no sound either. And when I receive a call it won't allow me to hear the person on the other line unless I put my headphones in or use the speaker function. And when I turn the ringer volume up/down it says "headphones" in parentheses as if it's been set to "headphones" mode or something! Is it possible that I jammed them in so far that my iPhone thinks my headphones are still plugged in? Did I just totally ruin my iPhone? What do I do? Anyone know how I can fix this? Thanks!
i tried everything i could think of i sucked on the headphone jack look to see for debris or anything suck and nothing i turned it on and off several times and still nothing so i was desperate i grabbed my blow dryer i set it on high and bam it worked i could hear everything hope this helps you an saves you money
my iphone when i call people doesnt ring or make any noise through the ear speaker,
it works on loud speaker and through the headphones! what could be causing this?
hi. my iphone is not only stuck in headphone mode, but the jack doesn't allow me to plug my headphones in. so frustrating and strange! does anyone have any tips? thanks!
I've tried the ringtone trick without success, but it does something. When stuck on headphone mode if I change ringtone it shortly changes from (Headphone) to normal (Ringer) mode, audio comes out and works as should do.
But the moment I leave that screen and go back to home screen, I'm stuck again.
This doesn't work, but it proves to me that some software trick could fix this issue, even being the root cause some hardware/heat thing.
A lot of people have claimed that the problem of being trapped in "headphone mode" is due to debris in the headphone jack. I tried cleaning it out with the stem of a dry Q-tip (cotton swab cut off), as has been suggested around the net. Only a tiny bit of dust came out and now the jack is very clean, however the problem persists. In fact, it's becoming more chronic recently, to where I am missing calls and messages, because no audio alert is being sounded while the phone is not in my pocket.
No amount of plugging and unplugging the standard iPhone headphone jack makes a difference. I've been struggling to find ways to return audio to the speaker. Often rebooting will fix the problem, but only temporarily. However, I found that going into my alarm settings and sampling an alarm tone returns audio. The change is indicated, because raising or lowering the volume shows "Ringer" with no mention of headphones. Problem solved, for a few moments. This simple "fix" leads me to believe that the problem is software based.
Even more irritating is losing audio during a call. I have found almost without fail that during calls of more than a few minutes, the phone switches over to headphone mode for no reason. This is a serious problem, one that I've learned to adapt to uncomfortably. In this event, clicking Speaker allows me to continue the call, but clicking Speaker again doesn't simply return the sound to the earpiece. Another way to avoid the problem altogether is to always use the headphones, but this is not the most convenient way to take a phone call. So it is an annoyance at best.
This leaves me with a conundrum. My iPhone 3G is nearly 2 years old. With the exception of this one major issue, the phone still looks and works great. If this problem is in fact a hardware issue, should I upgrade to a brand new phone with fresh hardware or is that asking for more trouble? It seems absolutely shameful if the life of this device is barely 2 years, after which it gets relegated to lesser duty as a low memory iPod or to the junk heap. The screen is still bright, the capacitive sensors are still quite responsive. Yet, the very function by which the device is named is broken. I still have a hard time accepting this as a hardware flaw, when the rest of the user-experience is as great as ever, and since the problem can be reversed through the software itself.
If this problem was fixed, I'd have very high confidence in upgrading to the latest and greatest model, but since this major flaw has arisen, I have serious doubts about continuing with the iPhone line.
My ringtone trick failed me for the first time last week after using the phone with my kids for games for heavy use. It did stabilise again after changing the ringtone and been fine since. I have to agree its disturbing and im dubious to buy another phone when this one finally dies....
I have finally succumbed and repalced the faulty unit with a refurb iphone from Optus. Must say the unit looks "brand new" anyway I will let you all know if the new iphone gets stuck in headphone mode.
Yeah, the ringtone trick failed me too, but it did something interesting: although the phone was still stuck in headphones mode, and I couldn't hear the person on the other end of the line, the phone rang on calls.
And definitely it's heat related.
I have surmised that it's heat related, too, because the problem tends to occur on lengthier calls. I don't know if this is just a matter of increased probability during a long call, or if it is because the phone gets too hot during a longer call. In any case, I hope there's a possible software fix - something like forcing the phone to maintain its audio state under most conditions, with the one exception of hitting the Speaker button. Maybe just wishful thinking here.
I'm running the latest OS and still have the issue, so I'm going to say 'no'. Whether or not it's a heat issue, though, I can't be certain. My phone performed fine for the first year and a half. What may have changed is the OS, which could have introduced the problem. Or it would be reasonable to consider that the phone may have aged over time and may be more susceptible to heat. It's a pretty solid device. Heat may not be the issue. I wish Apple would show a little transparency on the issue. I guess my goal in joining this thread is to reach out to other users with the same issue and raise its priority in Apple's to-do list.
The reason I speculate it's a heat issue, is the following: not only does this happen after long usage (long calls, applications, wi-fi), but also it happens spontaneously on when the ambient temperature is elevated.
There might be a software issue also (as you have mentioned) because the problems started for me after the 3.0 update.
I agree that it is a combination software/hardware issue. The problems did not start for me until after the 3.0 update, however other friends of mine with iPhones (both 3G and 3GS) do not have this problem. Obviously, based on the number of posts, it is somewhat widespread though. My problem, like many others, happens more frequently after CPU intensive tasks and when ambient temperature is high. I can solve my problem temporarily by placing my iPhone against my car vent and cranking the air conditioning - so it is definitely a heat issue. The closest Apple Store is more than 3 hours from my house so I cannot get it looked at there. The local at&t store has said, if it is out of warranty it is my problem. I have spoken to an Apple Rep on the phone and he said it was an issue but not much I could do about it short of bringing it in to an Apple Store. Has anyone else had any luck with phone support? Have they even acknowledge that the issue is a real one and is affecting more than just a handful of users?
I am not so sure that heat is what is causing the earpiece to go out. I am more convinced that heat is the cause of a lot of call disconnects I'm experiencing. If I talk for more than a few minutes, the likelihood of the call disconnecting prematurely seems to go up exponentially. When speaking to one friend, with whom I share lengthy conversations, we're plagued with this problem. Whether losing sound in the earpiece is related or not, I can't be sure. That heat is the cause of call disconnections, I'm almost 100% positive. Initially, I thought it was AT&T's spotty service, but it really only happens with these longer conversations. Again, is it just increased probability or heat? My guess is it's the heat.
