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arcturuz

macrumors regular
May 15, 2008
145
66
only discovered my launch day iphone x was having this swollen battery issue when i noticed my screen is popping up.

called apple and they ran an online diagnostic test and told me my batter is fine

apple stores are still shut here in Singapore and I had no other option but to purchase an iphone 11

wanted to hang on to my iphone x and buy the iphone 12 this year, what a bummer
 

snow755

macrumors 68000
Sep 12, 2012
1,877
832
You could get a iPhone SE now and wait for the iPhone 12 wish I here won’t be out tell may be November at best
 

mrochester

macrumors 601
Feb 8, 2009
4,626
2,540
me also,,,, just noticed the swelling pushing my screen. apple support won’t do anything,,, it’s a little over 2 yrs old. paid like $1200 for the thing. getting exhausted trying to find someone to help with this issue

Apple will replace the battery for you under the battery replacement.
 

AidenL

macrumors 6502
Jan 19, 2013
445
222
Ireland
When my phone was returned from Apple, not repaired as I didn’t pay the 680 euros repair cost, the screen had been pushed back into place and the phone almost looks like new, even though the screen slightly protrudes, so I know it hasn’t been repaired. I thought the screen shouldn’t have be pushed back into place for fear of puncturing the battery container? Health is showing at 100%.

Im still charging and using it, I haven’t been told to stop by the repair centre.
I’ll probably get a third party battery fitted next week and get the liguid damage they referred to inspected also.

Has anyone had any experience of third party repairs?
 

44267547

Cancelled
Jul 12, 2016
37,642
42,491
Incorrect, swollen batteries should never be removed for safety reasons. Apple will always replace the phone instead.

while I agree that lithium ion batteries should never be removed for ‘safety reasons‘, (especially if you’re not trained to do so), do you have a source that Apple always replaces the phone instead? Because I don’t believe that to be the case.
 

themainshow

macrumors newbie
Jun 24, 2020
1
0
Just had my appointment with Apple Store Orchard in Singapore for a swollen battery on a launch day iPhone X.
Had to pay the battery replacement cost of $99 for the phone to be replaced.

Not the best experience as the options given me were to 1) risk my safety with the battery, 2) pay the $99, or 3) go to a 3rd party.

They pointed to my battery having cycled about 800+ though my pushback was it could be a manufacturing defect in the first place.

Sets me back on upgrading plans I guess.

@arcturuz - fyi
 

AidenL

macrumors 6502
Jan 19, 2013
445
222
Ireland
Just had my appointment with Apple Store Orchard in Singapore for a swollen battery on a launch day iPhone X.
Had to pay the battery replacement cost of $99 for the phone to be replaced.

Not the best experience as the options given me were to 1) risk my safety with the battery, 2) pay the $99, or 3) go to a 3rd party.

They pointed to my battery having cycled about 800+ though my pushback was it could be a manufacturing defect in the first place.

Sets me back on upgrading plans I guess.

@arcturuz - fyi
After a lot of further discussions with support, that’s what I’m doing also. Pay for battery, get a new device.

Im happy enough with that actually.
 
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sfbay22

macrumors newbie
Jun 30, 2020
4
3
Do we know what the criteria is to have a swollen battery phone replaced? All the 'launch day' phones are out of warranty, but this is clearly a manufacturer defect. Been told to send to repair shop with or mail-in no replacement. No Genius bar available due to COVID.

Remember when Apple was the one with great customer service? $1400 + 2 years later = who dis?
 

Mix Master Mike

macrumors newbie
Jul 2, 2020
2
2
Like most of the folks on here I too had a swollen battery on my launch day iPhone X. I even purchased Apple Care with it.

On Monday this week (today is Wednesday) I noticed the battery swelling. I tried to make an appointment at a Genius Bar but nothing was available till the following Monday. So I went to my local authorized dealer over here in Los Angeles (not Best Buy) in the hopes that they would be able to fix it. Unfortunately, they didn't. But they did give me a 800 number for Apple (800-275-2273) to call and request a "express replacement" which essentially is a box with a new phone. From my understanding you give Apple your cc number for them to hold while they ship you a replacement phone (most likely a refurb) in 2-3 business days. Then you swap out the sim card and send back your defective phone. Then Apple will charge you for the service cost, not the phone.

So that's what I did. After being on hold for 40 minutes and explaining my issue, Apple said they'll send me out a replacement phone for 500 something dollars. Totally blindsided, that's not what I was expecting. Sensing my unease I suppose, the person on the other end said alternatively I can take it to a Genius for them to look at. Then I asked them to patch me through the store that was closest to me. Which they did. But just my luck, when the person picked up the phone and tried to put me on hold, they hung up on me. I did try calling the store back but the phone system just routed me back to what felt like Apple's phone bank where I was on hold. After the initial 40 minute wait, I didn't want to wait any longer so I hung up. And instead went online through Apple's site to open a service ticket for a battery replacement of $83.

