Many modern devices have a special button with a fingerprint sensor. This solution is often used by Apple in the iPhone, iPad, and MacBook, although other manufacturers are also. This button is very convenient because it allows you to unlock the device, make a payment, confirm the password, and much more. Problems only start when a part is damaged and a passcode has to be used. In this article, I will briefly talk about the sensor’s operation principle and its replacement.

How does Touch ID technology work?

The name “Touch” speaks for itself. In other words, a sensor is built into the button that reads the fingerprint and transmits it to a special chip that matches the data. If the owner is confirmed, the function is triggered.

Interestingly, most people have an erroneous opinion about the principle of the key. It contains only a sensor (sensor), while all calculations take place in a completely different place – on the motherboard of a computer, phone, or tablet. This means that the board and the button are inextricably linked, if you try to replace one of the components, Touch ID will stop working.

Replacing the Touch ID button

Now about the most important thing. Can the touch button be replaced if it stops working? Not so simple. By default, the manufacturer does not provide such a procedure. That is, if the button is already broken, it is impossible to restore it. However, there are no hopeless situations. I will provide several solutions:

• Enable AssistiveTouch on iPhone, and iPad. This is a useful function of activating a virtual button on the screen, which can do everything except fingerprint reading. To turn it on, go to “Settings” – “Accessibility” – “Touch” – “Turn on AssistiveTouch”.
• Replace the button with a non-original one. Again, all functions will work except for Touch ID.
• Button cable replacement. In a professional service, they may try to restore the connector if the cable is burnt out or broken (this happens most often). To do this, a piece of the loop is cut off and another one is soldered onto it. If the work is done qualitatively, Touch ID will work again. But if the button electronics itself is damaged, unfortunately, the repair is impossible.
• Programming in the official service. This method doesn’t always work, but it’s worth a try. In the official service center, you can install a new button and programmatically connect it to the system board. But keep in mind that such work has a rather high cost.

These are all available solutions. I hope the material was helpful!