Today’s #iPhone7 troubleshooting article answers some power-related issues. Cases mentioned in this post have a fair chance of ending up with repair or replacement so we want to say this: software troubleshooting can only do so much. If your iPhone won’t turn on at all and you can’t revive it via DFU recovery, there’s probably nothing much that you can do. Unless you want to do a do-it-yourself (DIY) repair, which we don’t recommend, letting someone who does repair for a living is your next best bet.
Before we proceed let us remind you that you can contact us by using the link provided at the bottom of this page. When describing your issue, please be as detailed as possible so we can easily pinpoint a relevant solution. If you can, kindly include the exact error messages you are getting to give us an idea where to start. If you have already tried some troubleshooting steps before emailing us, make sure to mention them so we can skip them in our answers.
Problem 1: iPhone 7 won’t turn back on after leaving it unused for several days
Hi. I had powered off my iPhone 7 because I was going on holidays and wouldn’t be using the phone. However a week later, I tried turning the phone again and it isn’t turning on and ive tried everything including holding the volume down and power button simultaneously. I tried charging the phone for hours with different cables with no success. I think it must be that there is a battery issue inside the phone, because the phone heats up, so there’s nothing wrong with the charger. What would you advise I should, any information would be extremely appreciated. — Tom
Solution: Hi Tom. A Lithium-ion battery like the one in your iPhone 7 needs power in order to keep its own internal circuits alive. When your phone shows that it’s battery has reached 0% and turns off by itself, it doesn’t really mean that the battery has been fully depleted. The opposite is actually true and there’s just enough power in its cells to keep the circuits running until the next charging session. This tiny remaining charge in the cells won’t last forever though and if the battery remains not charged for a long time, the battery will eventually lose all power. When this happens, there’s no way you’ll be able to revive it. This is the main reason why you must ensure that the battery has more than 50% battery charge if you plan on keeping a device unused for a long time. We don’t know the specific circumstances of your case but if the phone is dead after leaving it charged for at least 30 minutes, it’s safe to assume you may have an on-going battery problem.
Since you’ve already tried other troubleshooting steps before contacting us, the only possible solution that we can suggest for you is to connect the phone to a computer. Hopefully, it’ll charge it that way and allow you to charge it normally afterwards.
If charging via a computer won’t work, we suggest that you contact Apple so they can repair your phone.
Problem 2: iPhone 7 overheats and won’t turn on
Hi! My mobile is really handled with care. i’ve own this last May 2017, it never get wet nor fall so hard. The problem is i update it to iOS 11.1.2 i think, then that’s the time my mobile was acting up. It gets hot so easily whenever it connected to wifi or 3G or LTE, and it get drains so fast. The battery life is way different than before. And then i update it to the last update the iOS 11.2.2 its starting cannot connect to any charger and even its own charger until it gets low battery and becomes dead. I try now to charge and turn it on, and i try also the force reboot but i really cannot revive it. It wont open up till now. — Lorraine
Solution: Hi Lorraine. Since your main concern right now is to power the phone back on, below are the troubleshooting steps that you must do.
Use a different set of charging cable and adapter
One of the questions you need to ask yourself in troubleshooting this issue is if your phone’s charging cable and adapter are working. It’s an important question that many users often ignore because they figure the lightning connector and adapter can’t get bad. Well, that’s definitely wrong. Your iPhone’s lightning cable and adapter can go bad. The easiest way to determine whether that’s the case or not is to use another known working cable and adapter. We’ll not specify how you’re going to do that exactly but you should do it if you’re serious in identifying the cause of the problem.
Try charging the phone for at least 30 minutes
Once you’ve determined that there’s no problem with the charging cable and adapter, the next step for your is to let the phone charge long enough before turning it back on. This will allow the battery to store enough power prior to booting up the system. Impatient users try to turn their phone back on right after connecting the phone to a charger. While that may work in most cases, it’s not ideal and may even have a negative result to the battery if done often. There’s a chance that there’s a battery problem causing the issue so you should allow it to charge properly first before turning on the phone.
