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iOS 6.1.4 on iPhone 5 Review

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Last week, we took a first look at the latest iOS update for the iPhone 5 which arrived in the form of iOS 6.1.4, a small update that arrived only for owners of Apple’s latest iPhone model. Now, after spending a few days with the new software, it’s time to take a final in-depth look at Apple’s latest piece of mobile software in our iOS 6.1.4 on iPhone 5 review.

Over the course of 2013, Apple has released a grand total of five updates to its iOS 6 software which first emerged alongside the iPhone 5 back in September of last year. The first of those updates, iOS 6.1, represented the biggest update thus far to the iOS 6 operating system as it brought along a number of new features including the new lock screen music controls.

Read: iOS 6.1.4 on iPhone 5 Review: Impressions and Performance.

iOS 6.1.4 is the latest iOS 6 update from Apple.

iOS 6.1.4 is the latest iOS 6 update from Apple.

However, as iPhone owners soon learned, it also brought along a number of new bugs, bugs that Apple has been addressing over the course of the last several months in which it has unleashed a number of updates to its iOS 6 software.

The first of those updates came in the form of iOS 6.1.1 which was for iPhone 4 owners only and tackled a 3G connectivity issue that they had been experiencing shortly after installing the new software. Shortly after that, Apple rolled out iOS 6.1.2 which was meant to eradicate a pesky Exchange calendar bug that was seemingly draining the battery life on not only iPhones but iPad as well.

Also introduced were a number of lock screen bugs that allowed unwanted users access to Contact information and Photos. There were also complaints about smaller issues, issues that owners hoped would be taken care of with future updates.

iOS 6.1.3 arrived to take care of the lock screen issues but as we pointed out, there were still iPhone owners experiencing problems with Exchange and an assortment of other issues. And while many had hope that Apple would roll out an update between then and the release of iOS 7, there was certainly no guarantee.

Fortunately, Apple had at least one more update in store for iOS 6 and iOS 6.1 which arrived last week and rolled out to iPhone 5 owners as iOS 6.1.4, the fourth update to iOS 6.1.

Last week, we took an initial look at the performance and quality of the iOS 6.1.4 update for the iPhone 5 and now, it’s time to take a final look at iOS 6.1.4, its performance, whether its worth updating, and what’s next for the iPhone 5 as we get closer to the arrival of iOS 7.

iOS 6.1.4 Is Good, So Far

The iPhone 5 gets the iOS 6.1.4 update.

So far, so good with iOS 6.1.4.

So far, the overall experience with iOS 6.1.4 on the iPhone 5 has been a good one. I haven’t discovered any significant bugs, which is important given the amount of bugs that previous iOS 6.1 updates have brought with them, and we haven’t noticed a significant drop off in performance of the iPhone 5, something else that is extremely important to iPhone 5 owners trying to decide whether to update or not.

As I’ve said many times, I’m generally apprehensive about installing new iOS software. Not because I’ve experienced terrible issues in the past, but because I also own an Android phone that has been decimated by incremental updates. So I am always a bit weary about installing something that appears to be a small update but may have harmful side effects.

iOS 6.1.4, at least on my iPhone 5, has been a good update with my experience not changing much from iOS 6.1.3, the previous version of iOS 6.1. Of course, I should also point out that the update hasn’t really bestowed any benefits upon my iPhone 5 either (the update mentioned something to do with the speakerphone but my speaker phone is performing as well as it ever has) making it, well, making it a bit of a strange 11.5MB update.

iOS 6.1.4 Battery Life

Maybe the biggest concern from iPhone owners before choosing to install a new iOS update is whether it has any significant battery life issues. With iOS 6.1, we saw the Exchange calendar bug wreck havoc on the battery life of many iPhone 5 owners and so it’s clear that while battery life concerns are almost always raised after installing an update, sometimes they can be on point.

With iOS 6.1.4, I myself haven’t experienced any battery life issues. My battery life, day-to-day, remains extremely solid and about on par with what it was for iOS 6.1.3. As I’ve pointed out numerous times, battery life is going to differ from person to person so I can’t speak for everyone, but my iPhone 5 still gives me a solid day of use. Keep in mind, I am not glued to my phone as some people are.

As we pointed out after the arrival of iOS 6.1.3, there were some owners experiencing battery life issues thanks to Exchange. However, we have yet to hear about any problems from those owners after iOS 6.1.4 and we haven’t seen any furor on any forums about any persisting issues. So it may finally be that the issues with Exchange have been fixed.

