Apple

How to Fix iPhone 14 Performance Problems

Published

3 months ago

01/08/2024

We’re getting feedback from those who have adopted Apple’s iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro, and iPhone 14 Pro Max. A lot of the feedback is good, but we’ve also heard about performance problems like stuttering, lockups, and lag.

If your iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro, or iPhone 14 Pro Max freezes or lags, you don’t need to get in touch with Apple customer service just yet. You may be able to fix your issue(s) in a matter of minutes.

This walkthrough will take you through solutions for performance problems that have worked for us in the past. They’ll also help you maintain a fast, and efficient, iPhone 14 well into the future.

Table of Contents

Restart Your iPhone

If you start running into performance issues on your iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro, or iPhone 14 Pro Max, try restarting your device. Often times, a quick reboot will alleviate the problems.

Power down your device, leave it off for 30 seconds or so, and then power it back on and see if performance improves. If it doesn’t, you’ll want to try the solutions below.

Update Your iPhone

Apple will push out new iOS 17 software throughout the year. Point updates (iOS x.x.x) are almost always focused on fixing bugs while milestone upgrades (iOS x.x) typically deliver a mix of new features and bug fixes.

The company may not call out performance fixes in an iOS 17 update’s change log, but new software always has the potential to help (or hurt) your iPhone 14’s overall performance.

For more on the latest version of iOS 17, check out our guide.

Update Your Apps

Try updating the applications on your iPhone to the latest version if an update is available on the App Store.

App developers are rolling out support updates and they could help stabilize the app and/or your iPhone 14’s overall performance.

Before you install the latest version of an app, make sure you dig into reviews from other iPhone 14 and iOS 17 users. If the reviews are mostly good, download the latest version.

Reset All Settings

You might also try resetting your iPhone 14’s settings. This will restore your device’s settings to their factory defaults so make sure you have your Wi-Fi passwords handy. You’ll need to re-enter them when the process finishes up.

Go into the Settings app.
Tap General.
Tap Transfer or Reset iPhone.
Tap Reset.
Tap Reset All Settings.
Enter your passcode if you have one enabled.

This could take a few seconds to complete so remain patient.

Cleanup Your Storage

If you transferred files from an old phone to your iPhone 14, you might have a lot of clutter taking up space on your phone’s internal storage. Getting rid of these unused files and apps could help improve your device’s performance.

You’ll want to check and see how much space is available on your iPhone 14. Here’s how to do that:

Head into Settings.
Tap General.
Tap Storage & iCloud Usage.
Select Manage Storage.

If you’re getting close to reaching the storage threshold, you’ll want to head back into General and go to where it says iPhone Storage. This will show you a detailed rundown of your data.

Apple will make some recommendations based on the utilization of your device’s storage, but you can also just go through each section manually delete files you no longer need.

Clear Browser Cookies & Data

Clearing your browser’s cookies and data will free up memory which could have a positive impact on your phone’s performance.

If you use Apple’s Safari browser, here’s how to clear them:

Go to the Settings app.
Tap Safari.
Scroll down to where it says Clear History and Website Data. Tap on it.

Tapping this will remove your browsing history, cookies, and other data from Safari. History will also be cleared from any devices signed into your iCloud account. If you’re up for that, tap Clear History and Data again.

If you use Google’s Chrome browser, here’s what you need to do:

Head into Chrome.
Tap the three horizontal circles in the bottom right corner.
Tap Settings.
Tap Privacy.
Tap Clear Browsing Data.

You can now select what you want to delete. If you’re noticing heavy lag, you might want to clear out everything and start from scratch.

Downgrade iOS

If you recently installed a new version of iOS 17 on your iPhone 14 and you’re noticing issues, you could try moving your iPhone 14’s software back to the previous version of iOS 17 if the option is available.

If you don’t know how to downgrade an iPhone’s software, have a look at our walkthrough.

4 Reasons Not to Install iOS 17.4.1 & 11 Reasons You Should

Install iOS 17.4.1 for Better Security

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If security is important to you, think about installing Apple's iOS 17.4.1 update right away.

The iOS 17.4.1 update includes two security patches. These patches will help keep your device and its data protected from harm. And that makes iOS 17.4.1 an important upgrade.

If you missed iOS 17.4 and older software, you'll get the security patches from updates you missed when you upgrade to iOS 17.4.1.

iOS 17.4 had four security patches on board.

The update also delivered quantum security protection for iMessage. The company says the upgrade gives iMessage "the strongest security properties of any at-scale messaging protocol in the world."

The iOS 17.3 update brought 15 new security patches to iPhone. The software also added Stolen Device Protection to iPhone.

It increases the security of your iPhone and Apple ID by requiring Face ID or Touch ID to gain access to passwords, make purchases in Safari, and more. This is useful if someone gets access to your iPhone and its passcode.

iOS 17.2 delivered 10 new security patches to iPhone. If you wish to find out more, you can head on over to Apple's security site for the details.

iOS 17.2 also included iMessage Contact Key Verification which improves the security of iMessage. The company also fixed an exploit that let the Flipper Zero multi-tool lock up iPhones.

iOS 17.1.2 had two security patches on board. Both were related to WebKit. If you want to learn more, you can do so right here.

iOS 17.1 brought 18 security fixes to iPhone. It addressed issues within Weather, Status Bar, WebKit, and more.

iOS 17.0.3 brought two patches for two security issues Apple identified within the software. If you want to read about the patches, head here.

iOS 17.0.1 delivered three important patches to iPhone. If you're interested in the exact nature of these improvements, you can read about them over on Apple's security website.

As for iOS 17 itself, it brought 40+ new security patches with it. A staggering number to say the least. If you want to learn more about them, head over to Apple.

In addition to those patches, iOS 17 brings some additional enhancements to privacy and security including improvements to Communication Safety beyond Messages.

It now includes content sent by AirDrop, Contact Posters in the Phone app, FaceTime, and the systemwide photo picker. You now have an option to blur out sensitive photos and videos before you choose to view them.

There's also an expanded Lockdown Mode which will help protect you against cyber attacks.

Apple's also improved sharing permissions and you now have more control over what you share with the apps on your device.

The company also notes that starting in iOS 17, Voice Memos encrypts the titles of recordings stored in iCloud, in addition to the recordings themselves.

If you skipped older versions of iOS, you'll get the security patches from those updates with your iOS 17.4.1 update as well.