iphone Corrosion

I don't know anything about the connector/cable problems experience by users of the pre-lightning connector, as I never had any issues. But for those in this thread talking about the new lightning system on the iDevices from last year onward, there is a serious corrosion issue (which I am experiencing which seems to have to do with arcing between the connector and the cable contacts. There's detailed discussion here, with some very good photos and analysis of the problems, but alas no solution:

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/4363224

We need to get Apple to recognize this problem and deal with it appropriately. This appears to be a degenerative condition which will likely render the iDevice unchargable eventually.

I had the same problem, went to Apple Store and they told me there was corrosion in the connector. I don't know from where it appeared because I can swear the phone had never been in contact with the water and it's only 2 months old. I had to pay 200$ for the replacement. This is very disappointing from Apple to have this issue with the connector and then wash their hands with that corrosion test. The fact is that the hardware is the issue and if corrosion appears out of the blue then they let us down with their replacement policy. Water damage should be like physical amage, the phone is not working because the circuit board is fried; otherwise they should take responsibility for a failure in their hardware of a phone only 2 months old.

I also had the same issue. Took the big step to upgrade to a smartphone and chose the iPhone 4s the first week of January 2012. Before the end of March I started having issues with it. It wouldn't shut down and the battery was draining quickly. It did the volume thing for me too at least once. I had been so careful with the phone as I knew several of my co-workers had broken their front glass...I never dropped it or got it wet. It was also the least humid time of year but it did spend some time in my pocket on occasion. However, they say I water damaged it and charged me $300 for the refurb they sent to replace it. I cannot begin to express how mystified, frustrated and broken-hearted I was. We argued with Verizon that we did not know we were at fault and would be charged. We also had the insurance through them and after hours on the phone they finally offered to make us only pay the deductible. I went right out and bought the lifeproof case so that this wouldn't happen again since I had no idea how it happened the first time. I had my only other cell phone before that for four years and it still worked fine. Maybe the iPhone should have covers for their ports or something if they are so fragile. If anything like this happens again I may go back to my old flippy phone 'cause I just can't afford to keep replacing them.

We have just experienced the same type problem with a 2-3 month old iPhone 4. Phone has never been in contact with water. Phone is nearly brand new. Phone was working fine until Friday night. Plugged into the same charging cable that has been used since the phone was purchased and it did not charge. Took it to the Apple store today to get it repaired/replaced. Apple tech took the phone in the back (magic room) and after an exam, came back and said that corrosion had been found in the dock connector and that there were white spots inside the phone indicating water damage. He then said that this voided all warranty on the phone and the "only course of action" he could authorize was to offer a $179 replacement phone. They would not even test the battery to determine if it was the problem or if it was something to do with the dock or the charging cable.

UN-FREAKIN-BELIEVABLE that this is where Apple support has digressed to. To be passing the blame for a defective design and product back onto its customers as a means of dredging up additional revenue by forcing "replacement" repairs is beyond ridiculous and bordering on criminal.

I was told by the tech that they see this all the time and that it can be caused by "transfer of corrosion from one device to another via the charging cable". As if that explains away all liability on Apples part for a phone that is new experiencing charging issues...... How stupid do they think their customers are?

I for one will be passing this experience on to as many people as I possibly can to ensure that others are aware of Apples poor customer support policy and defective product as well as their disregard for product issues that are of their design... Be warned all who think of purchasing an Apple iPhone. If you live an an area where humidity ever reaches 85% or it rains or you put your phone in your pocket or someone next to you sneezes, you might get moisture on/near your phone and the warranty will be voided by Apple so they can force you into a no win situation of having to purchase a replacement phone out of warranty.

Way to go Apple. Way to turn your customers against you for poor business practices and plain ridiculous claims.

My daughter purchased an iPhone 4S and from day 1 the battery did not hold a charge- she took it to the Verizon store and had a tech look at it. Tech said "I can't see anything wrong with this phone- we'll cross ship a new one to you". So she gets a new phone, returns the defective phone, and I just got a bill for $299.00 for replacing a "damaged phone".

The warehouse took pictures of a phone (which was not hers) which showed corrosion on the charge port- screws missing and rust on the corners. THIS IS NOT HER PHONE- they must have a damaged phone, and take a picture of that phone passing it off a a dmaged phone.

What a rip-off. Tech in the store sees no damage, the water marker is not red (or even remotely discolored) and they bill me $299.00. I have 5 phones with VZW, and if they don;t reverse this bogus charge, I'll be switching them immediately.

What a racket- no phone call, no notice- just a bill. This *****.

