Weird Screen Problem - Hardware or Software?

[nisxan]

I haven't found anything to see if this is a known issue or not:

Every once in a while ? and it's actually getting to be more frequent ? the bottom left corner of my screen (directly above the Menu button) becomes "stuck" and starts pressing whatever button happens to be on-screen at the time.

Is this a software glitch somewhere, or is it hardware. The tech at the Verizon store told me it was because I needed a battery pull, but that sounds like bs to me...the problem gets better if I take the Otterbox case off and rub the affected portion of the screen. This would lead me to believe that there is a loose connection behind the screen or something similar.

Any help/advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[xliderider]

Sounds like it's hardware based on your description.

 

[lsmunoz]

If you have to remove the otterbox to fix it, what happens if you leave the otterbox off? Perhaps there is some excess flashing on the case that is rubbing your phone wrong and causing the glitch.

 

[nisxan]

I'm sorry I didn't state this earlier...the problem started before I had the Otterbox case, and removing the case does not affect the problem.

I was reasonably sure that this was a hardware malfunction, but I didn't trust myself to make that assumption without checking with you guys first.

How do I convince the tech at Verizon that this is, in fact, a hardware issue and they need to swap out my handset?

 

[xliderider]

Easy, their troubleshooting skills ends at doing a Factory Data Reset on your device. So if you can demonstrate the problem after the FDR, then they will replace your device with no problem.

 

[nisxan]

Hahahaha....I almost had Red Bull shoot out of my nose!

 

[Arelunde]

You should try a battery pull before you do anything further or drastic. Just take the battery out, leave it out for at least one full minute, re-install and then turn your X back on. Often weirdness is solved with this. It's called a "hard reset" as compared to a "soft reset" of just turning the X off/on.

If this doesn't do it, you need to return the X. If you are within the original 30 days, you shouldn't have any trouble ... but I may be optimistic.

 

[nisxan]

Actually, most times the battery pull has not effect whatsoever. The only thing that really seems to work is to rub the area of the screen a few times. I've had mine since shortly after launch, but they do have a 1-year warranty and I did get the insurance (for a case such as this).

 

[greydarrah]

You don't need insurance for this...it's a warranty issue. Verizon will replace it no charge. If you have a store nearby, just take it in, otherwise call cs. You might want to go ahead and try a factory reset. That's what they'll do before giving you another device anyway.

 

[nisxan]

I will. How much will I lose on my phone? Will the backup take care of all my contacts, apps and whatnot?

 

[greydarrah]

As long as your contacts are in gmail, then when you sign in on a different phone, all your emails, contacts, calendar and paid apps will automatically be downloaded to the new device. I have found that most, if not all of my free apps also get auto downloaded. You might want to get the AppBrain app. It syncs all your apps (free apps as well).

 

[nisxan]

Will do! Thanks for the help! I will keep you posted on what I find out.

 

[xliderider]

Astro File Manager does a pretty good job of backing up your app's apk files to your sd card (some apps show up as Private, and don't work), but restoring your apps with Astro is faster than redownloading them off 3G and WiFi. Especially if you have a lot of them.

 

[nisxan]

Ok, so VZW has finally decided that I need a replacement X (which they overnighted to me and will be here today). They did do a factory reset at the corporate store, and that didn't fix anything, as I knew it wouldn't. The tech did install a "task manager", even though I didn't want or need it.

To their credit, VZW has been very helpful with this problem and I hope it's getting close to being resolved.

After I get the new phone and re-install everything - thank you so much for all of the tips - I will report back with the results.

 

[mhans311]

Uninstall that task manager right now. It causes nothing but problems. The X does not need it at all.

 

[wildman]

Are you using the extended battery with the stock cover instead of the one that came with battery? This can cause things like this because of the pressure against the back of the screen..