Techzilla Blog Beware! iOS 9 may Brick Your iPhone if it's Been Repaired

If you've broken your iPhone 6 in the past and had it repaired by anyone other than Apple, beware as upgrading to iOS 9 may brick your phone. Apple is rumored to be "bricking," aka. rendering the phone unusable, iPhones that have had display repairs or home button repairs that include the new Touch ID sensors.This is happening to phones that have been repaired with parts that are not genuine Apple parts. Users are reporting that their phones are working just fine until they update the new operating system. When they do, they see an "Error 53" error. At that point your phone is dust. Apple has not issued any official warnings to its customers.It gets worseIn addition to losing the use of your phone, users are reporting that all data is lost including precious videos and photos. At this point your only option is to replace the phone. Reports also indicate this is happening to users who have damaged phones that have not even had it repaired!Kyle Wiens, owner of the iFixit website, says this problem is huge. "The 'error 53' page on our website has had more than 183,000 hits, suggesting this is a big problem for Apple users" he told Guardian Money. "The problem occurs if the repairer changes the home button or the cable. Following the software upgrade the phone in effect checks to make sure it is still using the original components, and if it isn't, it simply locks out the phone. There is no warning, and there's no way that I know of to bring it back to life"Did Apple do this on purpose?What is unknown is whether or not Apple did this to reduce competition from unofficial repair shops or to force you into buying a new phone. Apple has always discouraged users from using third parties to repair their products. Apple is also offering no solution to this problem. An article by tech writer Reuben Esparza, published in November by iCracked, a phone repair service, states: "When pressed for more information about the error, few, if any Apple employees could offer an explanation. There was no part they would replace, no software fix, and no way to access the phone's memory. The fix was a new iPhone." It continues: "Though still largely a mystery to most, we now know that error 53 is the result of a hardware failure somewhere within the home button assembly."What can you do to protect your phone?Your phone insurance policy isn't going to cover this issue so you need to take matters into your own hands. The answer is pretty simple. Do not update your iPhone's software if you've had it repaired by a non-Apple technician.Too late. What now?Your phone is toast. Sell it on ebay for parts. The good news is that Techzilla.com frequently has iPhones in stock and this issue should not occur on anything we sell as we do not use third party parts. Buying a pre-owned iPhone will save you hundreds of dollars and doesn't require an extension to your carrier's contract. All our phones are tested and guaranteed.