5G Apple iPhone 12 mini has a small screen with a big problem

Just a few days ago we told you that Apple iPhone 12 series users were having an issue that prevented them from reading all of the messages being sent to a group chat in the Messages app. Now, a more serious problem has surfaced with the iPhone 12 mini. Users on Apple’s support forum have been complaining about an unresponsive touch screen preventing them from unlocking their device properly. Those affected by the problem call it intermittent.

Apple iPhone 12 mini may have a small screen, but it has a large problem

For example, check out the condensed version of a post written by an iPhone 12 mini owner with the user name of Rastajafarian: “my phone screen stops registering touch input randomly only when inside of a case and also with a screen protector on. With just the case on, the screen is fine, and with just the screen protector on the screen works fine. It’s only when they’re combined that my screen goes all janky.” Even exchanging the screen protector for one made by another manufacturer doesn’t help.

Reddit users also had the same complaints indicating that the issue is more widespread than thought. One workaround posted by a Reddit subscriber suggested going into Accessibility and enabling Backtap. This is the feature that allows iOS users to navigate their iPhone by tapping on the back cover of the device. You can arrange to open one feature with a double tap and another with a triple tap. If you set up Backtap to launch “Home,” you can bypass the lockscreen. There are approximately 300 comments about the problem on the Reddit site including one from an iPhone 12 mini owner who visited an Apple Genius Bar inside an Apple Store. Different cases were tested, diagnostics were examined, and it was determined that the problem is software related. On the phone, an Apple support employee said the same thing, putting the blame on software. The good news is that Apple is aware of the issue and if this is all just a matter of a glitch with the system that determines whether a touch on the screen is intentional or an accident, a software update can resolve the problem. But if it has to do with whether the iPhone 12 mini is properly grounded with a case on, that might be another matter altogether.”

Some had an interesting point. Apple this year introduced the Ceramic Shield alongside Corning. The Ceramic Shield, says Apple, makes the screen four times harder to crack and scratch. Apple calls it “”a sleek new flat-edge design with an aerospace-grade aluminum enclosure and combined with the Ceramic Shield front cover, which goes beyond glass by adding a new high temperature crystallization step that grows nano-ceramic crystals within the glass matrix, increases drop performance by 4x.” With the added protection provided by the Ceramic Shield, some are questioning whether there is a need to add a screen protector to the iPhone 12 mini after all. And as we’ve been saying, without the screen protector the bug seems to go away even if a case is used. So it will be up to you to decide, while we await Apple’s own diagnosis, whether you feel comfortable enough with the Ceramic Shield to go without a screen protector on your iPhone 12 mini; otherwise you might end up putting a case and a screen protector on the display and find the phone unresponsive as far as your touch inputs are concerned.

The iPhone 12 mini was just released this past Friday alongside the iPhone 12 Pro Max. The former sports a 5.4-inch AMOLED display with a resolution of 1080 x 2340 and features 4GB of memory. A 2227mAh battery keeps the lights on and there is a dual camera setup on the back. Both weigh in at 12MP with a main camera and an Ultra-wide camera. There is also a 12MP FaceTime front-facing snapper.