[ypmaiya]

The iPhone has only 5 physical keys and the most used among them are the Power Button and the Home Button and it is very common to wear them off over time and to get them fixed by Apple. Why doesn't Apple give us features that will reduce the usage of these two keys?
Apple could have a new feature for the iPhones like double tap home button to light up the screen or triple tap the display to show the lock screen. That would reduce the usage of Power Button drastically.
As far as Home Buttons are concerned, Apple could give us the gesture controls, like in iPad, to iPhones, especially the iPhone 6 Plus and help us preserve our Home Button. Gestures like 5 fingers pinch to return to the home screen, 4 fingers sideways swipe to switch between open apps, 4 fingers upward swipe to bring the multitasking screen etc. would really help in reducing the Home Button usage.
I had issues with the Power Button and Home Button in my previous iPhones and had to get them replaced. So wondering, some new features would really help in reducing the wear and tear of the most used physical buttons of our phones.
Your comments are appreciated on my opinion.

[HankAZ]

What utter bull hockey. I've been using iPhone since about 2009 and iPods for years prior to that. I have never worn out any home or power buttons on any iPod, iPhone or iPad. I'm not saying that your proposition has no merit, but the entire premise is BS.


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[NexusGirlX]

I've had every iPhone since the original and I've never wore out any buttons. Use your phone and don't worry about wearing the buttons out.

[warcraftWidow]

Never worn out any buttons either.

[Just_Me_D]

What utter bull hockey. I've been using iPhone since about 2009 and iPods for years prior to that. I have never worn out any home or power buttons on any iPod, iPhone or iPad. I'm not saying that your proposition has no merit, but the entire premise is BS.


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Thank you, and 'nuf said........I use my iPhone extensively and my home and power buttons are as sturdy as they've been since day 1. Furthermore, with the exception of my iPhone 6 Plus, I've kept my devices naked, so to speak.

[ypmaiya]

What utter bull hockey. I've been using iPhone since about 2009 and iPods for years prior to that. I have never worn out any home or power buttons on any iPod, iPhone or iPad. I'm not saying that your proposition has no merit, but the entire premise is BS.

Sent from my mobile device via Tapatalk 3.2.1.

I placed my opinion only because I had issues with both the home button and power key. If you didn't face the issue till now, since 2009, good for you.

[ypmaiya]

I've had every iPhone since the original and I've never wore out any buttons. Use your phone and don't worry about wearing the buttons out.

Thanks. Even i have owned iPhones from the first generation. But had home button replaced for the iPhone 4 and then power button replaced for iPhone 5. So pointed out.

[NexusGirlX]

Thanks. Even i have owned iPhones from the first generation. But had home button replaced for the iPhone 4 and then power button replaced for iPhone 5. So pointed out.

There will be bad parts here and there. I once had a brand new car that needed a fuel pump replaced a month after purchase.

[Wyatt]

It is common knowledge and has been widely discussed that the home and power buttons tend to fail. I owned every iPhone with the exception of the 3G, 5 and 6. Currently I still have the original iPhone, a 4, 4S, 5S and an iPad 3 and every one of them except the 5S has had the home button wear out. Apple has constantly changed the mechanisms in them especially the home button due to that very reason. The iPhone 5 and up have the most improved home buttons of all of them which has greatly reduced the wear and tear issue. At some point Apple will do away with the home button entirely removing another point of failure.

[Just_Me_D]

It is common knowledge and has been widely discussed that the home and power buttons tend to fail. I owned every iPhone with the exception of the 3G, 5 and 6. Currently I still have the original iPhone, a 4, 4S, 5S and an iPad 3 and every one of them except the 5S has had the home button wear out. Apple has constantly changed the mechanisms in them especially the home button due to that very reason. The iPhone 5 and up have the most improved home buttons of all of them which has greatly reduced the wear and tear issue. At some point Apple will do away with the home button entirely removing another point of failure.

It is NOT "common" knowledge, at least outside of tech blogs and forums, and being discussed in those blogs and forums do not equate to being "widely discussed" in my opinion. As stated, some people have issues with the home and power buttons, with an emphasis on "some". Also as already been stated, with millions of devices being produced, there are bound to be "some" with defects. Still, the percentage of those with faulty home and/or power buttons is minuscule in comparison to the whole. I agree that at some point, a physical power and/or home button will not be a part of the iPhone, but heck, I don't have a problem with either and I don't mind having either. I only press then when I need to.

[HankAZ]

It is common knowledge and has been widely discussed that the home and power buttons tend to fail. I owned every iPhone with the exception of the 3G, 5 and 6. Currently I still have the original iPhone, a 4, 4S, 5S and an iPad 3 and every one of them except the 5S has had the home button wear out. Apple has constantly changed the mechanisms in them especially the home button due to that very reason. The iPhone 5 and up have the most improved home buttons of all of them which has greatly reduced the wear and tear issue. At some point Apple will do away with the home button entirely removing another point of failure.

