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iOS 7.0.2 on iPhone 5 Review: Impressions & Performance

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Earlier today, Apple rolled out a small but important update for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch owners in the form of a iOS 7.0.2 update. The update comes just a few days after the initial release of the greater iOS 7 update and here, we take a look at how well the new update performs on Apple’s previous iPhone, the iPhone 5.

Last week was one of the biggest weeks of the year for iPhone owners. After months of waiting, Apple finally released the iOS 7 update for the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, ushering in a new era for iOS-powered devices.

iOS 7 is the biggest change to iOS since the inception of iOS as the update brings not only new features but brings a brand new look to the table as well. Icons look different, the colors are vastly different than the ones that were found in iOS 6 and below, and the user interface is much flatter than Apple’s previous releases.

The new features include Control Center, an easy way to bring up the software’s most used functions, improved Siri, an overhauled Notification Center, AirDrop, a new camera app, and more. So it should come as no surprise that millions of iPhone, iPad and iPod touch owners downloaded the software on its first day of availability.

The iPhone 5S release has one Canadian carrier planning to discontinue the iPhone 5 32GB and 64GB models.

Last week, almost immediately, a major security flaw was discovered residing within iOS 7, a flaw that allowed users to bypass the lock screen to access things like photos and contacts. iOS 6 had lock screen security issues as well though with Apple’s emphasis on security with the addition of Activation Lock and the iPhone 5s’ new fingerprint reader, the issue was given a ton of attention.

Fortunately, Apple is Apple and the company worked to swiftly tackle the issue and earlier today, the company release a new iOS 7 update, iOS 7.0.2. The update follows the iOS 7.0.1 update that arrived for iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c owners on Friday.

iOS 7.0.2 for iPhone 5 was released earlier today.

iOS 7.0.2 for iPhone 5 was released earlier today.

The update isn’t a big one though there will still be iOS 7 owners who are curious about the update, specifically, about whether it’s worth installing. Remember, iOS updates can often break things.

For those who are maybe holding back, or just want some reassurance, we have dove into the iOS 7.0.2 update for the iPhone 5 and here, we offer our impressions of its performance.

What a Difference a Week Makes

The iOS 7.0.2 update process was vastly different from the iOS 7 installation process. While last week, it took the iPhone 5 hours to complete the upgrade, the iOS 7.0.2 update only took about 10 or so minutes to finish downloading and installing. Of course, we’re talking apples to oranges here, the iOS 7 update was far bigger, but it was nice to see that there were no lingering issues.

We still recommend making a back up just in case something does go wrong but we don’t foresee any major issues. We installed the update Over-the-Air and it worked out just fine.

Security Issue Fixed

Shortly after the arrival of iOS 7, users discovered a nasty security flaw that allowed nefarious individuals to use a simple method to bypass the lock screen and get into the iPhone 5’s contacts and camera roll.

All someone would have to do in iOS 7 is head to the lock screen, swipe up from the bottom of the screen and launch the clock app. Pressing the power button at the top of the iPhone would bring up the option to power off the device. Then, by pressing cancel rather than sliding to power off, users could tap the home button twice to bring up the iOS 7 multitasking interface. From there, prying eyes could, and still can on iOS 7, clearly see which apps the iPhone’s owner has used recently.

Fortunately, the problem appears to be fixed with iOS 7.0.2. We are unable to replicate the method above, so it seems like the work that Apple did between the release of iOS 7 and now paid off.

iOS 7.0.2 Battery Life

One of the major questions that iPhone owners typically ask before installing an iOS update is: “How is the battery life?” It’s an important question because often, iOS updates can bring erratic battery life to some users and in the case of iOS 6.1, bad battery life to the masses.

After using iOS 7.0.2 for several hours, we can confirm that the update doesn’t bring battery drain along for the ride. The iPhone 5’s battery life remains stable and arguably better than it was in iOS 6.

Those who are having battery life issues with iOS 7 will want to check out our battery life tips for some ways to try and solve battery life problems that may be afflicting the device.

Wi-Fi Acting Normally

We’ve heard that some iPhone owners are experiencing Wi-Fi issues after installing iOS 7, Wi-Fi issues that we haven’t run into. Thus far, in both iOS 7 and iOS 7.0.2, Wi-Fi has been acting normally with trade-offs to LTE working out well and speeds on both known and new networks performing well.

4G LTE Speedy As Usual

4G LTE connectivity on AT&T is as fast as it was in iOS 7 and iOS 6. The iPhone 5 still picks up fast speeds when in 4G LTE service areas and it also picks up quick 4G HSPA+ service where LTE isn’t available. So fortunately, it doesn’t look like iOS 7.0.2 has brought any cellular connectivity issues along with it.

