Samsung’s Galaxy S10 is lighting up user’s pockets, but not necessarily in the modern parlance. According to multiple reports, the device’s ability to recognise it is sitting in a users pocket is misfiring, meaning the display is switching on due to accidental touches.
Early S10 adopters have taken to Reddit and Samsung’s community forums to complain about the issue, which appears to be down to a non-functioning proximity sensor. Even budget Android phones have proximity sensors to guard against such accidental taps while nestled within your trousers, of course.
Because the proximity sensor does work as advertised when the users are on a call, it’s likely to be a software issue that could be rectified. Some users are reporting that the issue is activating the fingerprint sensor, causing ‘fingerprint rejected’ vibrations while in the pocket.
Affected S10 buyers have attempted to disable lift to wake, always on display and have enabled accidental touch protections, but none of the solutions have resolved the problem.
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“First thing I did was activate tap to wake, I have never seen this in a Samsung phone before,” wrote one angry user on the Samsung Community forums. “Now I have the newest that Samsung has to offer and it does not work properly. My leg through my fabric taps the phone and opens it up. This is draining my battery, and your accidental touch protection feature is useless. That’s two features down right there.”
“$900 for what? Flagship that doesn’t work properly? A Samsung technician walk me through many steps to isolate this problem, I even factory reset it with no good results. You guys should be ashamed of yourselves by not checking this.”
The issue follows reported issues with the in-display fingerprint sensor on the Galaxy S10, with Samsung assuring users it will get better over time.
Have you endured any such issues with your Samsung flagship since picking up the S10? Drop us a line @TrustedReviews on Twitter.
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Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
