ios 9.0.1 killed my iphone 6

[The Boston Dangler]

the core of the problem is all in the title, i'll just add some details.

iphone 6 16gb, purchased dec 2014 (3 months warranty left).
i've experienced no problems since new.
yesterday afternoon i updated to 9.0.1 from the last ios 8 after backing up to my pc.
i didn't notice any problems in using the phone last night and earlier today.
i sent a text message and received a phone call at 1pm, at 1:30 the screen was black.

the screen was black and unresponsive.
the mute button still triggered the vibrator at that point.
i attempted to reset, no response from screen or mute vibe.
i connected to my pc, itunes identified the phone but required the passcode to be entered (impossible) to connect.
i connected the phone an AC outlet (stock cable and adapter), the phone continuously gives the charger connected ding.

i flew down to the nearest apple store, where the customer service was, at best, disappointing.
"we can take you friday night."
"no, that's not at all going to work. the store is open for another 3 hours..."
"when can you be here tuesday?"
"i can be here at 5:30pm monday."
"okay"
"is there another apple store nearby?"
"there's 1 in dedham, ma (1 hour) and 1 in new haven, ct (2 hours)"
"so, no there isn't another store nearby."

 

[nickbits]

the core of the problem is all in the title, i'll just add some details.

iphone 6 16gb, purchased dec 2014 (3 months warranty left).
i've experienced no problems since new.
yesterday afternoon i updated to 9.0.1 from the last ios 8 after backing up to my pc.
i didn't notice any problems in using the phone last night and earlier today.
i sent a text message and received a phone call at 1pm, at 1:30 the screen was black.

the screen was black and unresponsive.
the mute button still triggered the vibrator at that point.
i attempted to reset, no response from screen or mute vibe.
i connected to my pc, itunes identified the phone but required the passcode to be entered (impossible) to connect.
i connected the phone an AC outlet (stock cable and adapter), the phone continuously gives the charger connected ding.

i flew down to the nearest apple store, where the customer service was, at best, disappointing.
"we can take you friday night."
"no, that's not at all going to work. the store is open for another 3 hours..."
"when can you be here tuesday?"
"i can be here at 5:30pm monday."
"okay"
"is there another apple store nearby?"
"there's 1 in dedham, ma (1 hour) and 1 in new haven, ct (2 hours)"
"so, no there isn't another store nearby."

What did you do to reset it? Hold home and power until it reboots?

 

[The Boston Dangler]

What did you do to reset it? Hold home and power until it reboots?

yep, but it didn't respond.

ok, i just tried it again and i got the apple logo, which started flickering vertically. the screen is lit but all black, and the mute vibe now works :\

 

[mmntech]

Sounds like your OS install got corrupted somehow. This is a common problem if you're a jailbreaker and should be fairly easy to fix.

What you need to do is put your phone into DFU Mode. This is a step beyond the usual "recovery mode". It boots your phone without loading up the OS or boot loader. Sort of like booting into the BIOS, for lack of a better term.

Entering DFU Mode on iPhone, iPad or iPod touch
Plug your device into your computer with a USB cable.
Turn off the device.
Hold the Power button for 3 seconds.
Hold the Home and Power buttons for 10 seconds.
Release the Power button but keep holding the Home button.
After about 15 seconds you will be alerted by iTunes saying that it has detected a device in Recovery Mode.
https://www.theiphonewiki.com/wiki/DFU_Mode

From there you can do a completely clean install of iOS on your device. That should fix things up. If it doesn't, you might have a hardware issue or there's a bug in iOS 9.0.1. Unfortunately, only authorized Apple techs can fix that.

 

[JEDIYoda]

Sounds like your OS install got corrupted somehow. This is a common problem if you're a jailbreaker and should be fairly easy to fix.

What you need to do is put your phone into DFU Mode. This is a step beyond the usual "recovery mode". It boots your phone without loading up the OS or boot loader. Sort of like booting into the BIOS, for lack of a better term.

Entering DFU Mode on iPhone, iPad or iPod touch
Plug your device into your computer with a USB cable.
Turn off the device.
Hold the Power button for 3 seconds.
Hold the Home and Power buttons for 10 seconds.
Release the Power button but keep holding the Home button.
After about 15 seconds you will be alerted by iTunes saying that it has detected a device in Recovery Mode.
https://www.theiphonewiki.com/wiki/DFU_Mode

From there you can do a completely clean install of iOS on your device. That should fix things up. If it doesn't, you might have a hardware issue or there's a bug in iOS 9.0.1. Unfortunately, only authorized Apple techs can fix that.

WoW!!! Great information!!

 

[mmntech]

WoW!!! Great information!!

It's basically what the Apple Store techs will do. I've been jailbreaking since the early days, so I've used this trick a lot. Sometimes the cracks don't take so you need to clean install the OS.

 

[Artdeco]

Yep, it's almost impossible to brick an iPhone. Matter of fact, I've never been able to do it.

Heck, MacBooks will hook up to Apple's servers and reinstall the OS if you screw them up, blew me away to see that a few months ago, I had no idea, I doubt I'll ever go back to Windows or Android because Apple puts so much effort into idiot proofing their stuff.

 

[The Boston Dangler]

the phone is not jailbroken or modified in any way.

 

[Artdeco]

the phone is not jailbroken or modified in any way.

As much as people bitch about iTunes (& yes, it's a mess) just installing it for DFU mode recoveries redeems it, IMHO.

You didn't do anything wrong, the OTA updates cause a lot of problems.

 

[Spineshank]

Yep, it's almost impossible to brick an iPhone. Matter of fact, I've never been able to do it.

Heck, MacBooks will hook up to Apple's servers and reinstall the OS if you screw them up, blew me away to see that a few months ago, I had no idea, I doubt I'll ever go back to Windows or Android because Apple puts so much effort into idiot proofing their stuff.

One time, I really thought I bricked my 3GS. Took a few attempts but eventually got it to boot up. But yeah, from my experience they seem impossible to brick.

 

[Zahid Iqbal]

Well you need to check it with customer service. There may be some software issue

 

[mmntech]

the phone is not jailbroken or modified in any way.

Doesn't matter. This trick will still work. You're only putting your phone in a factory default mode so it's ready to accept a clean OS install.

 

[The Boston Dangler]

update:
situation resolved

after my promise to return at 5:30, i was there at 4:30. i was told i'd be seen at 6 D:

i returned at 5:50 and was asked to sit at a table with terrible stools. at 6:30 i was asked to sit in a slightly taller terrible stool. at 6:45 a technician saw me. he did a bit of diagnostics and decided to replace my phone with a brand new copy. unfortunately, he left me to play with my new phone for half an hour while he took care of other customers. hello? i'm ready to go now. hello? 6 days has been added to my warranty.

i've restored from itunes and all my stuff is there (contacts actually restored in the store), and i'll get around to reinstalling the few additional apps whenever.

wait time, and attempts to prolong my agony: terrible
quality of actual service: good (points deducted for dumping me to bang out more customers)

 

[kmmatney]

Well - brand new phone, so probably worth all the hassle. My only trip to an Apple store was to replace my iPhone 5 battery which was recalled, and the replacement was free, even after I used it for more than 2 years. I happened to go there the day the iWatch first arrived, so it was an utter zoo. The whole thing took 3 hours, but I was able to walk around the Mall for an hour or so, and my battery life more than doubled with the new one, so overall worth the trip, but those stools are pretty uncomfortable after a while.