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When the screen on an iPhone appears white and void of all applications and icons, the problem may be the white screen of death. Although the term can induce panic in the user, the issue may not be as severe as the verbiage leads the user to believe. There are a few actions the user can take to resolve his white screen situation.
Although an iPhone's screen can turn white for many reasons, the three most common causes of a white screen are failed software updates, jailbreaks and hardware. If an update to the operating system fails or a jailbreak does not work, the result can be a white screen. Additionally, the cable connector from the screen to the motherboard can break or become loose after the phone is dropped, causing a white screen to appear; a hardware failure can produce a similar result.
Usually, a double tap on the screen will not resolve a white screen problem. However, on rare occasions, the white screen is not a software or hardware failure. Instead, it can happen when the user has the screen's magnification zoomed in on a solid white object, causing the illusion of a white screen.
In order to resolve this issue, users should double tap the iPhone's screen, using three fingers pushed together. The triple-finger double tap will restore the screen back to its default view.
In many cases, all it takes for the user to fix his iPhone's white screen is to restart the phone. However, when a regular restart does not help, the user needs to try a hard reset, which is a more powerful restart.
With a hard reset, the user does not have to worry about touching or seeing the screen. This type of restart also clears more memory without wiping out the iPhone's data.
To try a hard reset, the user must simultaneously press and hold the power button and home button. If the user has an iPhone 7, he should hold the power button and volume decrease button at the same time. The user must continue to hold the two buttons until the phone's screen flashes. When he sees the Apple logo, the user can release the buttons and allow the iPhone to start.
There is an alternative button combination the user can try if the aforementioned hard reset instructions do not work. First, he needs to press and hold the power button, volume increase button and home button at the same time. The user must keep holding these three buttons until the screen goes dark. Then, the Apple logo should appear. Once the user sees the Apple logo, he should release all of the buttons and let the phone load.
Often, one of the three options listed above fixes an iPhone white screen; however, if none of the three troubleshooting methods work, the user can put the phone into Disk Firmware Update, or DFU, mode, allowing him to restore the phone from an iTunes backup. DFU mode lets the user circumvent the software problem that is causing the white screen, so he can reinstall the iPhone's operating system.
To put the phone in DFU mode, the user must start by connecting his iPhone to a computer. Then, he needs to press and hold the phone's sleep/wake button for about three seconds. After he presses and releases the sleep/wake button, he should press and hold the home button and power button for approximately 10 seconds; if the device is an iPhone 7, the user should press and hold the volume decrease button and power button for the same amount of time. Finally, the user must repeatedly press the home button for five seconds; an iPhone 7 user should use the volume decrease button instead.
Once the screen turns black, the phone is DFU mode. At this point, the user may restore his phone from an iTunes backup.
After trying every troubleshooting tip with no success, the user probably cannot fix the problem on his own. Therefore, it is time for him to make an appointment at an Apple Store.
Although the steps in this guide are geared toward the iPhone, the iPod touch is not immune from the white screen of death. Thankfully, the same troubleshooting ideas for the iPhone can be used for the iPod touch since both devices have identical operating systems and similar hardware components.
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