A working iPhone X display.
Sarah Tew/CNET
When the iPhone X was released last year, it ushered in a new look and feel for Apple's handsets. The company got rid of the home button, offered a new Face ID unlock feature in return, and used a bigger and richer new type of screen called OLED for the display. It turns out some of the new displays Apple offered in the iPhone X had a faulty part that, when it failed, caused the screen to become intermittently or wholly unresponsive to touch. In a notice about the faulty part, posted to the company's website Friday, Apple also said the screen may even respond when you're not touching it too.
If you've experienced any of this, Apple encourages you to find an authorized service provider, set up an appointment at an Apple Store or contact the company's technical support teams, who will assess the phone. Apple says if an iPhone X meets requirements under the repair program, it'll replace the display free of charge.
Apple typically offers an easy way to identify whether you may have the faulty part, such as with a range of serial numbers, though it didn't this time. The company also didn't offer more detail about how many iPhones it believes may've been affected, though it did say no other iPhone models are part of the announced repair program. The company didn't respond to a request for comment Friday evening.
This isn't the first time Apple has offered a repair program for its iPhones. In September, the company said a "very small percentage" of iPhone 8 devices had faulty logic boards that led them to unexpectedly restart, freeze the screen or not turn on at all. And in February, the company said a small percentage of iPhone 7 devices contained a faulty part that would lead the phone to tell people there was no cell service when in fact there was.
Separately, Apple said Friday that it will also offer repairs for a limited number of its entry-level 13-inch MacBook Pro models sold between June 2017 and June 2018, which the company said may have faulty storage chips, known as SSDs.
In that case, Apple said people can type their computer's serial number into a form on its website to see if they might be eligible. If so, the company urges users to have their computers serviced, as the bad part could fail, causing data loss.
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Apple iPhone XS
