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CH29292

PLEASE HELP

I have multiple problems with my 14 month old Sony Xperia Z5, the most recent of which is this: although I can see I have notification icons when the phone is unlocked (and when locked), I cannot "drag down" the notifications bar. I also cannot get to the menu to change screen brightness, put phone in flight mode, activate bluetooth, etc., which used to come down along with the notifications. Now when I try and pull down the notifications bar, all that happens is that my apps menu appears.

I have tried to go "Settings - About Phone - Diagnostics - Test" and done the touchscreen test which failed as there is a strip of about an inch at the top of the touchscreen that doesn't recognise my touch, according to the test. I have tried to do a soft reset, which achieved nothing, as well as properly switching phone off and one again, which also didn't work, I have deleted a recently installed app I thought might have caused the problem, to no avail.

I recently had a problem with the ear proximity sensor - my phone case seemed to convince the phone that my ear was up close to it during calls, and meant that the screen would go black during calls. This was often a problem when during calls I would need to be able to access the keypad. I threw the case away, did a soft reset and ran the ear proximity test until it finally acknowledged when my ear was no where near the top of the screen, and when it was. I can now access the keypad during calls. So that problem seems to be solved, only for this new problem to have emerged with the touchscreen and lack of ability to pull down notifications bar. I have no idea what the link with these problems is but I feel they are connected.

This was probably the best phone I would say I have ever had UNTIL these recent problems. I am starting to get disenchanted with Sony and feel disappointed.

If someone can advise me what to do to be able to pull down the notifications bar again, I would be grateful.

Jonas

Hi @CH29292, very sorry to hear about your phone.

I'm afraid that it does sound like this is related to hardware and not software since you can't clear the entire display in the touchscreen test, however there is a few more things to try.

To start with, do you have a screen protector on your device? If you do, try removing it and see if you are able to drag down the notification bar / quick settings again.

If there is no change or if you don't have a screen protector on the phone, try performing a software repair using Xperia Companion. This will delete all data stored on the internal storage of your phone and reinstall the latest available software and this way we can make sure that software is not the cause of this behaviour.

Since data is deleted, creating a backup using Xperia Companion is always advised before you start with the repair procedure.

When the repair has been completed, go through the start up guide without restoring your back and see if you can pull down the notification bar again.

If you still can't I'm afraid that your phone will need to be examined at an authorized service centre and your Local support team will assist you further. They will also answer any questions that you may have regarding warranty, local service routines and so forth.

Let me know how it went!

CH29292

Hi Jonas,

Thanks for your reply. I did exactly as you suggested and made a backup using Xperia Companion of my data. After setup, I tried to restore my data and it would not work, telling me "checking permissions" and the process would not advance beyond this point. The only customisation I now have on my phone is the apps I previously had. It is also hard to customise my phone in any way as an inch panel at the top of the screen is still "dead" and not responding to touch.

I don't have, and didn't have, a screen protector or case on my phone at the time this panel at the tope of the screen went dead, so I don't understand why all of a sudden this has happened to the phone.

If I am in England, BA13, where is my nearest authorised service centre and support team, please?

Thanks,

Jonas

Hi again, sorry for the late reply.

Regarding the error message you receive when restoring your backup. Try going to Settings > Apps > Xperia Transfer mobile > Permissions. Make sure that all permissions for the application is enabled and then try restoring your backup again.

Since you still can't access the top panel of the display, your device will need to be examined at an authorized service centre. I work globally so I'm not familiar with which service centres are authorized in your country/city. I would recommend that you get in touch with your Local support team and they will be able to provide you with a more detailed answer regarding this.

Keep me posted!

Cat_Smoky

Hello,

I also have the same problrm with notification bar? but only when my phone is in portret mode. From the locked screen or in landscape mode it works normally.

I have tried all recommendations but for no result.

For me it does not look like hardware problem since on locked screen it works normally.

My phone is out of warranty and as far as I understand it could not be repaired by SONY 😞

Jonas

Hi @Cat_Smoky, sorry to hear about this.

Have you tried doing the test for the display in portrait mode and are you then able to clear the top part of the display? You can also try a more detailed touch screen test if you follow the instructions below.

Open up the phone application.
Type in *#*#7378423#*#* > Service Tests > Touch > Free Drawing Test.

Regarding the repair situation, I would recommend that you get in touch with your Local support team, as the routines varies and they will be able to provide information about the routines in your market/region.

Keep me posted!