Swipe not working unless phone is held OR in contact with metal!

MotoRos

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I have a most peculiar problem and have not been able to get an answer after speaking with Verizon, Motorola, and in several other forums. Nobody seems to have heard of this problem but I have had it on at least two Moto Z phones - maybe three!

This is what's happening. It does not accept swipe input unless I am holding it in my hand or lap or it's lying on or against a metal object or plugged in. I am unable to swipe left/right or up/down to change screens, pull down the menu, or enter text or security pattern. Every time I try to swipe, the item where my finger lands just opens.

At first, I thought the problem occurred just when it's lying down, such a on a table or bed, because it seemed to work every time I picked up.Then I realized it happens even if it is propped upright, but I'm not holding it. After asking around in other forums and trying various things such as I uninstalling apps and disabling the Nova launcher, I took it to Verizon who replaced my phone when they couldn't figure out the problem. When I first received the new (refurbished) phone, I thought it was working, but after I finished installing everything and setting it up, found I have the exact same problem!

I called Motorola who told me to reboot it in safe mode and try again, which I did to no avail. They had never heard of this problem either and said I could send it in for another replacement. But it would cost me $150 and I'd have to send it in first and wait to get the replacement. No thanks.

Then by chance I had laid it down on my laptop and found that it worked fine! After putting it on or against all sorts of surfaces, realized it need to be on a conductive material to work. I then plugged it in and it also worked. But as soon as it's unplugged and on something non-conductive, like wood or fabric, it stops working.

Has anybody else ever come across this phenomenon? And the fact that it has happened on two phones (maybe 3 because the last one was also a replacement) but nobody else must mean it has something to do with me. Running it in safe mode makes no difference and I can't imagine what app would cause it and since it depends on being in contact with a conductive material, it would seem to be a hardware, not a software issue. The only hardware unique to me are the Zagg screen protector, the SIM card and the SD card. I removed the screen protector and the SD card - no difference.

I'm not sure why I thought it was working before I set it up but it could be because it was plugged in when I first tried it, or in contact with metal. I had reloaded all my apps directly from the old phone using NFC.

Do you think it's worth trying a factory data reset, seeing whether it works in its "virgin" state, and reloading everything back from scratch.?

Any ideas?
 

ratsttam

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I've had a similar issue in the dead of winter. The humidity in my house had become really low, as well as my hands being dried out from it. I didn't think much of it, since I just filled up my humidifier and it started working later that evening. For the fun of it, dampen your fingers and try to swipe on a surface that normally wouldn't. Oddly enough, I think the problem might be your hands, and not the phone. As far as it working when in contact with metal, is that there is then a seperate ground, making up for the lack of capacitance between the screen and your fingers.
 

Mooncatt

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I've had a similar issue in the dead of winter. The humidity in my house had become really low, as well as my hands being dried out from it. I didn't think much of it, since I just filled up my humidifier and it started working later that evening. For the fun of it, dampen your fingers and try to swipe on a surface that normally wouldn't. Oddly enough, I think the problem might be your hands, and not the phone. As far as it working when in contact with metal, is that there is then a seperate ground, making up for the lack of capacitance between the screen and your fingers.

I think you're on the right track. Modern phone screens detect touch based on the electrical pulses in your skin (in a manner of speaking). Touch response problems can be hard to pinpoint because anything that interferes with it electrically is suspect. Humidity can be a factor, as well as bad USB cables, or loose connections inside the phone itself.

On a related note, I drive for a living in Wisconsin, so there's no avoiding dry winter air for me. I do notice my touch responses do go wonky more often in those conditions than in warm humid locations.
 

MotoRos

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Thank you, ratsttam. You are the first person I've come across that seems to have encountered a similar problem. I tried the wet finger test - it seems to work a bit but I'm not sure. Will try again.
 

Mooncatt

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Thank you, ratsttam. You are the first person I've come across that seems to have encountered a similar problem. I tried the wet finger test - it seems to work a bit but I'm not sure. Will try again.
Glad you got some improvement, but that can go too far the other way. Water damage concerns aside, water drops can also cause ghost touches.
 

MotoRos

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Update: Verizon has kindly replaced my phone again (the third replacement). This one works (at least so far)! I can swipe left, right, up, down and enter my security pattern while the phone is lying on a any surface.

The one thing I didn't do that I had done with the two previous phones was to transfer the Zagg glass screen protector to the new phone. I am still using the temporary protective film. I had installed the screen protector on the previous phones pretty much immediately. When I discovered I had problems, I did remove the glass temporarily but it didn't make any difference.

So, I'm wondering if just applying the screen protector could be affecting the screen. Is that possible?
 

ratsttam

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The one thing I didn't do that I had done with the two previous phones was to transfer the Zagg glass screen protector to the new phone. I am still using the temporary protective film. I had installed the screen protector on the previous phones pretty much immediately. When I discovered I had problems, I did remove the glass temporarily but it didn't make any difference.

So, I'm wondering if just applying the screen protector could be affecting the screen. Is that possible?

The screen protector could most definately affect how the screen responds. It's very rare though. and when it does, removing the screen protector removes the interference, but you mentioned that it didn't work after removing the protector so I'm going to say that's not the issue here.
 

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