At the very least, my iPhone 5, which doesn’t use Exchange, is working as normal with a solid charge, solid standby battery life, and a happy owner.

iOS 6.1.4 Performance

Of course, battery life isn’t the only thing that iPhone owners are concerned about prior to installing an update. Performance is big as well with everything from Wi-Fi to 4G LTE connectivity being heavily scrutinized, and for good reason. Here is how iOS 6.1.4 breaks down performance wise. Spoiler: it’s working pretty well.

4G LTE Remains Strong

My iPhone 5 4G LTE connection remains strong.

My iPhone 5 4G LTE connection remains strong.

As I’ve noted in the past, my AT&T iPhone 5 once had some issues with the trade-off from Wi-Fi to LTE wherein the connection would simply be non-existent after leaving the radius of my Wi-Fi connection. Fortunately, that issue has not plagued my phone after the past two updates and I’ve been pleased with how my phone handles going from Wi-Fi to 4G LTE.

I should also note that my 4G LTE signal remains strong both in the Bay Area and in Southern California and I often find it to be faster than my home Wi-Fi network. It’s that good.

No Wi-FI Issues

One of the biggest complaints from iPhone 5 owners since its release back in September has been about Wi-Fi connectivity issues wherein connections are simply dead, slow, or the Wi-Fi option as a whole is grayed out. To date, I’ve only had issues with the first two, both of which were seemingly killed off by a previous iOS 6 update.

Since then, my Wi-Fi connections have been stable, even when connecting into a Wi-Fi network that is public. That was an area where my iPhone 5 struggled in the past. Speeds on my home network remain fast and stable as well.

I’m not hearing about any major issues with Wi-Fi with iOS 6.1.4 and as always, I advise those having problems to seek out advice in this lengthy forum post that has accumulated many possible fixes since its inception many months ago.

UI Is Smooth

When I owned an iPhone 3GS, one of my biggest fears when it came to installing an iOS update was whether it would slow down the user interface on my device. I still am a little bit weary, even though I own the latest and greatest iPhone, as I’ve had some problems with UI sluggishness in the past.

So far, with iOS 6.1.4, things are good. The UI zips as it should and I haven’t run into any distinct sluggishness after using the phone extensively over the past few days.

One other thing to note is that I haven’t noticed any problems with my apps either. They seem to be behaving as they should with only a few crashes here and there, most of which have likely been due to issues with Chrome and not iOS.

iMessage Issues Have Died Down

iMessage has improved, but is still causing problems.

iMessage has improved, but is still causing problems.

In addition to general sluggishness, I’ve also experienced issues with iMessage where in my iPhone 5 would lock up, become extremely slow, and sometimes become unusable for a number of minutes after receiving an iMessage and particularly one with an MMS. As I’ve pointed out, this often happened when I had the app open on my laptop at the same time.

What’s more is that my phone would buzz with apparent messages when I was on the phone, only, those messages weren’t new and were instead from hours ago.

So far in iOS 6.1.4, I’ve still experienced some slow down when my laptop and phone get a message at the same time, but the issues aren’t as frequent as they were prior to updating.

Whether or not it improves or gets worse in the days ahead is unclear but for now, the issue does remain.

Should You Install?

At this point, I have two words of advice. Those who aren’t looking to jailbreak can install this software and hope that it irons out some of the smaller bugs that you’ve been having. Often there are unadvertised fixes on board iOS updates and iOS 6.1.4 could have them. It’s also perfectly acceptable to skip this update as it doesn’t add much to the table. Ultimately, it’s going to be up to you.

How to evasi0n iOS 6.1 Jailbreak - iPhone 5 - 5

If you want to jailbreak your iPhone 5, don’t install iOS 6.1.4 or iOS 6.1.3.

What I can say definitely is that those jailbreaking should not install this software as it will kill off any chance of a jailbreak. Those who wish to jailbreak should be on iOS 6.1.2 as iOS 6.1.3 and iOS 6.1.4 will likely never get support.

What’s Next for the iPhone 5?

The iOS 7 overhaul would land on the iPhone, iPad, iPad mini and iPod touch.

iOS 7 could be next for the iPhone 5.

Honestly, I didn’t see an iOS 6.1.4 update coming for the iPhone 5 given the close proximity of iOS 7 and the fact that there weren’t any major issues on board the software. However, as Apple has proven, iOS 6.1 is an unpredictable piece of software when it comes to updates so I can’t say if there will or won’t be an iOS 6.1.5 at this point.

