iPhone Won’t Vibrate? Here’s How to Diagnose and Fix

iPhone Won't Vibrate? Here's How to Diagnose and Fix
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By now, after years of having a smartphone as a constant companion, most of us probably associate a vibration with a notification or an alert. Which makes it all the more annoying when our phones don’t vibrate when they’re supposed to — and at worst, you could miss important phone calls or messages because of it.

If you’re iPhone isn’t vibrating, you can use the below steps to try and pin down the problem — and fix it, if possible.

Step 1 — Adjust the Settings

Before we get into any more complicated steps or fixes, it’s smart to check to see if your phone’s vibration settings are even on. To do so:

  1. Open Settings.
  2. Scroll down and tap on Sounds.
  3. Here, you’ll find two options: Vibrate on Ring and Vibrate on Silent — the first controls whether your phone vibrates when the ringer is on, the second controls if your phone vibrates when it’s on silent.
  4. If either toggle is grayed out, it’s likely the culprit of your phone not vibrating. Toggle both options to On.
  5. Tap Ringtone.
  6. Tap Vibration.
  7. Make sure ‘None’ is NOT selected. If ‘None’ is selected, select a new vibration sequence, like Quick or Rapid, and your iPhone should begin to vibrate accordingly.

If the previous steps didn’t work, move on to step two.

Step 2  Reset Your Settings

If you’ve completed the above steps, and your phone still doesn’t vibrate, then you might need to reset your device’s settings back to their factory defaults. Don’t worry — this is only a settings reset, so it won’t erase any of the messages, pictures, data or content on your iPhone.

  1. Open Settings.
  2. Tap on General.
  3. Scroll to the bottom, and tap on Reset.
  4. From here, tap on Reset All Settings and tap Confirm. (On a side note, Don’t tap on Erase All Content and Settings).
  5. Your device should reset, and once it’s done, check to see if it vibrates now — if not, proceed to step 3.

Step 3 — Perform a Full Restore

If the above method still doesn’t fix your iPhone’s lack of notification vibration, then it might be smart to perform a full restore to alleviate any potential software issues deep within your version of iOS.

  1. Open iTunes
  2. Connect your iPhone to a Mac or PC with iTunes.
  3. Backup your iPhone to iTunes or iCloud.
  4. Go to the Summary page of your device on iTunes.
  5. Click on the Restore button, and follow the instructions to restore your phone.

If this still doesn’t work, then as a last ditch option, proceed to step four.

Step 4  Check Hardware

If your iPhone still doesn’t vibrate after any of the above steps, then there might be a problem with your device’s hardware. To check, go back to Settings > Sounds and try toggling either Vibrate on Silent or Vibrate on Ring. If your phone vibrates, then it’s a software issue. Alternatively, you can flip the physical Ring / Silent switch on the side of your phone on and off — it should vibrate slightly when you do so. If it doesn’t then there’s likely an issue with the phone’s vibration motor.

If all else fails, it might be time to take your iPhone into an Apple Store to get it fixed. It might be a bit of an inconvenience — but it’s probably better than missing an important phone call or notification.

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