Touch screen not working ? Here’s a comprehensive guide on what to do if your touch screen isn’t working on Windows, Android, and iPhone or iPad.
Electronic devices equipped with touchscreens are always on the rise, from the more traditional smartphones, to All-in-one PCs and Amazon voice assistants with screen included. You will surely have noticed how displays equipped with this technology do not always work 100% , perhaps after placing it in a humid area or simply after a picnic in the mountains you have noticed that it no longer works as it did when you removed it from the purchase package.
You are neither the first nor the last person to experience touchscreen problems , fortunately, there are several approaches to limiting this problem and to understand if there is a major technical problem or simply it is time to take care of your display with small tricks. In the next few lines we will see how to behave if the touchscreen does not work and the approaches to take in order not to do further damage.
We recommend that you also read our guide on touch screen notebooks .
JOIN OUR TELEGRAM CHANNEL WITH THE BEST TECH OFFERS
Index
- Here’s what to do if the Touchscreen isn’t working
- Touchscreen does not work in some places on Windows PC
- Clean the screen
- Check for available updates to install
- Uninstall recently installed applications
- Recalibrate the screen
- Deactivate and re-enable the driver or look for recent version
- Running System Restore
- Restoring the computer
- Touchscreen does not work on Samsung or other Android smartphones and tablets
- Screen cleaning
- Replacing the protective film
- Dry the phone if dropped in water
- Restart in safe mode
- Free up RAM memory
- Remove the SD card if present
- Recalibrate the screen
- Reset your mobile
- Replace the display by contacting an authorized repair centre
- Touchscreen doesn’t work on iPhone or iPad
- Screen cleaning
- Replacing the protective film
- Restart the iPhone
- Make sure the screen is dry
- Unplug Lightning or USB-C accessories
- Uninstall Recently Installed Apps
- Hard reset dell’iPhone
- Contact Apple Support for assistance
Here’s what to do if the Touchscreen isn’t working
First of all we need to understand what are the possible causes of the malfunction in the touchscreen of your device , whether connected to your smartphone or to your PC or electronic device. The reasons that can present problems to a touch screen are mainly five.
- The first reason is related to the external reasons, i.e. the touch screen of the electronic device is not working due to the screen protector. This means that there is too much friction or the guard does not allow electrical passage for touch operation.
- Another reason is to be found in the physical damages, in the event that humidity conditions arise or if you expose your touch display to water too much, you may notice malfunctions.
- To these conditions you can also add a stopor an error of the Android or iOS system , during the update a sudden crash could cause the device to make false contact with the display.
- Nor should you underestimate one of the most common reasons for a touchscreen malfunction, i.e. accidental damage. A broken screen does not allow the external retina of the display to interact with the underlying structure, showing completely off-target touches.
- The fifth reason, and also the most underrated, concerns malicious applications. Installing too many conflicting or incompatible applications with the system can cause touchscreen problems. If you have modded your smartphone, the chances of malfunctioning increase exponentially.
Touchscreen does not work in some places on Windows PC
In recent years, more and more users prefer to buy a touchscreen All-in-one PC for their work and entertainment activities. The latest generation models, in addition to an excellent dissipation system, also feature top-level touchscreen panels . Just like the smartphone, PCs of this type can also show problems on the screen, prompting you to take precautions.
In the event that your PC with touch display does not work in some points, carry out these small maintenance operations.
Clean the screen
One of the more mundane reasons is dust accumulated on the touch panel . Periodically clean the screen, perhaps using specific products for the type of screen you have available.
Before starting the cleaning you must:
- Turn off the PC and unplug the power cord.
- Use an anti-static brush and gently sweep the dust off the screen.
- Use a soft, clean microfiber cloth lightly moistened with water to clean the monitor.
- For the anti-static screen, use special wipes or a solution suitable for the anti-static coating of LCD panels.
- Let the screen dry for a few minutes before reconnecting the power cord and turning on the computer again.
Ecomoist 50ml Natural Screen Cleaner Spray & Reusable Microfibre Cloth Set, Suitable for Smartphones, Touch Screens, Laptops, iPads – Safely Removes Dust & Dirt from Tech Devices
11,95 EUR
Buy on Amazon
OFFER
Ordilend 10 in 1 Keyboard Cleaning Kit PC Computer Laptop Screen Cleaning Brush for AirPods iPhone iPad Macbook Tablet Bluetooth Earphones Smartphone Earbuds Headphones Camera with Patent
39,99 EUR −23,00 EUR 16,99 EUR
Buy on Amazon
Check for available updates to install
PCs, unlike smartphones, constantly need updated drivers to optimize all hardware components. Run a scan to see if there are any updates needed for your display and graphics card. If you don’t know how to do it, find out how to update your computer with our guide.
