Apple
Apple Pulls iOS 8.0.1 Update After Problems Ensue
Just a week after Apple released iOS 8 to the public, the company outed a minor update in the form of iOS 8.0.1 in order to fix a handful of bugs and performance issues. However, the update only seems to have made the issues worse, and Apple has now pulled the update.
iOS 8.0.1 came with a handful of bug fixes and improvements including fixes for the keyboards, Photo Library, unexpected cellular data usage when receiving SMS or MMS messages, and much more. Overall, the update just seems to fix a few problems that have plagued users who installed the update on launch day.
However, the minor update has now created a major problem, with many users reporting that their iPhone 6 can no longer connect to cellular data and the Touch ID fingerprint sensor has quit working. We confirmed this ourselves installing iOS 8.0.1 on the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus on AT&T and Verizon, and we no longer have cell service on either device and Touch ID will not work either.
Users who are experiencing these issues will see Searching… appear up in the left-hand corner of the screen in the status bar where the cell signal is usually located. When that appears instead, it means that you don’t have cell service in that particular area. However, even while located in a well-covered cellular area, some users are still claiming they can’t get service after updating to iOS 8.0.1.
Do not install iOS 8.0.1 as it breaks cell service and Touch ID on many iPhones.
Because of this, Apple has pulled the update from its servers until it can find a fix for it, according to Re/Code, which isn’t too surprising. However, if you already downloaded and installed iOS 8.0.1 on your iPhone 6 and are experiencing these issues, there is a way back, and at least a workaround if you’re stuck on iOS 8.0.1.
First off, you can still make calls on your iPhone 6 even without a cellular signal. All you need to do is connect to a WiFi network and use an app that can make audio calls, such as FaceTime Audio, Google Hangouts or even Skype.
Better yet, if you installed iOS 8.0.1, you can still downgrade back to iOS 8. All you have to do is download the iOS 8 install file and restore your iPhone by selecting that install file from iTunes (make sure you turn off Find My iPhone before you begin this process).
Apple usually doesn’t let you downgrade to previous versions of iOS after you’ve already updated, but in this case, the company is still signing iOS 8.0, so it’s still open to download and install if you need to go back to it for this reason.