UI Lag Persists

Change wallpaper iOS 7We have experienced noticeable lag within iOS 7, particularly when using the multitasking function. Often, things on screen take a few sections to catch up with swipes. This issue persists in iOS 7.0.2 as the user interface occasionally is a step behind user input.

It doesn’t happen all of the time, and as we pointed out when iOS 7 came out, it’s more of an annoyance than a major issue. Hopefully, over time, the issue will iron itself out as Apple works to improve its latest software.

Call Quality Remains the Same

We’ve seen a dip in call quality ever since updating to iOS 7. Instead of the crisp clear audio quality that we got in iOS 6, we’ve started to experience some choppiness both with regular calls and with the FaceTime Audio function. It’s extremely difficult to peg this on iOS 7, it could be a connection issue, but the issue started happening last week after installing iOS 7.

The issues persist in iOS 7.0.2 as well as people on the other line continually fade in and out, even when in locations where they were fine a week ago. It happens both with regular calls and with FaceTime Audio. We’ve heard that this is an issue for other iPhone owners as well, not just owners of the iPhone 5.

No Major Bugs

Thus far, we haven’t found any major bugs inside of iOS 7.0.2, nothing like the security flaw that was discovered hiding in iOS 7. So at this point, it’s safe to think that the iPhone 5 won’t be taking on any extra issues with iOS 7.0.2.

Should You Install iOS 7.0.2?

iPhone 5 owners should feel good about installing iOS 7.0.2. It doesn’t appear to have broken anything and it cleared up the one major iOS 7 flaw that was discovered lurking around after its release.

Control-Center-iOS-7

Battery life is solid, connectivity is fast and functional and the all-around iOS 7 experience far outweighs the minor lag issues that we’ve encountered on the iPhone 5.

49 Comments

49 Comments

  1. T_T ☺ (@T_T_Gonzo)

    09/26/2013 at 3:29 pm

    Pft. I am going to wait until Black Friday to install iOS 7.x (if at all). I see no compelling reason to update so soon.

    • Richard Allison

      09/27/2013 at 9:37 pm

      If my Iphone 5s could be downgraded to iOS 6 I would lol

  2. jenni2

    09/26/2013 at 4:17 pm

    my parents in-law recently purchased a nice 12 month old Hyundai Elantra Touring Hatchback just by working online with a computer. go……….. https://www.pilulo.us/rcn2nldmcc

  3. 107proof (@107proof)

    09/26/2013 at 5:53 pm

    Video on increasing battery life with iOS 7 https://youtu.be/9tjrFRzHFlY

  4. Michael Russell

    09/26/2013 at 6:09 pm

    Not sure about ‘lag’ as stated above? I haven’t experienced that at all on my iPhone 5…or at least it doesn’t seem any different from IOS 6. It takes about a second after swapping from one app to another (using multitasking) before you can start work / access commands etc. but this hardly effects work flow. I do have friends running IOS 7 on iPhone 4 and they are waiting a 2-3 seconds…which is quite annoying & I think does constitute as ‘lag’. But iPhone 5C, 5 & 5S run IOS 7 seamlessly.

  5. Shaari Mohamad Zuki

    09/26/2013 at 6:39 pm

    I’m using iphone 5.. Just waiting, if stable i will install it..tq

  6. testing2

    09/26/2013 at 6:54 pm

    I would hold off on installing it still. There are problems with the way it handles HTML and on three iPads, two iPad minis and an iPad 2 the iPads have crashed several times and rebooted after intensive use. Signs of a memory leak in the programming. It will probably be a good 4-5 updates before it becomes stable.

  7. T

    09/26/2013 at 7:38 pm

    IOS 7 does not allow automatic text replies WHILE ON A CALL. This is an incredible oversight given it was in IOS 6.

  8. Madison

    09/26/2013 at 8:46 pm

    I have the five and just got the 7.0.2 and have no service! It’s as if my data is turned off which it’s not

    • [email protected]

      09/27/2013 at 5:34 am

      I have had the same problem for 2 days now and its been eating my data. I tried googling it researching what to do. I tried power cycling it, resetting the network and updating to ios 7.0.2 since there were no other options for me to do. I regret up grading.

    • Michael Minamyer

      09/27/2013 at 2:39 pm

      Same thing happened to me a few hours ago. Verizon is sending me a new one

    • chirs

      09/30/2013 at 10:30 am

      same here, wtf!