Uninstall recently installed applications
Uninstall all recently installed applications and updates. If the updates have not given a positive result, the problem may be an application conflicting with the operating system. Uninstall installed software after experiencing the problems, or start a Windows restore point to the last available date or try uninstalling Windows 10 updates .
Recalibrate the screen
In some cases you may press on the screen and experience icon movement or incorrect cursor placement. In this case, a screen recalibration could restore the correct functioning of the touchscreen.
To calibrate a computer running Windows 11 or earlier you need to:
- Open Control Panel.
- Press on Hardware and Sound.
- Go to Tablet PC Settingsand press on Perform screen calibration for pen or touch input .
- Under Display Options, you need to select your display.
- Press, in the Tablet PC Settingswindow , on Calibration .
- Select Touch input.
- Press the viewfinder, on the white screen, whenever you see it on the screen and don’t change the resolution.
- To save the calibration data, when prompted, press Yes.
- Click OKto confirm.
Deactivate and re-enable the driver or look for recent version
In the system settings you can also think about disabling and then re-enabling the video driver , in order to see if there are any improvements. Try installing an older version, which you are sure will not malfunction. To help you, you can consult our guide and choose a program to update computer drivers .
Running System Restore
Before resetting your PC to factory defaults, you can try system restore. It is a built – in Windows tool to protect and repair the operating system .
This system is used to create restore points when you install new apps, drivers or new Windows updates. This reset will remove any apps, drivers, and updates installed after the restore point was created.
To return to a restore point you must press the Start button > Control Panel > All Control Panel Items > Recovery . Here select Open system restore > Next .
Choose the restore point related to the problematic app, driver or update and hit Next > Finish .
In case you want to activate System Restore on Windows 11 , you have to go to System > System information and press on System protection . In the Disk system protection window , press the Configure button and then tick the Enable system protection item .
On Windows 10 it can be reached with Start > Control Panel > System and Security > System .
Restoring the computer
In the latest generation computers it is possible to reinstall the operating system by restoring the factory settings . This way you will delete all user data of the computer being careful to back up all files before starting this process.
Go to Search , at the bottom next to the Start button , and press Reset this PC . On the System > Recovery page, press the Reset your PC button and you’re done.
Touchscreen does not work on Samsung or other Android smartphones and tablets
You may not have a touch screen PC, but you are still having problems with this technology, Android smartphones and tablets are particularly affected by this condition. Let’s see how you can try to check if your phone, Samsung or any other brand, has touch display problems.
Screen cleaning
First clean the touch surface carefully, use a glasses cloth or a similar screen cleaner.
Mistify Natural Screen Cleaner 120ml & Microfiber Cloth [Smartphones Tablets Laptops Oleophobic Touchscreen Keyboards Smartwatches LED LCD 4K TV] (120ml & Cloth)
17,99 EUR
Buy on Amazon
Replacing the protective film
If you have had a film installed on your display for many years, it is time to try to change it by replacing it with a higher quality one. On Amazon you will find protective films for smartphones and protective films for tablets of various sizes and types.
Dry the phone if dropped in water
If your smartphone has fallen into water, dry it thoroughly before turning it on again. Depending on the touch technology used, you may experience random taps on the screen when you turn on the device. For more info check out our guide on what to do with a wet phone .
Restart in safe mode
Restarting in this mode will allow you to check if the problem comes from third-party applications or the operating system. To do this you must:
- Press the phone’s power key.
- At startup hold down the Volume down key of the phoneat the moment of the animation. Press and hold it until the animation ends and the phone starts in safe mode .
- You will see Safe Modeat the bottom of the screen.
On newer Samsungs (e.g. S22), turn off the phone by pressing Volume Down + Power key . Then press on the Shut down icon and on the next screen, tap on Safe mode at the bottom .
Free up RAM memory
A smartphone with 2 GB of RAM memory is easily saturated, free up as much memory as possible to immediately have greater fluidity of touches on the screen. Valid allies for this activity are certainly: Google Files and SD Maid .
