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iOS 8.1.2 on iPhone 6 Plus: Impressions & Performance

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The iOS 8.1.2 update arrived with a surprise on Tuesday, offering bug fixes and a fix for missing iPhone ringtones. This small update came as Apple publicly worked on a bigger iOS 8.2 beta that will help the Apple Watch connect to the iPhone when it arrives in 2015.

While the timing was surprising, the need for another small iOS 8 bug fix is not. Apple spent the last two months patching up a variety of iOS 8 problems that pestered users since the release in September. As iOS 8 adoption rates stick near 63%, the company continues to fix these problems.

With iOS 8.1.2 now available to download, we are taking a look at how the new update performs on the iPhone 6 Plus. This is our early iPhone 6 Plus iOS 8.1.2 review.

The major update in September delivered a wide range of new features, but it also included a number of iOS 8 Problems. Through a variety of small and large updates Apple fixed many of these issues. Although a problem with the iOS 8.0.1 update knocked out cell service on the iPhone 6 Plus, the rest of the updates did not deliver problems of the same magnitude. At this pace Apple is on track to release faster, small bug fix updates like this — so settle in for more frequent updates.

This is our early iOS 8.1.2 review on the iPhone 6 Plus.

This is our early iOS 8.1.2 review on the iPhone 6 Plus.

Even small focused updates like this can break features or add problems, which is why we download and dive into testing the update as soon as Apple releases the latest iOS 8 updates. There is no deal breaker like the iOS 8.0.1 update that broke Touch ID and cell service, but you can read on to hear about new or continuing problems on the iPhone 6 Plus.

Here are my early impressions of the iOS 8.1.2 update on the iPhone 6 Plus.

iOS 8.1.2 Installation

The iOS 8.1.2 installation went smooth on the iPhone 6 Plus. This update was small, less than 30MB, but it still requires a WiFi connection to download. It helps that I followed our iOS 8 update preparation guide to get ready for the update.

This is a small update that did not take long to download to my iPhone 6 Plus. After the short download I agreed to the terms and the update started. It took about 15 minutes to update to iOS 8.1.2, not counting the backup I performed ahead of the update.

This was quick and did not result in any problems or issues, but it is still a great idea to make a backup before you proceed.

iOS 8.1.2 on iPhone 6 Plus Performance

After using the iPhone 6 Plus on iOS 8.1.2 for almost a day there are some areas where things aren’t working just as they did before, but overall this feels like a good update. I’ll go into more details as i walk through the five key areas that we test after installing an update like this.

Problems and issues can vary from device to device depending on the apps installed and many other factors that make our iPhone 6 Plus installations and setups just a bit different.

Apps

See how iOS 8.1.2 performs on the iPhone 6 Plus.

See how iOS 8.1.2 performs on the iPhone 6 Plus.

All of my essential iPhone 6 Plus apps work on the iOS 8.1.2 update without any problems. This includes Gmail, Google Hangouts, Safari, Facebook, Tweetbot, Netflix, ESPN Fantasy Football and many of my other top iPhone 6 Plus apps.

If you experience any problems, make sure you update the apps to the latest versions, which may include some fixes that help overall performance. For users with specialized apps, see how they perform for others before updating.

iOS 8.1.2 Battery Life

The iPhone 6 Plus battery life on iOS 8.1.2 is stellar, with no change from iOS 8.1 or iOS 8.1.1. There is no fast battery drain or odd battery life behavior, and overnight the iPhone 6 Plus battery life remained relatively stable when I left it off the charger to check standby battery life on iOS 8.1.2. If you do run into problems, try these tips to get better iOS 8 battery life.

WiFi, Cellular Data & Bluetooth

Connectivity is the most important part of the iPhone 6 Plus for me. If these services fail, i cannot use the apps and features that are built-in to the iPhone 6 Plus. The iOS 8.1.2 WiFi performance is strong on multiple networks and I was able to use the phone as a personal hotspot, though Instant Hotspot is still a hit or miss thing.

This is an AT&T iPhone 6 Plus and it continues to connect to 4G and 4G LTE networks without any problems on iOS 8.1.2.

So far Bluetooth is working, but there may be some issue with it as AirDrop is not identifying my computer as often as before the update.

Bugs & Issues

With iOS 8.1.2 installed AirDrop to Mac is less reliable. It worked about 75% of the time before this update and it is now at 30 to 50% success. When it fails it will not detect the Mac Pro that is 3 feet away. This is frustrating, but does not break a core function thankfully.

When I tried to answer a call to my iPhone 6 on my iPhone 6 Plus it failed, which has not happened in a long time on the iPhone 6 Plus or iPhone 6. I will keep an eye on this potential problem.

These are the main iOS 8.1.2 problems that appeared in the first day, it is possible that others will surface with extended use. Small, annoying problems have a way of appearing after several days instead of right after installation.

If you still have problems, check out our iPhone 6 Plus problems and fixes for potential solutions.

Speed

The iPhone 6 Plus is just as fast as it was on the iOS 8.1.1 update and on iOS 8.1. Everything runs smooth and switching apps and other common tasks are speedy. This is to be expected on a 3 month old device.

Should You Install iOS iOS 8.1.2?

Should you install iOS 8.1.2 now?

Should you install iOS 8.1.2 now?

Since you are already on iOS 8, this is a simpler question to answer. There are no deal breaking iOS 8.1.2 problems at this point, so it is a good idea to update to iOS 8.1.2 if you are currently facing iOS 8.1 or iOS 8.1.1 problems. if you need your ringtones back, this is also a good update to install.

If you are not experiencing any problems, you may want to wait a week to see if any small issues or iOS 8.1.2 bugs appear. After a week we typically know exactly what is great and what is bad with a particular update for the iPhone.

 

 

 

 

6 Comments

6 Comments

  1. Neville James

    12/10/2014 at 7:57 am

    I don’t know what’s the problem. I have the iPhone 6 plus from day one. No problems at all works perfect.

  2. Casey

    12/10/2014 at 3:07 pm

    8.1.2 broke Touch ID on my iPhone 6+ 128gb

    Can’t even get it to take a fresh print

  3. Bgf

    12/10/2014 at 5:52 pm

    I do a good woody Allen impression … Thank you. Than you very much

  4. Stephen Sigmon

    12/11/2014 at 8:10 am

    I just installed IOS 8.1.2 and it fixed an issue I had with the camera on the iPhone 6plus. I was one of the users that had camera stabilization issues (camera wouldn’t focus) and now it seems that problem has cleared up. Interesting development since Apple stated it was a hardware issue. This is actually the second iPhone 6plus I have had with the same issue. Apple replaced the first phone and about 3 weeks later, the replacement phone had the same issue. I actually have a Genius Bar appointment on December 12th to address it. Now it seems that may not be needed.

    Anyone else have this same issue?

  5. Bruce Swain

    12/11/2014 at 5:30 pm

    my iOS 8.1.2 ugrade has forced the phone to zoom display settings which cannot be turned off.

  6. Nicollo Lopez

    12/22/2014 at 2:14 am

    Just installed iOS 8.1.2 and have been experiencing some serious battery drain… And I know I am not alone!

    https://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=1827857

    Hope Apple fixes this. I could last 15hrs with my ip6+ but now I only last 8 hrs. Weird.

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