      • Richard Allison

        09/30/2013 at 11:14 am

        Mines working fine on my iPhone 5s AT&T unlocked and also my iPhone. 5 unlocked AT&T

  9. Sparsh Goyal

    09/26/2013 at 9:34 pm

    it says unable to upgrade on my iphone 4

    • Nndsk

      09/28/2013 at 5:50 pm

      Because the A4 processor chip wount support I beleaguered anything above 7.0

      • Richard Allison

        09/28/2013 at 5:53 pm

        Kill ya self iPhone 4 is supported by iOS 7 only phone that wasn’t is iPhone 3GS

  10. Brad eaton

    09/27/2013 at 4:49 am

    7.0 on my iPhone 4 allows me to turn off pass code feature. 7.0.2 on my iPad does not.

  11. Frank Beshears

    09/27/2013 at 5:11 am

    I don’t like the appearance of the screen. Apple is trying to copy the competition and with iOS 7.0.2 will make myself and others start to look at the competition. I was a loyal apple Comsumer but not any more. This new rediculus operating system iOS 7.0.2 is a joke. Bye bye apple you have jumped the shark.

  12. Waldis

    09/27/2013 at 6:43 am

    iPad don’t allow use Face time and iMessage with 7.0.2. Internet works fine, but for these options it tells to check network connections… ???

  13. Andrew O'Connel

    09/27/2013 at 6:43 am

    Obviously they are influenced by the competition more and more in the latest period.
    This 0.2 upgrade brings only few minor improvements, not significantly wow for the new iPhone 5 generation.

  14. Bill Davidson

    09/27/2013 at 12:01 pm

    I have a iphone 4s. Battery life has been amazingly great. (2 – 3 days). Just loaded the 7.0.2 and I have 26% after 6 hours. Hope this gets better. I am also disappointed in the appearance. Liked the old icons better. They had depth and class.

    • Steven

      09/27/2013 at 1:46 pm

      LIke Bill, my phone which was functioning beautifully, is taking hours to charge. Then it will not hold the charge. I have a 5, 2 weeks out of warranty!

    • Steven

      09/27/2013 at 2:01 pm

      Bill,
      I have an iphone 4 and after some initial difficulty with the ios 7 upgrade over wifi, I wiped my phone clean, set it up as new, and then installed my backup from my computer via itunes. I freed up over 3 gb that way and noticed an immediate improvement. Here is the best part. As ios 7 updates to my apps have become available, the phone is settling and performing smoother. It appears that app compatability may influence how well ios 7 functions. This could be the real reason that waiting a month or so yields the best outcome. It may not be Apple’s fault at all.
      Steven

  15. Michael Minamyer

    09/27/2013 at 2:37 pm

    The last few days after updating IOS 7 the battery life dropped within 5 mins to shutdown and the phone got real hot. After downloading IOS 7.0.2 today the and the phone lost the Verizon network and constantly searching. Took it to Verizon today and they switched out the SIM card and that didn’t fix it either. Got a warranty replacement coming in the mail now.

  16. blackn6345

    09/27/2013 at 2:38 pm

    I have the iphone 5 and been experiencing issues with 7.0 and the new 7.0.2. I am debating going back to 6.1.4. I been having some programs crash. I will be in the Settings looking around and all of a sudden, it closes. Go back and and again be looking around and it closes. Does not matter what I am looking at, just closes. I can crash the mail program, I have had other programs just close out with no warning. I thought it might be from going from 6.1.4 to 7.0 so I removed all saved data from the cloud and PC. Actually deleted the account from my iphone. Reloaded from factory and started recreating everything again. Still have crashes. I have what I need to go back to 6.1.4 but debating if I want to because I do like some new futures. But is it worth the headache. I never had any issues with 6.1.4. It was solid.

    • Steven

      09/28/2013 at 5:22 am

      Use iTunes and a WIRED connection with your computer and restore from backup. If given an option, choose a backup prior to the date you first attempted to install ios7. Then restore as new.

      It is always better to install a NEW operating system into a wiped clean phone. Updates along the way such as 7.0.2 are ok with wifi.

      • Richard Allison

        09/28/2013 at 6:15 am

        If u don’t have your apticket saved for iph

      • Richard Allison

        09/28/2013 at 6:17 am

        You will not be a will to restore back to 6.1.4 if you do not have your AP ticket or SH SH saved people was having problems with there shsh trying to restore back on a5 and up devices so good luck

  17. Joshua808

    09/27/2013 at 5:19 pm

    Today, I downloaded ios 7.0.2 this morning at school, and after the update, it worked really good; the battery came a little bit better and the connection (3g) is way really fast than ios 7 :)

  18. Desmond

    09/27/2013 at 7:16 pm

    Sounds not working when updated to ios 7 on iphone4

    • Steven

      09/28/2013 at 5:05 am

      Desmond
      You experienced an installation problem with ios7. My guess is that you tried to upgrade via wifi. First try resetting your phone by holdind down both sleep and home buttons until the screen goes black. Continue until the apple symbol appears and wait until ready for use. If that does not work, restore from backup via itunes. The best is last. Make sure your contacts and all important data and paid apps are backed up in the cloud and itunes. Then wipe your phone clean in settings, plug your phone into your computer and set your phone up as a new phone. You can also try restoring from itunes backup first Same procedure.

