Q: wifi greyed out iphone 4s

Its 3 days since I heated up the wifi chip and its still working fine.

So I'm pleased with that.

Hello!

I have an iphone 4S with IOS 7 and the not working wi-fi issues. Dos eanyone knows if the heating procedure is a long lasting solution, or is better to go to Apple store and let them try to fix it?

Best regards,

andré

Definitely not longterm for me.  As soon as I leave the house and my wi-fi, the problem starts all over again.  Looks like I will be spending my Christmas at the Apple Store.

All the Apple Store will do for you is sell you a new phone (if your warranty has expired or if you don't have Applecare).  If you have insurance through your cell provider, they'll tell you to use that.  The only long term fix anyone on this thread has suggested is going to a third-party repair shop and having the wifi chip reseated--whatever that means.  I've done the hair dryer solution three times over the last 5 or 6 weeks, and will probably take it to a repair shop sometime in the next couple of weeks. 

Thanks Apple.

jschuler wrote:

 

All the Apple Store will do for you is sell you a new phone (if your warranty has expired or if you don't have Applecare). 

No, they will offer an out-of-warranty replacement at a greatly reduced cost, not just a 'new' iPhone, in situations where a warranty has expired or there is accidental damage not covered under warranty.

For iPhone 4 and older = $149.

For iPhone 4s = $199 (which is $250 less than a new iPhone 4s, i.e. 55% less than new retail)

For iPhone 5 and newer = $269. ($380 - $580 less than a new iPhone 5S, i.e. 58 - 68% less than new retail; $280 - $380 less than a new iPhone 5C, i.e. 51 - 58% less than new retail)

That averages out to about 58% off the new retail price.  More than HALF off.  So, they are offering more options than just 'buy a new phone'.

i think people do not want to listen, accept the obvious and expect something for free.

that is what this is all about.

so lets get the facts:

1. it is a hardware issue. no hair dryer, freezer or any other home made wizardry will make the iphone wifi whole again. you need a repair for a long term solution.

2. if you have warranty, either one year and the year is not over or aple care protection plan, apple will exchange the unit. they offered it a few times and you did not want it.

3. if you do not have any coverage mentioned above, apple wont do anything for free.

so they give you options. use one. claims, court, and petitions and so on will not help. it is just a pledge for the freebee you expect. so that is where the dissapoinment comes from.

sure, it might be an apple related error, but if you have an APP oder waranty they will be glad to help. it is not an intentional error and it does not affect everyone. 

so do stop blaming and begging.

I just expected my iphone to last more than two years before a problem issue like this that causes a need to replace it.

podmod, you are out of your mind if you believe that expecting to get quality for your money is the same as "expecting something for free".  The bottom line is this:  Apple rolled out software that their own hardware couldn't handle, thus ruining thousands upon thousands of our phones.  To have to have paid 699.00 or so for a product that barely out lives its factory warranty is beyond ridiculous.

I am thouroghly enjoying my Windows phone, have traded in my iPad for a Windows 8 Notebook, and will never support Apple again.  You just go ahead and continue throwing your money at a company that abuses it's customers, that's fine with me.

TJBUSMC1973 wrote:

 

jschuler wrote:

 

All the Apple Store will do for you is sell you a new phone (if your warranty has expired or if you don't have Applecare). 

 

No, they will offer an out-of-warranty replacement at a greatly reduced cost, not just a 'new' iPhone, in situations where a warranty has expired or there is accidental damage not covered under warranty.

 

For iPhone 4 and older = $149.

For iPhone 4s = $199 (which is $250 less than a new iPhone 4s, i.e. 55% less than new retail)

For iPhone 5 and newer = $269. ($380 - $580 less than a new iPhone 5S, i.e. 58 - 68% less than new retail; $280 - $380 less than a new iPhone 5C, i.e. 51 - 58% less than new retail)

 

That averages out to about 58% off the new retail price.  More than HALF off.  So, they are offering more options than just 'buy a new phone'.

Where are you getting your retail prices from for the 4s's? How many GB are you referencing? My wife has a 64 GB 4s and it retails for $799...not everyone with the problem is eligible for the "2 year" price. You must know the "retail" prices because you work there. Why would anyone actually replace the phone after the Apple treated them with this issue....I am saving my upgrade discount for the S5...the 5s?..no the S5!

Plus Apple only sells the 8GB 4s now, but Best Buy has the non contract prices on there as well. I would expect a $800 phone to last over a year, conveniently going haywire right after installing iOS7!

wickedmoose wrote:

 

podmod, you are out of your mind if you believe that expecting to get quality for your money is the same as "expecting something for free".  The bottom line is this:  Apple rolled out software that their own hardware couldn't handle, thus ruining thousands upon thousands of our phones.  To have to have paid 699.00 or so for a product that barely out lives its factory warranty is beyond ridiculous.

 

I am thouroghly enjoying my Windows phone, have traded in my iPad for a Windows 8 Notebook, and will never support Apple again.  You just go ahead and continue throwing your money at a company that abuses it's customers, that's fine with me.

just ignore podmod...he is just here to spam the boards with his own repair fix. He should have been booted long ago for spamming the board with his website!

And who is looking for freebies? I just want the phone fixed to the state it was before we installed iOS7 on it! That would be working!

i tryied freezer mathod i didnt work for my 4s, then i go for heat method i its working

if u dont have hair dryer use can use table lamp( u will find video on youtube)

found this

Update

*****Important update******

A few days ago I spoke to a apple tech that explained to me that it is now a well known problem. It is a issue with a large batch of chips. It seems that the chip has some sort of a built in expiry date. He could not expound on the issue or comment further. I asked him if updating the software had anything to do with the issue. He replied that he could not comment on the fact that the update to any software triggers the issue. A interesting choice of words and a answer in itself. It is good that Apple is finally taking hold of this problem. I did not have to pay a cent to swap my 16 month old (4 months out of warranty) Iphone 4S (64 gig) Interestingly in over a year the battery had reached the end of its life cycle as well according to the instore test the tech did. My other 4S that I have for personal use and bought in the same week from a different store does not have this problem. With a new phone came a new battery and os 6.1 (I was so glad it was not 6.1.3)

(no paying $200, No questions, so glad to have a phone that works again)

It seems all the trick above just reset the lease expiry date of the chip and let it work again for a little time till the lease is expired and the software shuts it down again)

Edited by: wayne ( Jul 8 2013 )

I tried the hair dryer trick about 5 months ago when my wi-fi went out.  It worked for maybe a week.  I've just dealt with it and used the phone without wifi.  Everything else was working fine.  I've now been having some issues with my messages that are failing to send.  I didn't know if it was related to the wifi being out or not.  I went to the Apple store and talked to a genius and the manager--I am 202 days out of warranty, so they said they cannot do anything about it.  I can pay the $199 for a new phone or see if I am eligible for an upgrade with my provider.

This is just very frustrating to me, because the genius at apple even told me, it wasn't anything that I did or that I caused, it just happened.  Very frustrating that it just "happened" when the phone was only a little over a year old.

Yes, it was same with mine. Hair dryer method worked for 2 weeks and then stopped. Yes, I could do another heating attempt but this is not a solution! It is waste of time, it is definitelly HW failure and we all are forced to switch our 4s for 5s - but who can garantee this will not happen also with 5s after iOS 8 or 9 upgrade ? Shame on Apple... My phone was only 3 months old - it was brand new after replacement. If Steve Jobs would know... :-/