Chosen Solution
Last summer, my phone got wet. I took it apart and dried it out but the screen was shot. Ordered a screen from iFixit, moved my home button over and everything has been working great. Fast forward 3 months and I cracked the screen. Ordered another screen from iFixit (and a new battery) and just now replaced them, following the same instructions as before. Yes I moved my home button over. Everything seems to work but no touch id. Home button goes to home screen but I can’t add a fingerprint or otherwise get a response from the touch id sensor. Open the phone and reseated all connectors (home button, display, digitizer, camera) but still no luck. Any ideas. I read it could be a defective screen??
You either damaged the Home Button or the Link flex that runs under the backlight on the screen is defective/damaged. Try installing the original screen with the Home Button. If it works with the original screen, it means the replacement screen is defective. If it doesn’t work, then you probably damaged the Home Button. Inspect it with magnification. Even the slightest tear can render the TouchID non-functional.
With water damage, there can always be problems down the road. The first thing you should test is whether it is a problem with the screen. If you still have the broken screen, test and see if the home button works on that. If it doesn’t work on that, then the chances are that the home button is broken. Also inspect the flex cable for any tears.