I dropped my phone off at the local UPS Store on Monday and received confirmation today that Apple received it. I don't know how long it'll take from this point or what to expect. Just want to tell my journey so far.
 

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sfbay22

macrumors newbie
Jun 30, 2020
4
3
Update here. If you go into a store with out of warranty swollen battery they will offer you new phone for $69. Did it today. You can call customer support for a “express replacement” but it will cost $100 and you will be shipped a temporary phone to use while your orinal phone is repaired. Terrible second option. So bad I went to the store during COVID. Why not just offer the phone replacement by mail for out of warranty customers? No idea. $69 + health risk = phone today.
 
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Mix Master Mike

macrumors newbie
Jul 2, 2020
2
2
UPDATE...
I received my phone back yesterday, 1 week after sending it out. Looks like they replaced the phone (with a refurb?) which is good since I had a scratch on my old screen. The cost was $83 all in. I'm happy with this outcome.

IMO since not all Apple stores are open, shipping the phone out is probably the quickest and best route to take. Go here and scroll down to "Send in for repair".
 
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aeroalex

macrumors 6502
Sep 12, 2013
458
386
Leicestershire, UK
Hi all, I have a launch day iPhone X too with the exact same issue!! Got an appointment at an Apple Store coming up next Friday. Here in the UK the stores have only just re-opened so will be interesting to see whether they replace my phone or just the battery. It looks like it's a common issue so I wonder if Apple is aware of the problem?
 

Apple_Robert

Contributor
Sep 21, 2012
34,527
50,108
In the middle of several books.
I took my iphone x to the Apple Store yesterday because of the swollen battery pushing the screen out of the case. It was out of warranty but they replaced it free, no hassle at all. I was in and out of the store in a half hour.
That was very nice of Apple. Yet, another story of great customer service and one of the big reasons I stay in the Apple orchard.
 
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Saurus504

macrumors member
Jul 14, 2015
72
13
screen is popping up on my X now and have an appt at the Apple Store in the local Best Buy. Really hoping I can either just get the feee replacement or just the battery replacement fee. i ain’t paying $500+ when I plan on getting the 12 soon anyway. I’d ride it out but I’m worried about dealing with this for another probably 3-4 months especially if it is really battery swelling.

anyone do theirs at a Best Buy “Apple store” and any noticeable difference in their ability to fix it?
 

aeroalex

macrumors 6502
Sep 12, 2013
458
386
Leicestershire, UK
Went for my appointment today and was told the only thing they can do is send my phone away for repair and it would cost £69 because it is out of warranty. Not the best solution considering the battery is clearly faulty as I’ve never had an iPhone battery expand after 2 and half years!!
 

MagicTorch

macrumors regular
Sep 8, 2007
124
179
UK
Another launch day iPhone X user here, who has also experienced the ‘swollen battery’ issue in the past week or so. Reading the comments on this thread makes me wonder if the lifespan on the batteries from the launch phones is <3 years? I was surprised to experience this problem (identified when the screen lifted away from the body of my phone), as I had not noticed/experienced any noticeable deteriation in battery performance. However, the service from Apple has been very good.

I took my iPhone X into an Apple Store last Wednesday (genius appointment), where they confirmed that the issue was a swollen battery & advised that for £69, they would send the phone away for ‘repair’, but that I would actually receive a whole unit replacement...and this process could take up to 2 weeks. Felt a bit anxious at the thought of being without a phone for 2 weeks & I seriously considered buying an iPhone SE on the spot to tide me over (the guy at the store said I could return the SE within 2 weeks)...but then I thought, ‘get a grip’...buying another phone with the intention of returning it would have been a waste, plus, I managed to survive the first 35 years of my life without a smart phone, so I should be able to go 2 weeks without a phone.

The good news is that I received my phone back today, just 6 days after taking it into store. There was a printed note in the box with the phone, which stated that they had replaced the battery, display & speaker, thus, it appears that they actually repaired the phone & did not simply send a whole unit replacement (the serial number of the phone also matches my original phone)

I did have a Belkin screen protector fitted to my phone (previously fitted via a machine in-store). The guy at the store kindly offered to put a note on the system about this & advised that the store would be willing to fit a new screen protector (free of charge) after I had received my phone back. Popped in to the store this afternoon & they kindly fitted a new screen protector at nil cost & with no questions asked

Now need to decide whether to stick with my iPhone X for another couple of years, or whether to switch to the rumoured 5.4inch phone if/when it launches in the Autumn. Really like the idea of having a slightly smaller ‘full screen’ iPhone, but given that I now have a new battery & display, the sensible part of me is thinking I should just stick with my X & save some pennies
 
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PaladinGuy

macrumors 68000
Sep 22, 2014
1,615
1,028
I took my iphone x to the Apple Store yesterday because of the swollen battery pushing the screen out of the case. It was out of warranty but they replaced it free, no hassle at all. I was in and out of the store in a half hour.

