Do magnets on cases forSamsung Galaxy Tab S3 cause s-pen dead spots?

[Android Central Question]

I recently bought a Galaxy Tab S3, great tablet, and have started looking round for a decent protective case. However, I've been put off because I've come across a few mentions on the web of the magnets causing the screen to develop "dead spots" where the s-pen no longer functions.
Does anybody have any experience of this problem, or know anything about it?
Thanks for any response.

 

[SpookDroid]

Yup, but it depends on the case design. I have a poetic slim case and when the flap is closed the pen gets thin and curves around the magnets. If the case was properly done (right spot, right power), however, the magnets wouldn't be an issue (like the Samsung official case, which has the magnet to turn the screen on/off, yet doesn't drive your S-Pen nuts). It's not permanent unless the magnets are REALLY strong, and it hasn't been 'dead spots' for me more than spots where the accuracy and pressure sensitivity are thrown off. What I do on mine is just keep the flap with the magnets away from the back when taking notes (otherwise they don't interfere).

 

[anon(10181084)]

I have the tucano case since last August and no issues other than a pretty much unnoticeable extremely small decrease in sensitivity if the flap is close to the back of the tab. In normal use you don't notice it at all. I recommend the Tucano case. No damage whatsoever.

 

[Sangronian]

Hi, thanks for the advice, which I will be following up. Apologies for my late response, but I couldn't sign in to my account till this morning.

 

[christianttt]

I have the tucano case since last August and no issues other than a pretty much unnoticeable extremely small decrease in sensitivity if the flap is close to the back of the tab. In normal use you don't notice it at all. I recommend the Tucano case. No damage whatsoever.

Is your screen ok after a year? I bought a case with the magnet issue...

 

[anon(10181084)]

My screen seemed fine when I was using the Tab earlier today. Will do a detailed check later and will report in. My case has such weak magnets that you sometimes have to put a small object on top told get the magnets close enough to the auto-sleep sensors.

 

[christianttt]

My screen seemed fine when I was using the Tab earlier today. Will do a detailed check later and will report in. My case has such weak magnets that you sometimes have to put a small object on top told get the magnets close enough to the auto-sleep sensors.

This is exactly where the magnet is. I do like the case but if there is a risk of damaging my screen I guess I'll keep using the Samsung one.

 

[anon(10181084)]

This is exactly where the magnet is. I do like the case but if there is a risk of damaging my screen I guess I'll keep using the Samsung one.//uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180818/e68d6ed5ef99c1d0daffa12addcdbe79.jpg

Holy cow! Is that area dead no matter what pressure you apply to the S-Pen?! Just did a quick test and my screen works great, no dead spots. O have a Tucano case that I bought at Fry's Electronics when I visited Silicon Valley last year. The magnet is somewhere on the flip cover or on the joint, and it is VERY weak but good enough for auto-sleeping the tablet when needed. What case do you have? The magnet in your case may have, during the repetitive open/close motion, induce current into one of the induction coils and eventually fried whatever circuitry that is powering it. When I picked my case, in the store it didn't even register on my phone's magnetometer. Only when I put it on the Tab did I notice it had an auto-sleeping magnet.

 

[christianttt]

When I remove the case the screen and the S Pen works normaly.
Maybe your Tucano case has the magnet in the right place and the right power.

Holy cow! Is that area dead no matter what pressure you apply to the S-Pen?! Just did a quick test and my screen works great, no dead spots. O have a Tucano case that I bought at Fry's Electronics when I visited Silicon Valley last year. The magnet is somewhere on the flip cover or on the joint, and it is VERY weak but good enough for auto-sleeping the tablet when needed. What case do you have? The magnet in your case may have, during the repetitive open/close motion, induce current into one of the induction coils and eventually fried whatever circuitry that is powering it. When I picked my case, in the store it didn't even register on my phone's magnetometer. Only when I put it on the Tab did I notice it had an auto-sleeping magnet.

 

[anon(10181084)]

Ok, I though u had permanent damage like guys on XDA were crying about a year ago. It is probably the magnet pulling away the electromagnetic field that powers the S-Pen. I remember back when I was 8 years old, I took immense pleasure in using a magnetic security wand to mess up a Skype call from 1-2 yards away when my father was Skyping my grandparents on crappy WayPort WiFi. The result was lower quality video/audio. Same exact situation happening to you and your S-Pen, since the S-Pen is getting zero power in the affected area. The reason why you don't need to charge (major fail for Apple's rechargeable Apple Pencil) or put batteries (HTC Flyer pen took a AAA battery) in your S-Pen is because those coils behind the screen wirelessly send juice to your pen via an alternating magnetic field (kind like the signal that powers RFID tags in passports, but on steroids). Think of it as an air-core transformer. The primary (input) is the coil(s) behind the screen, and the secondary (output) is the reception coil in the actual pen. Put a strong enough magnet behind the primary and that electromagnetic will NOT reach the secondary.

 

[christianttt]

Ok, I though u had permanent damage like guys on XDA were crying about a year ago. It is probably the magnet pulling away the electromagnetic field that powers the S-Pen. I remember back when I was 8 years old, I took immense pleasure in using a magnetic security wand to mess up a Skype call from 1-2 yards away when my father was Skyping my grandparents on crappy WayPort WiFi. The result was lower quality video/audio. Same exact situation happening to you and your S-Pen, since the S-Pen is getting zero power in the affected area. The reason why you don't need to charge (major fail for Apple's rechargeable Apple Pencil) or put batteries (HTC Flyer pen took a AAA battery) in your S-Pen is because those coils behind the screen wirelessly send juice to your pen via an alternating magnetic field (kind like the signal that powers RFID tags in passports, but on steroids). Think of it as an air-core transformer. The primary (input) is the coil(s) behind the screen, and the secondary (output) is the reception coil in the actual pen. Put a strong enough magnet behind the primary and that electromagnetic will NOT reach the secondary.

Thanks for the explanation, it's clear now. Do you think it can actually damage the screen?

 

[chanchan05]

Thanks for the explanation, it's clear now. Do you think it can actually damage the screen?

Technically, no. Will the screen be still able to display stuff properly and accept your finger touches? Yes. Will the S Pen work? No, because as explained previously, the electromagnetic field is misaligned.