Apple

The Most Annoying iOS 12 Bug (And How to Fix It)

Published

6 years ago

10/24/2018

There are a lot of frustrating iOS 12 problems, but one takes the cake as the single most annoying issue plaguing Apple’s new operating system.

Lots of iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch users are having a great experience on iOS 12 and iOS 12.0.1. Apple’s speed enhancements have transformed devices like the iPhone 5s and iPhone 6 and many users can now hold onto their aging devices for another year.

That said, plenty of others are running into bugs and debilitating performance issues like severe battery drain, broken Wi-Fi, and busted Bluetooth connectivity. It’s not as buggy as iOS 11, but the list of iOS 12 problems continues to grow as more people adopt the operating system.

We’ve been testing the iOS 12 update on the iPhone X, iPhone 7, iPhone 6s, iPhone 6, iPhone 5s, and iPhone SE and we’ve been pretty impressed with the software. However, we’ve also run into several issues including one that we want to call out today ahead of the iOS 12.1 release later this year.

We first ran into the issue, we’ve called it the Phone App Bug here at GBM, a few weeks ago immediately after we setup the iPhone XS Max for the first time. Since then we’ve run into the problem on other devices including the iPhone X. Here’s how it goes down.

We’ll start a phone call, typically FaceTime Audio, with another person. Sometime during the phone call, the line will go silent and neither party will be able to hear one another. At first we thought it was a Wi-Fi to LTE (or vice versa) handoff issue, but that’s not the case.

At this point the Phone application will lockup, sometimes completely and the app will get froze on a screen showing the person’s name followed by “Call Ending”.

If the person the other line tries to call back, the Phone app will immediately end the second call and any subsequent calls made after that. The screen looks like this:

Occasionally, we’re able to pull up the multitasking menu to get to the home screen and our other apps, but the Phone app stays like this with no way to force close it or make additional calls. Other times the phone remains stuck on this screen with no way out.

The only fix we’ve found thus far is a restart. Power down the phone, power it back on, and the Phone app works like it should. That is until the issue happens again.

In case you’ve forgotten, here’s how to restart your phone:

iPhone 7 & Older

Hold down the power button until it asks you to slide to turn it off.
Hold the same button to power the device back on.

iPhone 8 & Newer

Quickly press volume up and release.
Quickly press volume down and release.
Press the side button and slide to turn off.
Press the side button to turn the phone back on.

Unlike some issues that popup once and go away, we’ve encountered this issue more than 15 times on our iPhones during our time on iOS 12.0 and iOS 12.0.1.

We still don’t know if there is something in particular that triggers the issue, it seems random at this point, but it’s present on all of our devices running iOS 12.

We also don’t know how widespread the issue is, but we aren’t the only ones dealing with a frozen Phone app:

https://twitter.com/alexandraxoxxoo/status/1054450723587530752

Hey @AppleSupport my phone app is frozen after iOS12 update. Can I get some help?

— Focused in So FL (@FtlGuinness) October 18, 2018

@AppleSupport yo why isn’t my McFreakin phone app working why she frozen but every other app works what’s up w that I’m trying to call my mom and tell her about my day

— spøøky bethica (@suicideseesun) October 18, 2018

Our goal here is to bring attention to the issue so that Apple can issue a fix inside an upcoming iOS 12 update. The iOS 12.1 update is on the horizon, but there’s no guarantee the company’s first milestone upgrade includes a fix for this issue.

We aren’t holding our breath.

4 Reasons Not to Install iOS 12.5.6 & 10 Reasons You Should

Install iOS 12.5.6 for Better Security

1 / 14

If you're on the fence, here's one of the best reasons to install iOS 12.5.6 right away.

iOS 12.5.6 has a vital security patch on board and it will protect your device(s) from harm. If you want the details, head over to Apple's website.

If you missed the iOS 12.5.5 update, it brought three security patches to your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch. You can learn more about the trio on Apple's security site.

If you missed iOS 12.5.4, you'll get that update's important security upgrades with your iOS 12.5.6 update. If you're interested in the particulars, head on over to Apple's website for more.

If you skipped iOS 12.5.3, you'll get its security patches with your upgrade. Both of its patches were related to WebKit. If you want to learn more about them, head on over to Apple's security site.

If you skipped iOS 12.5.2, you'll also get its security patch with your upgrade. You can read more about it over on Apple's website.

If you also skipped iOS 12.5, you'll also get its patch with your upgrade. Apple's outlined the update's patch in detail on its security site.

If you missed iOS 12.4.9, you'll also get its four security patches with your upgrade. You can read more about those right here.

If you skipped iOS 12.4.7, you also get the update's three security patches (two for the Mail app and one for Wi-Fi) with your upgrade to iOS 12.5.6.

If you're running software that's older than Apple's iOS 12.4.4 update, you'll want to download iOS 12.5.6 in the near future because it brings iOS 12.4.4's security patch to your device. You can read about it right here.

If you're running software older than iOS 12.4.2, you'll get an its patch with your upgrade. You can read about the security contents of iOS 12.4.2 right here.

If you're on software that's older than iOS 12.4.1, you'll get iOS 12.4.1's security patch with your iOS 12.5.6 update. You can read about that patch right here.

If you're on software that's older than iOS 12.4, you get iOS 12.4's patches with your iOS 12.5.6 update.

iOS 12.4 brought 19 security patches to the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. If you're interested in the specifics, you can read about them on Apple's security site.

If you're running software older than iOS 12.3, your iOS 12.5.6 update carries iOS 12.3's security patches on board. The iOS 12.3 update brought 23 patches and you can read about all of them right here on Apple's site.

If you're on software that's older than iOS 12.2, you'll get iOS 12.2's security patches with your version of iOS 12.5.6.

iOS 12.2 brought a whopping 41 security patches to iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. You can read more about the iOS 12.2's patches over on the company's website.

It's important to note that Apple's iOS 12.2 update patched up an exploit that allowed websites to use motion sensors to "fingerprint" devices.

The exploit, discovered by researchers in Europe, uses JavaScript to snag data from a device's accelerometer, gyroscope, and magnetometer when the user visits an infected website. If the attack is successful, a device can be tracked around the internet.

Fortunately, Apple's patched up the issue. If you skipped it, you'll probably want to move to iOS 12.5.6 soon.

If you're on software older than iOS 12.1.4, you get four important security patches including fixes for a widespread FaceTime eavesdropping bug that lets you call someone via FaceTime and hear the audio coming from their phone before they pick up the phone.

If you're on software older than iOS 12.1.3, you get some additional patches with your version of iOS 12.5.6. Again, they're baked into your upgrade.

Apple lists a grand total of 23 patches on board iOS 12.1.3 and you can read about all of them over on Apple's website.

If you're on software older than iOS 12.1.1, you should install the iOS 12.5.6 update on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch today.

The iOS 12.1.1 update brought 17 patches for potential security exploits. They'll will help protect your phone. You can read about them here.

If you're running software older than iOS 12.1, you'll get 24 patches from that update with your version of iOS 12.5.5.

If you're on software that's older than iOS 12.0.1, your iOS 12.5.6 update brings two additional patches. Both patches are for potential lock screen exploits.

Long story long, if you store sensitive data on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch, you have some really good reasons to upgrade to iOS 12.5.6 today.