      Your phone will be fine. Don’t worry. Total time: 90 minutes max including upgrading iTunes.

  19. Guy

    09/28/2013 at 9:44 am

    I have an iPhone 4 on IOS 6.1.3 … I am totally uncertain whether I ought to get 7.0.2, as I am unsure what “benefits” I’ll actually see. Plus I really dislike the new icons, I think they look awful.

    • Jane

      10/09/2013 at 6:39 am

      The icons and the look are disgustingly horrible. If they dont fix the icons and layouts im saying bye bye apple.

      • LARRY

        10/11/2013 at 10:36 pm

        good for you jane, i took back my iphone 5s the same day i got it, yep BYE BYE GOOD RIDDANCE APPLE OH NO CRAPPLE, they are out for profits not the buyers or our concerns!!

  20. Pam Dennison

    09/28/2013 at 12:07 pm

    I can’t close out apps after installing iSO 7.0.2. Anyone have suggestions?

    • Richard Allison

      09/28/2013 at 12:14 pm

      Closes out just like it did in any other iOS 7

      • Pam Dennison

        09/28/2013 at 4:58 pm

        I must have had an earlier version. Apps closed out by tapping on the minus sign.

      • pranab

        09/29/2013 at 6:47 am

        please tell me steps follow to close applications

    • IOU812

      10/20/2013 at 7:08 pm

      ya get a hammer and smash it

  21. karen keltz

    09/29/2013 at 12:06 pm

    I have same problem as Pam–no minus signs show up. Also the upgrade took away most of my contact information. How do I get that back?

  22. Lynn

    10/01/2013 at 11:10 pm

    I downloaded iOS 7 .2 and now my phone tells me I have to plug it in iTunes but when I plug it in iTunes the only option it gives me is to restore the whole phone. Any suggestions?

  23. Nina

    10/05/2013 at 8:33 am

    I had a bad experience with the 7.0.2. It shut down my iPad and asked me to connect to iTunes, then to restore my iPad but the restore was unsuccessful due to an unknown error occurred. Now I must go to the store the 2nd time around (just went last night) and most likely they are going to give me a replacement AGAIN since it is still under warranty. It is very frustrating as I will have to re-download all apps and request the Lava Team to re-download all my games with the current levels I am currently on. My iPad is a gift. I love Apple products but I will never buy or recommend people to buy them as there are too many restrictions and not worth the many issues I have experienced.

    • Jane

      10/09/2013 at 6:47 am

      I totally agree. Apple is a sinking ship. Im jumping off. Goodbye apple.

  24. cookie19

    10/10/2013 at 9:48 am

    Closing inactive apps in 7.0.2 – https://discussions.apple.com/message/23282423#23282423 – you have to double tap to get the multitasking screen then swipe upwards on each app you want to get rid of….:)

  25. bishrant

    10/18/2013 at 6:21 am

    I updated to ios 7.0.2 and my iphone 5 gets slower in temple run 2

  26. Dennis

    10/18/2013 at 5:00 pm

    Adam, I’m glad you are not experiencing issues with your update but I certainly am AND I suspect many others are as well. I have seen many articles and tons of YouTube videos where people are actually showing what a mess their iPads have become since downloading this horrible software. Bottom line, it is rushed piece of software that they couldn’t wait to get out to make a statement after the Forstall incident. I also think it was an opportunity for Jony Ives to make himself look important. Unfortunately, IOS7 is a feeble and rushed attempt of creating change to satisfy egos and shareholders who we’re chomping at the bit for something new. Well I hope they are all happy now having ruined a brand that people thought was special. I’m sure they are about to ruin the rest of their products as well. Without a genius at the helm, the inmates will be running the asylum.

  27. Jony

    10/22/2013 at 3:09 am

    does everyone experience heating in ios 7.0.2 on their iphone 5? how to solve this problem?? Thanks if there will be a reply.

  28. Dennis

    10/23/2013 at 6:35 am

    Hey everyone, the only way to get your device working is to wipe it clean and do a complete new install of IOS7. Make sure you have all your data on iCloud because you will have to bring it all back in. You will have to set up your mail accounts again so you need your passwords and before you do this make a note of all your preferences that you have set because you likely won’t remember them all. I have noticed a really big difference in the operation of my iPad 3 since doing this. I updated mine at the Apple store.

  29. Linda Black

    10/31/2013 at 5:51 pm

    The update has caused me to consider switching to another smart phone. Nothing about the update improves the usefulness of the iPhone. I have never blogged about anything before. That’s how bad it is.

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