I just experienced a water issue with Verizon Iphone 4s. My Bluetooth and Wireless stopped working. Verizon replaced my phone and I thought all was ok. Now they are charging me $199 because they claim water damage, and sent picture that shows a little corrosion on charger connection. My phone had never been near water and I told them that. The tech said it could be caused by humidity, sweat, or steam from a showere. What kind of nonsense is that. If those things can cause my Bluetooth and Wireless to stop working then there is a serious design flaw on this phone. Is that why the new Iphone 5 has a different connector? Based on this experience I doubt that I will buy another Iphone. I never had this problem with my Droid. I have a lot of Apple products, but this has been a terrible experience. It makes me wonder what percentage of Iphones that are returned under warranty, are claimed to have water damage? Mine was never in water, appeared to have minimal corrosion, yet I had to pay because somehow there was water corrosion, even though I live in sunny Southern California.

regaladv wrote:

The tech said it could be caused by humidity, sweat, or steam from a showere. What kind of nonsense is that. If those things can cause my Bluetooth and Wireless to stop working then there is a serious design flaw on this phone.

Nonsense? Then there must be a serious design flaw with everything electrical designed since the 1800s. How do you differentiate humidity, sweat, or steam from water?

There are many electrical appliances that work in the presence of humidity, steam and sweat, but do not work when dunked in water. Every school kid knows that humidity, steam and sweat are forms of water. What is your point? My Droid phone worked well for over two years, even though I carried it in my pocket. My I phone worked less than four months under the same conditions. I believe it doesn't matter what the technical issue is with your I Phone, if it has any form of corrosion Verizon, AT&T or Apple will void the warranty. Will any of these companies publish the statistics of what percentage of warranties have been voided because of corrosion?

I am reading this thread of iphone users shaking my head while I wait for the verizon manager to call me back. i am trying to dispute a $299.00 charge from verizon that my iphone that I sent back has corrosion. I sent it back because the external speakers were not working. Went to the genius bar where they never saw corrosion. Now I get an e-mail that I need to pay $299 for the used phone they sent me. This corrosion thing is a scam. My phone was never dropped in water or spilled on or anything like that and now I owe them 299? I want my old phone back, I'll keep it without the external speakers working for free. I am not going to pay 299 for this new used phone. That was never part of the bargain anyway. What recourse do I have? The phone is flawed if it corrodes just by having it. I will ask for my old phone back and clean it myself. They can take a picture of anyone's phone and claim that it is yours and that it is damaged as they say. I am heartsick that this is happening in the first place because it is so expensive and inconvenient, and because I am so very dissappointed in Verizon and Apple.

You are preaching to the wrong choir here. We are users like you and this is a Verizon issue, not Apple. They are the ones dealing with the replacement, not Apple. I understand your frustration, but it needs to be focused at Verizon. Normally warranty replacements are handled by Apple, not sure why you went through Verizon, unless it was their insurance you are working with.

While I agree that Verizon has some issues and deserve complaints about their service, this is an Apple product. If there is an issue with it, Apple needs to know. If Verizon is not handling issues with the product well, Apple should know about it. If Verizon is scamming us, someone needs to know. Verizon has gotten an earful from us, too I am not happy with Verizon, especially when they accused me of attempted fraud. I'd love to compare the photos that Verizon has sent to other customers to see if they look like mine, as in, EXACTLY like mine.

Lorig352- If you send me an e-mail address via FB- I will send you the pics they sent me- I'd be willing to bet they are the same- I felt they scam a lot of people with the same photo. My daughter's phone was immaculate, and they told her at teh store it would be replaced- so she mailed it in, and we got billed $299 without any call or notification- these guys are scammers. I am on FB- Michael Hutchinson (Sunny Hill Farm)

Mike

Let me ask you this then, if it is a warranty issue, Apple handles that and why are you going through Verizon. Carriers generally do not handle replacement or warranty issues if the phone is more than 30 days old. I would have taken it directly to Apple if I had a problem. If you get the original phone back, I would take it to Apple if you were in the 1-year warranty period. The dispute or refund of charges is with Verizon, the warranty of the phone is with Apple.

Actually, Verizon does handle warranty issues on all the phones it sells as long as they are under warranty (either the original manufacturer's warranty or the Extended Warranty that Verizon sells). The advantage to going to Apple with an iPhone warranty issue is that they generally have replacement units in stock. Verizon ships them to you.

Thank you for that information. I guess I've always been of the idea to go to Apple because of the availability and the turn around. Despite their willingness to do this, from the contents of this thread it sounds as if there is some problem with it somewhere.