Not sure what you do to/with your devices. As I stated above, I've used every iPhone model, and have been using iPhone as my daily driver since 2009. Prior to that, I had iPods, and have owned every model of iPad except iPad 4 and Mini 3. I have not had that first issue with either the home or power button. Likewise, my wife, kids and grandkids uses these devices every day, and I am not aware of any problems within our family circle. Obviously, YMMV, but in my experience the issue is neither "common knowledge" nor widespread.

[anon(4698833)]

Why doesn't Apple give us features that will reduce the usage of these two keys?

Because for 99.9999999999999% of the consumer base, the buttons work just fine even years and years after the device was produced. Personally, I've only ever had an issue with one device I owned, and that was the iPhone 5 (where the power button stopped working properly after about 6 months)...and as far as I know, that is the only widely reported iPhone with that sort of issue, and even then, it only affected a small number of people in comparison to the amount of total iPhones sold.

In other words...the buttons work just fine. Unfortunately you've apparently been one of the most unlucky consumers on the planet and you've run into this issue multiple times. That or maybe you should consider that maybe you're unusually hard on your iPhones, and maybe that is why the buttons have had so many issues for you. Logic would tell me the latter is probably more accurate.

[Wyatt]

...And this is what's wrong with with people who live in a bubble. Just because you and your friends never had an issue doesn't mean no oneness has. What I do with my devices is simple. I use them. Good to know you have had every device like many of us have and like any situation everyone is not always going to have the same experience. Your statement reeks of ignorance to someone's plight. Since you don't have a solution I restate the facts again Apple has changed the mechanism for the home button with every iPhone due to it failing at some point. So if facts aren't enough for you then that's just sad.

[HankAZ]

...And this is what's wrong with with people who live in a bubble. Just because you and your friends never had an issue doesn't mean no oneness has. What I do with my devices is simple. I use them. Good to know you have had every device like many of us have and like any situation everyone is not always going to have the same experience. Your statement reeks of ignorance to someone's plight. Since you don't have a solution I restate the facts again Apple has changed the mechanism for the home button with every iPhone due to it failing at some point. So if facts aren't enough for you then that's just sad.

Nobody said "I don't have the problem, so no one does". I said that in my experience it's a non-issue. But just because YOU have the issue doesn't make it "widely discussed" or a widespread issue. I would submit that my sample of devices (all iPhone models, many iPod models and most iPad models across over 30 users over more than 6 years) would be a more statistically accurate sampling than a user or two with several models usage over a few years. I am not (and did not) state that it was not a problem (for you or others), but rather stated that in my experience involving a relative large number of devices across the product lines and over an extended period of time that I had not ever seen the issue.

Maybe we're just very, very lucky. Or, maybe the problem is not a widespread as some would have us believe. I get it that faulty devices to get produced and sold, and I feel bad for those who inadvertently get those devices when purchasing new, but again, that doesn't mean that all of them are bad.

[Just_Me_D]

...And this is what's wrong with with people who live in a bubble. Just because you and your friends never had an issue doesn't mean no oneness has.

No one said that no one else has had that problem. Some of us have stated that "some" people have had the problem and that the issue is NOT widespread. Those are facts!

What I do with my devices is simple. I use them.

Me, too.

Good to know you have had every device like many of us have and like any situation everyone is not always going to have the same experience.

That goes hand in hand with what some of us have been saying in this thread.

Your statement reeks of ignorance to someone's plight. Since you don't have a solution I restate the facts again Apple has changed the mechanism for the home button with every iPhone due to it failing at some point. So if facts aren't enough for you then that's just sad.

I have no idea to whom this statement is aimed, but I'll comment anyway. The home button, since the iPhone 5S, has been given a dual role -- to continue being the home button with typical use and to act a security agent (TouchID). I doubt it had anything to do it "failing". Maybe it's just me, but having had nothing but positive experiences with Apple, I'd simply take my device to the nearest Apple Store and have them fix it or possibly exchange it for another one. That's not me living in a bubble. That's just Me being real.

[Wyatt]

Then, maybe you shouldn't state you have no problem the way you did as it comes of just like I wrote. And as I said Apple's changes trumps your small experience. And don't assume your experience is any greater than mine since you don't know me. I only talk about devices I own not friends or family.

[Just_Me_D]

It wasn't aimed at you. No worries.

Wyatt, thanks for your replies.......Having said that, please use the "quote" option so that readers can know which post you are replying to. Thanks.

[HankAZ]

Then, maybe you shouldn't state you have no problem the way you did as it comes of just like I wrote. And as I said Apple's changes trumps your small experience. And don't assume your experience is any greater than mine since you don't know me. I only talk about devices I own not friends or family.

Was this directed at me in response to my post? (Hard to tell without a quoted reference.)

The 30 people that I referenced are my close family - wife, son, daughters, their spouses and my grandkids. I see all of these people multiple times each week, and I am their de facto "tech support". I know what I am talking about, and my statements above are true and accurate accounts of our experiences. As I (and others) have said multiple times, just because we've not see the issue doesn't mean that it doesn't exist. Neither does it mean that because you have seen it that it's a widespread issue.

As D has stated, the home button has taken on more functionality over the evolution of the devices, and I, too, would attribute that enhanced functionality as the reason for the redesign - not because of problems or failure of design.

It would appear that what we have here is a failure to communicate. For that reason, I am done here. Good luck.

