iPhone SE: home screen rotation doesn't work

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Level 1

10 points

iPhone SE: home screen rotation doesn't work

Hi guys,

I already searched for answers to this problem in the discussions, but I couldn't find anything that solved the issue. Here's the situation:

- brand new iPhone SE: got it yesterday and just imported my contacts, modified some settings and installed a couple of apps...that's all.

- home screen does not rotate into landscape mode (my previous blackberry touch did this by default, so I'm used to do everything on the phone keeping it horizontal, and didn't expect such problem with iPhone); rotation does not happen also in the app store. However, it flawlessly rotates to landscape when using apps (calculator, messages etc.).

- I tried solutions suggested by other users in different threads:

1) checked the lock in the grey screen (it was off); tried to switch it on and then off again to see if rotation was enabled with no success.

2) looked in "settings/display and brightness" to see if "zoom mode" was enabled to switch it off but discovered that the iPhone SE (or its version of iOS) does not have the "zoom mode" option in that panel...no problem, but also no solution :/ .

3) I think that trying a reset should be pointless as the phone is brand new and it behaved like this from the first time I switched it on (am I right?).

4) I read that some versions of the iPhone (e.g. 6) do not have the "rotate home screen" function (which, to me, seems completely absurd) and, supposedly, you can only use the phone in portrait mode, while the 6S for some reason has the option available: the SE specs should be similar to the 6S, does anyone know (for sure) if the home screen rotation is supported on the SE?

Thank you all in advance...I hope that someone will come up with a solution because I know it seems a stupid thing but to me it's terribly annoying.

Posted on May 1, 2016 8:57 AM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

IdrisSeabright

Community+ 2026

Level 10

192,489 points

Sep 10, 2017 9:52 AM in response to ChrisH454

I think you're confusing two different things. The Home screen on the SE has never rotated. Some apps, such as Contacts don't rotate. Other apps, including Maps certainly do. If your SE isn't rotating in Maps, then the first thing you need to do is check to see if your screen is locked in portrait mode. Swipe from the bottom of the screen to pull up the Control Center. In the left most pane of the Control Center, look at the right hand icon, the one that looks like a circular arrow with a padlock in the center. Is it red? If so, tap it. Your screen should now rotate in apps that support it.

If that doesn't do the trick, post back.

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Answer 2

Sep 12, 2017 11:33 PM in response to IdrisSeabright

I C said the blindman - Thanks for solution.

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Answer 3

Sep 13, 2017 9:45 AM in response to ChrisH454

ChrisH454 wrote:

I C said the blindman - Thanks for solution.

Glad it helped!

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Answer 4

Sep 10, 2017 9:46 AM in response to NeptuneKing

I've been interested in all the comments made about rotation on an SE iPhone. I seem to have a different story. When I first purchased the SE in the summer of 2016 the scene did rotate and i used it for maps and a Solitaire game I play. No, I'm not dreaming as I used it on my dashboard for thousands of Km's in Australia. The rotation disappeared after one of the iOS updates during this year. Most frustrating as in portrait mode the SE is not good.

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Answer 5

May 1, 2016 9:37 AM in response to NeptuneKing

the SE specs should be similar to the 6S, does anyone know (for sure) if the home screen rotation is supported on the SE?

To my knowledge, no.

Barry

P.S. I have one.

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Answer 6

May 1, 2016 9:03 AM in response to NeptuneKing

Home screen rotation is not supported on any model iPhone. It never has been. It IS supported on iPads.

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Answer 7

May 1, 2016 9:37 AM in response to Lawrence Finch

Lawrence Finch wrote:

Home screen rotation is not supported on any model iPhone. It never has been. It IS supported on iPads.

Actually, it is supported on the iPhone 6 Plus and 6S Plus, but that won't help the OP with their SE.

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Answer 8

wjosten

Level 10

95,459 points

May 1, 2016 9:05 AM in response to NeptuneKing

Only the 6Plus rotates the Home Screen.

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Answer 9

wjosten

Level 10

95,459 points

May 1, 2016 9:06 AM in response to Lawrence Finch

The 6Plus supports Home Screen rotation.

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Answer 10

May 1, 2016 9:15 AM in response to stevejobsfan0123

Thanks for correcting my oversight.

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Answer 11

NeptuneKing Author

Level 1

10 points

May 1, 2016 9:34 AM in response to Barry Hemphill

Hi Barry,

and thank you for your superquick answer 🙂 even if you're telling me that I'm doomed to hate this phone from the very beginning 😕

Anyway (still hoping that someone will come up with some kind of workaround later) I'd like to share a couple of considerations with you (as your "Level 8" means that you know something about these matters):

1) if this impossibility of rotating the home screen (and app store, and itunes store etc.) to landscape is really "built in" in some models (SE) and not in others (6S) with similar hardware/specs, it should be a software block and not a hardware limit, am I right? But if it is a software block, how is it possible that the same OS allows home screen rotation on one model and not on another? And let's reverse it: if the OS is the same for all phones, it should theoretically be possible to eliminate this block with a patch/string/whatever, am I right?

2) if you develop a phone with 4" screen plus frame, without a "back" button near the "home button" on the inferior side of the frame, and you provide it with an OS that stacks icons from top to bottom and has "back" commands in every page appearing in the top left corner, how the h**l do you think a normal right handed person can use it in portrait mode with one hand??? I mean, I'm not a 5ft girl with tiny hands, I'm a 6ft guy and still can't manage to reach that top left corner with my thumb without dropping the phone on the floor in the process. I mean, come on, this is not the first iteration of this phone...

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Answer 12

KiltedTim

Level 10

231,020 points

May 1, 2016 9:41 AM in response to NeptuneKing

Perhaps you should consider returning it an purchasing a phone you are not "doomed to hate".

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Answer 13

mreg376

Level 1

20 points

May 1, 2016 9:44 AM in response to NeptuneKing

You must be new to Apple. :-) iOS, and Apple operating system software in general is not exactly an easily modifiable ecosystem. You'll probably have to wait until an Apple-approved App Store app shows up.

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Answer 14

NeptuneKing Author

Level 1

10 points

May 1, 2016 9:55 AM in response to KiltedTim

Hi KiltedTim,

I appreciate your honesty...you made me laugh 😁 I know what you mean, and in a way you're not wrong, but the thing is I bought this phone because it is the only one with an acceptable size (4") that does not run Android (I hate Android) or other pathetic OSs (don't need to name it, do I? 😉). That's why I migrated from BlackBerry (Curve 9380 touch, perfect size, 150$, did everything I needed out of the box and never let me down) to the new iPhone SE...knowing that I would encounter some issues but, in a way, I had (and have) no other choice. Take care 🙂

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Answer 15

mreg376

Level 1

20 points

May 1, 2016 10:29 AM in response to NeptuneKing

The good news is that people generally like, or even love their iPhones. If you're new to Apple, I would suggest giving it a go even with the non-landscaped home screen. Truly, I haven't really heard of the 4 inch models being complained about as being too big. You may just need to become accustomed to it.

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