Remove the SD card if present
Although it may seem strange to you, sometimes an SD card can generate an incompatibility with the touch display, take it out to be safe and check if everything works.
Recalibrate the screen
As with the PC, you can also recalibrate the screen of your Samsung or Android smartphone. There are several apps that can do this. The best is definitely Touchscreen Calibration or Touch Screen Test .
To understand if the calibration is optimal, we advise you to carry out a few tests. You can download dedicated applications or rely on Calculator and Google Maps to understand in seconds if the touch is calibrated correctly.
Reset your mobile
The way forward in case you fail to notice improvements is that of a factory reset of your smartphone . You usually find it in Settings > System > Recovery options while in the latest Samsungs you may find it in Settings > General management > Reset > Factory data reset .
Replace the display by contacting an authorized repair centre
If the operations listed above do not show any improvement, then you could go to an authorized repair center which will completely replace the damaged panel.
Touchscreen doesn’t work on iPhone or iPad
The touch screens produced by Apple or at least used by this company are particularly sensitive and may malfunction. What can you do with your iPad or iPhone ?
Screen cleaning
As with other devices, the first step is to give the screen a deep cleaning. In this case, the panels of Apple devices require a dedicated cloth or a specific product to have the highest cleaning quality.
Ecomoist 50ml Natural Screen Cleaner Spray & Reusable Microfibre Cloth Set, Suitable for Smartphones, Touch Screens, Laptops, iPads – Safely Removes Dust & Dirt from Tech Devices
11,95 EUR
Buy on Amazon
OFFER
Ordilend 10 in 1 Keyboard Cleaning Kit PC Computer Laptop Screen Cleaning Brush for AirPods iPhone iPad Macbook Tablet Bluetooth Earphones Smartphone Earbuds Headphones Camera with Patent
39,99 EUR −23,00 EUR 16,99 EUR
Buy on Amazon
Replacing the protective film
If you have an extra protective film you can think of replacing the pre-installed one, this after a few months can reduce the sensitivity of the controls. You can buy one on the web or avoid using it and try the touchscreen with the applications suggested above. On Amazon you can find both iPhone screen protectors and good quality iPad screen protectors .
Restart the iPhone
The world’s oldest technique, the reboot system , may not be a bad idea for figuring out if there’s an incompatibility or trivial bug in the operating system. Before restarting the device, try to clear the cache and cookies of the iPhone from the Safari browser in order to completely clear the data in the volatile memory. Open the Settings icon of your Apple device and go to the Safari section . Scroll down until you find the item Clear website data and history and tap on it. Confirm to delete all browsing data.
If you are unable to restart due to a frozen screen, try forcing it with the side key . So:
- Press and quickly release the keyto turn up the volume.
- Press and quickly release the keyto decrease the volume.
- Press and hold the side key.
- Release it, when the Apple logo appears.
For more info find out how to restart iPhone .
Make sure the screen is dry
Have you used your iPhone in the bathroom during the shower or are you simply in a particularly humid place? This results in a possible malfunction of the screen touches. Drying a wet iPhone isn’t as easy as it sounds. Make sure the panel is completely dry and streak – free , then test it by typing a sentence on the digital keyboard . You can also use a soft tissue paper, you don’t need specific and expensive products.
Unplug Lightning or USB-C accessories
When you connect your Apple touch phone to your PC or other device, in many cases inputs are routed to that source, resulting in inaccurate taps on the screen. Try disconnecting all connections, USB-C or Lightning , and try using the touch screen again.
Uninstall Recently Installed Apps
Not only Android operating systems can present errors after installing third-party applications, even Apple in some cases, albeit rare, can manifest this problem. Try to uninstall the applications you have downloaded in the last period , in order to exclude them from the possible causes.
Hard reset dell’iPhone
In the condition that the methods listed above do not work, you may opt for a complete hard reset of your iPhone or iPad . In most cases, to start this process, simply press and quickly release the volume up button, then press and release the volume down button and hold down the side button, finally release it when the Apple logo appears. For more info read our guide on how to reset iPhone .
Contact Apple Support for assistance
If your touch screen freak just won’t cooperate, your last resort is Apple Support . To request help, go to the dedicated Apple page and select the device you have problems with, follow the on-screen guide to contact the nearest authorized store or a digital operator to talk to. You will of course need to check your device’s Apple warranty first .