[iEd]

The iPhone has only 5 physical keys and the most used among them are the Power Button and the Home Button and it is very common to wear them off over time and to get them fixed by Apple. Why doesn't Apple give us features that will reduce the usage of these two keys?
Apple could have a new feature for the iPhones like double tap home button to light up the screen or triple tap the display to show the lock screen. That would reduce the usage of Power Button drastically.
As far as Home Buttons are concerned, Apple could give us the gesture controls, like in iPad, to iPhones, especially the iPhone 6 Plus and help us preserve our Home Button. Gestures like 5 fingers pinch to return to the home screen, 4 fingers sideways swipe to switch between open apps, 4 fingers upward swipe to bring the multitasking screen etc. would really help in reducing the Home Button usage.
I had issues with the Power Button and Home Button in my previous iPhones and had to get them replaced. So wondering, some new features would really help in reducing the wear and tear of the most used physical buttons of our phones.
Your comments are appreciated on my opinion.

Putting multitasking gestures on the iPhone puts the user into more of two handed use and pinching and swiping with 5 fingers on a iPhone could become more of a exact task than a convenience like it is on iPad.
The home button like any mechanism can fail for whatever reason.
In my experience I've never had a home button fail in the 5 iPhones I have owned. Same for the other buttons. So in my experience I've had consistently good iPhones. I just don't see how anyone can get consistently bad iPhones through a series of models. I'm still waiting to get my first lemon iPhone. 8 years still hasn't happened. My first and only HTC phone was a lemon.


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[21stNow]

I thought that the OP's suggestions were reasonable and just that: suggestions. I used my iPhone 4 solidly for almost two years and off and on after that. I never had a problem with my home and power buttons. However, I know that I'm a light user. I also try to wake up the phone with the power button and reserve the home button for actually getting back to the home screen after using an app. I don't expect to have a problem with either button on my 6 Plus.

I have a co-worker that also had an iPhone 4 and checked his phone quite often (sometimes more than once a minute) by using the home button to wake up the phone. He wore out his home button before the end of his two-year contract.

Usage patterns vary greatly from person-to-person. It is very believable that frequent phone-checkers will wear out their buttons faster than more moderate users. Any machine will fail after a certain number of uses. Anything that allows the user to access the functions of the phone in multiple ways can help reduce the wear and tear and prolong the ultimate failure of the buttons. The OP didn't ask for the buttons to go away, just for more options. I don't see a problem with this.

[Just_Me_D]

I thought that the OP's suggestions were reasonable and just that: suggestions. I used my iPhone 4 solidly for almost two years and off and on after that. I never had a problem with my home and power buttons. However, I know that I'm a light user. I also try to wake up the phone with the power button and reserve the home button for actually getting back to the home screen after using an app. I don't expect to have a problem with either button on my 6 Plus.

I have a co-worker that also had an iPhone 4 and checked his phone quite often (sometimes more than once a minute) by using the home button to wake up the phone. He wore out his home button before the end of his two-year contract.

Usage patterns vary greatly from person-to-person. It is very believable that frequent phone-checkers will wear out their buttons faster than more moderate users. Any machine will fail after a certain number of uses. Anything that allows the user to access the functions of the phone in multiple ways can help reduce the wear and tear and prolong the ultimate failure of the buttons. The OP didn't ask for the buttons to go away, just for more options. I don't see a problem with this.

Like your friend, I use my home button far more times than I use the power button. I hardly ever wake my phone with the power button, and it has been the same with all of my previous iPhones. Not once have I had any issues with it, thankfully. Anyway, with the exception of being defective (or a lemon), I wonder if much of the problem stems from the manner in which the button is pressed. I mean, do some people use the fingertip or finger nail to depress the button? Do they merely press a portion of the button instead of placing their finger over the entire button's surface? Were the device's dropped and landed at an angle to cause the home buttons to be loosened or damaged somehow? Many variables exist, in my opinion.

[BreakingKayfabe]

Man, this place is really starting grow in the complaint department when it comes to Apple hardware.

"Create gestures to not wear out the most used buttons." You're worried about wearing out a button????

[Dr Noon]

Hey man. Are you kiddin? You own your device or your device own you? Come on man. Use your device and dont think about these things..

[iEd]

Somewhere along iOS 7 my iPad 2 64gig. My home button started acting funny. It seemed that it was taking more pressure for it to work. Recently even after a restart you almost had to stomp on it to wake it up.

I just figured hey it's old and it's time is coming.
So last week I restored as new and reinstalled just 5 apps that I need nothing else and miraculously the home button is behaving like its new. Just a light press will wake it up and a light double click puts it in multitasking.

So I figure that the home button manipulates software if the software is corrupt or if the device is older running a new iOS with a boat load of apps which is what I had on mine. The home button could act funny. I'm not saying a home can't fail but based on my experience software issues can impact it functioning smoothly, possibly even on a newer device.


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[boovish]

To fix an unresponsive Home Button, just recalibrate by holding down the power button till the slide to power down, and then, letting go of the power button, hold down the home button until it goes away. Et La La, it's fixed! (And yes I put La La there on purpose)