Check the charging port
When it comes to checking your charging port, the most that you can do is to perform an ocular inspection. You’re not supposed to open the phone and run diagnostics on this part.
To allow you to notice any possible issue inside the charging port, we suggest that you use a magnifier or similar tool. If you notice any dirt, debris, lint, or bent pin/s inside, that may can be the reason why your phone heats up while charging, or fails to charge at all.
Try charging using a computer
Like what we recommend for Tom above, charging via a computer may help revive the phone. If that won’t work either, contact Samsung for additional support.
Problem 3: iPhone 7 won’t charge after getting wet by snow
Hello. Writing for a friend who has an iPhone 7. We were out snow blowing and shoveling. She accidentally got hit with snow from the snowblower and in her unzipped pocket was her phone. It was about 15min later when She took out her phone and noticed it was covered in snow and melted water. She cleaned it up as best as she could and after it dried it worked normally. Hours later, she went to charge it and no charge works on her phone. It’s as if the phone does not read when the charger goes in. All three chargers works on my iPhone 5 though. Any suggestions? She uses this phone for work answer does not have a landline phone. Needs it fixed asap. Thanks! — JJ
Solution: Hi JJ. Unless your friend’s iPhone has been opened before or or has been physically damaged that compromised its dust- and water-resistance protection, leaving it in a wet pocket should be okay. Your iPhone 7 is IP67 certified, which means that you can submerge it in up to 1 meter for 30 minutes without causing damage. Apple does not recommend that you intentionally expose your iPhone 7 to elements though. As much as possible, treat your iPhone 7 just like any delicate electronics you have because it is.
The most likely reason why it’s not charging at this time is a wet charging port. Make sure that you dry the phone properly before plugging the charging cable in. To do that, follow these steps:
- Unplug all cables connected to your iPhone 7.
- Using a clean, soft cloth, wipe the phone dry thoroughly.
- Shake away as much water as possible from the lightning connector port by gently tapping the phone against your hand with the port facing down.
- Allow the phone to air dry. Put in a well aerated place or in front of a fan. Since we’re trying to dry the lightning port here, make sure to allow air to hit it to hasten the process. Leave the phone in this position overnight.
- If the port is still wet after leaving the phone air dry overnight, try to use a hair dryer to blow water moisture inside the port. Make sure not to apply too much heat inside the charging port when doing this to avoid damaging other components.
- Wait for another five hours before plugging in the charging cable.
Contact Apple
If the above steps won’t fix the issue at all, call Apple so you can schedule repair or replacement appointment.
Problem 4: iPhone 7 won’t update via DFU, stuck in Apple logo screen
My iPhone 7 started losing signal for hours at a time. I went to Verizon (my service provider) and explained the issue to them and was told it is a software problem. I then spent over an hour on the phone with their support trying to fix the problem. I tried to update the iOS, but was given error that the update could not be verified. I tried to reset network settings, turn on and off airplane mode, and finally erased the phone. Turned the phone back on and began setup/activation and the phone would not activate, put SIM card in my daughter’s iphone got it activated and put it back into my phone. Once back in my phone we we turned the phone on but it is stuck in DFU mode. I have reconnected to computer and tried both to restore and update iphone but it wont do either. It now turns on to the apple logo screen for a couple of seconds then shuts off. — Kim Carr
Solution: Hi Kim. We don’t have enough history of your phone to effectively tell you what may be wrong with it but if a DFU recovery does not work as well, there must be something seriously wrong with your iPhone. All software troubleshooting can’t help you at this point so the best option that you can do right now is to let Apple take a look. If your iPhone can be replaced by Verizon, try asking for that first. If Verizon says that your phone does not qualify for a replacement for whatever reason, contact Apple.
Engage with us
If you happen to have a problem with your own iPhone, let us know about it and we will do our best to post them and their solutions in our upcoming articles. You can use this link to contact us for assistance. We can’t guarantee an answer to every question but rest assured that we will exhaust everything on our end to help you.
Be as detailed as possible when describing your problem to help us diagnose your issue easily. If you can include error messages, popups, attempted troubleshooting steps, and circumstances leading to the problem, that would be very helpful.