You got lucky. I just had this issue a couple months ago, and the Genius Bar made me pay the battery replacement fee for a replacement phone. I was glad to not have to pay the higher replacement fee, but I was still kinda bummed. I’m trying to hold out for an iPhone 12, and I didn’t want to spend money on my iPhone X.

The Apple Support via phone and chat were both basically useless for the issue, unless I wanted to wait weeks to get my only phone back.

I suspected more people probably had the expanding battery issue with the iPhone X. Maybe eventually Apple with reimburse us.
 

wtzouris

macrumors member
Feb 7, 2008
32
9
I took my iphone x to the Apple Store yesterday because of the swollen battery pushing the screen out of the case. It was out of warranty but they replaced it free, no hassle at all. I was in and out of the store in a half hour.

Wow. In what city and state was the Apple Store you went to? I have an appointment next week at an Apple Store in Bridgewater, NJ for the same issue.
 

wtzouris

macrumors member
Feb 7, 2008
32
9
OK! It took me a week to get an appointment in Bridgewater, NJ -I have a MINT condition two and a half year old iPhone X - with at this point an extremely swollen (bulging) screen. Otherwise mint. They tell me they do not do the battery repairs on site for iPhone X, it gets sent out (Texas or North Carolina) and shipped back to the store in 5-6 days. For $69 I am going to get either a replacement battery (same phone serial number) or a completely replaced iPhone X. So then they tell me they are going to set me up with a loaner-- an iPhone 8 (64 GB). So, the short story is that the Apple employee can't get the loaner to go thru on the repair app, because they won't do a loaner for my particular iPhone X model . My only choices at this point are to be without my phone for 5-6 days or buy a new phone that they know I am going to return for a full refund. Bingo: $1277 charged to my credit card for an iPhone 11 Pro with leather case (256GB) model.. lame. The only other choice was to upgrade on the spot and take $280 trade in for my perfect iPhone X. No way. The iPhone 11 Pro is fine. The iPhone X --->XS----> 11Pro are all about the same expect for the camera/lenses and Night Mode in the newest model. So far this is pretty lame of Apple - with a week's advance notice I thought they would have an iPhone X replacement available for me on the spot (or an iPhone Xs) Why don't the stores have replacement phones in stock? I guess they want you to buy new ones.....Doh.
 

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Dom.S

macrumors member
Feb 22, 2008
89
57
The screen popped up on my launch iPhone X about a week ago as well. Predictably the Apple store had to send it off and few days (and £65) later I’ve got my old phone back complete with new battery. Bit of a pain to have to pay for what is obviously a premature failure, but it didn’t seem worth arguing over. At least the new battery should easily be good for another couple of years.

I do wonder if wireless charging is a factor. Mine’s been charged wirelessly every night and it’s the first iPhone I’ve had where the battery has failed like this.

Given there’s been an influx of people with problems lately and Apple generally aren’t very quick to announce repair schemes I wouldn’t be too surprised to see discounted/free repairs for this within the next 6 months.
 
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wtzouris

macrumors member
Feb 7, 2008
32
9
OK! It took me a week to get an appointment in Bridgewater, NJ -I have a MINT condition two and a half year old iPhone X - with at this point an extremely swollen (bulging) screen. Otherwise mint. They tell me they do not do the battery repairs on site for iPhone X, it gets sent out (Texas or North Carolina) and shipped back to the store in 5-6 days. For $69 I am going to get either a replacement battery (same phone serial number) or a completely replaced iPhone X. So then they tell me they are going to set me up with a loaner-- an iPhone 8 (64 GB). So, the short story is that the Apple employee can't get the loaner to go thru on the repair app, because they won't do a loaner for my particular iPhone X model . My only choices at this point are to be without my phone for 5-6 days or buy a new phone that they know I am going to return for a full refund. Bingo: $1277 charged to my credit card for an iPhone 11 Pro with leather case (256GB) model.. lame. The only other choice was to upgrade on the spot and take $280 trade in for my perfect iPhone X. No way. The iPhone 11 Pro is fine. The iPhone X --->XS----> 11Pro are all about the same expect for the camera/lenses and Night Mode in the newest model. So far this is pretty lame of Apple - with a week's advance notice I thought they would have an iPhone X replacement available for me on the spot (or an iPhone Xs) Why don't the stores have replacement phones in stock? I guess they want you to buy new ones.....Doh.
Just following up it's been 7 days and I just received an email: "We've received your product. We'll start the repair now."
SEVEN DAYS.. Friday to Friday. Wow. I am in New Jersey.
 
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