Nobody wants to have a frozen device or incur a touchscreen that keeps freezing problem after updating but it happens and apparently emerges among the post-update problems from the recently rolled out iOS 12 platform. Such symptoms are usually attributed to a shrinking internal memory like when your device is already full of stuff. And to fix the problem, you will need to free up some space by deleting old and unwanted contents from your device.
To do so, you can either move them to other storage media or remove them completely. But there are also other factors that can trigger the iPhone touch screen not working issue aside from insufficient memory. Bad or faulty updates are among the other culprits which causes unresponsiveness on the phone’s touch screen. So even if your iPhone has ample of memory space, it still can end up having the same symptoms after updating. And this is what some iPhone X users got after updating to iOS 12. If you’re among these people and you need some clues on how to resolve the issue, then this post may be able to help you. Keep reading to find out what to do to unfreeze your frozen iPhone X following the iOS 12 update implementation.
Before we move on to our troubleshooting, if you are looking for a solution to a different issue, make sure you drop by our troubleshooting page as we’ve already addressed some of the most common problems reported by our readers. Find issues that are similar with yours and use the solutions we suggested. If you still need our help after that, then feel free to contact us by filling up our iPhone issues questionnaire.
How to troubleshoot iPhone X with touchscreen that keeps freezing or unresponsive?
While this may not be the usual trigger of the touch screen that’s not working issue, it wouldn’t hurt to verify and ensure that your iPhone X still has ample of memory space. So don’t forget doing that as soon as you get your device to respond properly after performing any of these subsequent solutions.
First solution: Force restart your iPhone X.
A force restart is an alternative reboot or soft reset method applied to unresponsive or frozen devices. When the iPhone screen is not responding to touches, performing the usual reboot wouldn’t be possible, thus you need to do it this way:
- Press and quickly release the Volume Up button.
- Press and quickly release the Volume Down button.
- Finally, press and hold the Side button until the Apple logo appears.
Similar to a soft reset, a force restart also clears out minor software errors effectively without affecting any saved data on the phone’s internal memory. Errant apps particularly background apps that have been corrupted during the iOS update implementations are likewise cleared in the process.
Second solution: Manage rogue apps.
Apps that have gone rogue after the major iOS transition are usually the ones that adversely affect the phone’s main system functions and thereby trigger these adverse symptoms. Before you decide to uninstall these rogue apps, try to check for any pending updates for these apps to install. Updating these apps can potentially make them stable with the current iOS platform and therefore puts an end to the transpiring frozen display symptoms. If your iPhone is able to run properly after performing a force restart, then you can proceed to managing apps. To manually check for and install pending app updates on your iPhone X, simply follow these steps:
- Tap the App Store icon from the Home screen.
- Scroll down and tap the Updates icon at the bottom right of the screen. A list of apps with pending updates will then appear.
- To update individual apps, tap the Update button next the name of the app.
- To update all apps simultaneously, tap the Update All button instead.
Reboot your iPhone X after successfully installing all pending app updates and then try and see if that fixes the problem. If it doesn’t, then you may have to consider completely deleting old and unnecessary apps from your iPhone system.
Third solution: Reset all settings on your iPhone X.
Some system settings or options on your iPhone X might have been configured in a way that’s contradicting to the current platform and this could have resulted to this symptom. Or it could be that the latest iOS update has just messed up your previous settings customization. As possible solution to this, you can resort to resetting all settings on your device. Doing so will void out your iPhone’s current system settings configuration and then restore the original or default values. As soon as your iPhone screen becomes responsive after performing a force restart, perform these steps:
- Go to Settings from the Home screen.
- Tap General.
- Scroll to and tap Reset.
- Select Reset all settings from the given options. This reset clears and restores the default system settings without deleting any saved information on the phone.
- Enter your device passcode, when asked.
- Then tap the option to confirm all settings reset.
Your iPhone should reboot automatically when the reset is finished. After it reboots, defaults settings are loaded. By then, you can start configuring individual options and enable only the features you used on the phone.
Fourth solution: Factory reset iPhone X through iTunes.
Performing a factory reset using iTunes is among the last options you may consider resorting to if this becomes a persistent issue. The latest might have caused corruption of major system data, which often requires a total system wipe out. That being said, you can use iTunes to erase and restore your iPhone X to its factory default settings on a computer. Be sure to use a computer that runs on an iOS 12 compatible operating system and has the latest iTunes software installed. Once you’ve got everything ready, follow these steps:
- Connect your iPhone X to your computer using the supplied USB/Lightning cable.
- Open iTunes on your computer and wait for it to recognize your iPhone.
- When your iPhone shows up in iTunes, select it.
- Then navigate to the Summary panel.
- Click the Restore [iPhone] button.
- Click the Restore button again to confirm.
Let iTunes instigate a full system reset on your iPhone X. Your device typically reboots when the reset is done, so wait until that happens. As soon as it’s done rebooting, you can proceed with the initial setup process and then set up your iPhone X as new. Software-related issues including post-update bugs that trigger your iPhone screen to freeze should already be gone by then.
Fifth solution: Restore iOS in iTunes.
The next option you have if a factory reset failed to fix the problem would be a recovery mode restore. It’s a more advanced solution that’s focused on repairing the main system functions of your phone. As the name implies, it puts your device in a recovery state and then attempts to fix major system issues by wiping and restoring iOS. Again, you will need to use iTunes on a Windows or Mac computer to get this done. Here’s how to restore your iPhone X in recovery mode:
- Connect your iPhone X to your computer with the supplied USB/Lightning cable then open iTunes.
- Wait for iTunes to recognize your phone and then perform a force restart without releasing the Side/Power button when the Apple logo appears. Here’s how:
- Press and quickly release the Volume Up button. Then press and quickly release the Volume Down button. Finally, press and hold the Side/Power button until the Connect to iTunes screen appears. Again, do not release the Side button when you see the Apple logo since you need to put your device in recovery mode.
- Shortly after seeing the Connect to iTunes screen, you will be prompted with the option to Restore or Update.
- If you want to reinstall iOS without erasing your iPhone data, then select Update. Otherwise, choose Restore.
Major iOS problems are usually remedied from a recovery mode restore, thus your iPhone X should already be working fine at this point. But if you still end up having the same frozen touchscreen issue after a recovery mode restore, then that’s an indication of an even more complex system problem to deal with. Should you wish to troubleshoot further, then you only have one more option left to try on and that would be a DFU mode restore. This is the most in-depth type of system restore done on an iPhone. It puts your device in a state that’s still able to communicate with iTunes even when the operating system or bootloader isn’t activated. We’ve got a step-by-step guide on how to perform a DFU mode restore on an iPhone X and it’s posted under the iPhone X Tutorials section of this site. Feel free to visit the Troubleshooting page if you need more help with the entire process.
Escalating the problem to Apple Support or your device carrier is also recommended if the problem persists after exhausting all applicable solutions and workarounds on your end. The fact that it started to occur after an iOS 12 update makes it be considered among the post-update issues that Apple should address in the following update rollouts. Just let them know exactly about how you ended up having a persistent issue on frozen or unresponsive iPhone X display.
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If you need more help with the use of certain functions and features of the Apple iPhone X smartphone, feel free to visit our Tutorial Page or our Youtube channel. There you can find a list of how-to contents, step-by-step tutorials, as well as answers to FAQs regarding iPhone X. If you have other concerns or encountered some troubles while using the phone, you can reach us through this form. Just be sure to tell us more details of the problem or device issue(s) you may have and we will be more than happy to assist you further.