BetaNews reports that the tip began as a way to clear stuck app updates in the App Store. Software developer Zachary Drayer initially shared the simple method, telling an iPhone user to “tap on any of the tab bar items [in the App Store] 10 times” to resolve the issue and improve performance.
Apparently, the tip actually works and can improve the general responsiveness of the entire phone. Drayer later explained tapping 10 times on the App Store’s tab bar forces it to clear its cache, indicated by the screen flashing white on the tenth tap. This can resolve the stuck app downloads and sometimes increases speed by eliminating old space-wasting data.
The trick can also be used in other apps including iTunes, iBooks and the Safari web browser. Replies in the original Twitter thread indicate that it generally works and eliminates any issues the user may be having with the app, including performance problems.
Responses include “I thought you were trolling. But this actually works.” Others are more skeptical, claiming it “didn’t change anything” or failed to work at all. It does appear to work for many though, indicating there are hidden ways to speed up Apple’s iOS.
Recently, Apple was confronted with a class action lawsuit from a group of disgruntled owners of slow iPhones. They allege the company intentionally slowed down the iPhone 4S with last year’s iOS 9 update, claiming they were left with a “slow and buggy” device that “interferes with normal usage.”
The lawsuit concludes Apple deliberately “significantly slowed down” the 2011 iPhone 4S in a bid to make owners consider upgrading to a newer device. It claims advertising material for iOS 9 focused only on performance improvements without warning that it could create a worse experience on older devices.
It doesn’t look like tapping 10 times will be able to quickly resolve this issue, even if it does work on newer phones. Apple has yet to hear the class action lawsuit but a similar case in 2011, concerning the iOS 4 update for the iPhone 3G, was thrown out by the judge who ruled that a software update is not a “good or service.”