My guess is that there might be, especially if iOS 7 isn’t coming until the fall. If there is, don’t expect it to be anything significant though as iOS 6.1.4 issues don’t seem to be prevalent.

Who knows, it could be iOS 7 that’s next for the iPhone 5 and its owners.

30 Comments

30 Comments

  1. Steve

    05/06/2013 at 6:06 pm

    Weary=tired. Wary=cautious. Please reprimand your editor appropriately.

    • dingus magee

      05/08/2013 at 3:55 pm

      hoo cares

    • nigel

      06/06/2013 at 12:48 am

      Nigel
      The latest update has done at least one thing that may not concern to many is that it’s fixed the blue tooth connectivity in my Australian car I can now make and receive calls, so I can now retire my old HTC phone .

  2. MontrealPaul

    05/07/2013 at 5:54 am

    Good article, Adam, very helpful. Thanks!
    To add to Steve’s comment regarding “wary” (leery would have been good too) :
    Some updates can wreAk havoc on the battery life… If you short out your battery, you wreCk it.
    Sorry – hate to be a grammar geek, but if you’re gonna write, write good! [sic] ;)

  3. VishalShady

    05/07/2013 at 8:15 am

    The 6.1.4 is a rather insignificant update. Apple should me more concerned in rolling out a flawless iOS 7.
    A helpful article nevertheless!

    • Joshua

      05/07/2013 at 7:20 pm

      Don’t worry or actually do worry it won’t be flawless it’s will be bug rittled

  4. Larry

    05/07/2013 at 9:14 am

    iOS 6.1.4 sucks no more jail break!! But don’t matter I sold my iPhone 5 and a proud owner of the HTC ONE!!! Now I can do all the customizing on it with out a iPhone jailbreak!! Why does apple restric what we do with what we pay for, it’s like they spy on us?? Screw apple never again!! Greedy rich bastards!!

    • Seth

      05/07/2013 at 7:28 pm

      Ya got my HTC ONE too hell with iPhone great choice there Larry, did u get it at t mobile by chance??

    • Dingus Magee

      05/08/2013 at 3:58 pm

      Yeah they sure got greedy with the plug adapter for my Belkin . Apple , there will be no next time .

      • Larry

        05/09/2013 at 6:08 pm

        Me neither iPhone never again my ip 5 was my first and last!! I should have known better seeing years past iPhone issues. Love my HTC ONE!! And was less $$$ :))

        • MontrealPaul

          05/09/2013 at 6:57 pm

          Hey, HTC… could you be any less subtle?? Knock it off with the fake posts… Stop polluting the blogosphere.

          • Larry

            05/09/2013 at 7:42 pm

            Why?? Your I crap iPhone not working??? Haaaa u I faggot

          • Larry

            05/12/2013 at 8:20 am

            Here you go Paul here are some clothing to wear with your I fag iPhone .. Montreal Paul. πŸ‘™πŸ‘™πŸ‘™πŸ‘™πŸ’„πŸ’„πŸ’„πŸ‘›πŸ‘›πŸ‘›get a pink case for ur iPhone tooπŸ˜†πŸ˜†

  5. Moris

    05/07/2013 at 10:36 am

    Since I installed 6.1.4, my knockoff lightning cable stopped working; I can’t recharge or connect to iTunes. It could possibly be a bad cable or the update recognizes the clone. Anyone else experience this?

    • Larry

      05/07/2013 at 1:41 pm

      It’s greedy apple, not the cable I heared the same like you had, it’s apple nickle and dime you, that’s why I switched to the HTC ONE and NO ISSUES I love it what a better phone over the iPhone 5 and best of all its not the usual plastic phone the HTC one is aluminum and glass like iPhone but better, good luck there :)

    • Justin

      05/07/2013 at 7:24 pm

      I think Larry is right there moris, I had the same problem after 6.1.4 now my cable don’t work, apple says don’t use a aftermarket cable, ya they do nickle dime you!!

    • syl666

      05/13/2013 at 7:36 am

      Same with me. I have 2 knockoff Cables and both stopped working as soon as I updated

  6. cyanide

    05/07/2013 at 9:49 pm

    facing issues with 6.1.4 update…i updated yesterday night and i faced an issue like even my 3g is disabled,its using my 3g…being an ios developer,hope that the so called most advanced mobile os (ios) should be taken care of these things..:(

  7. Dingus Magee

    05/08/2013 at 4:01 pm

    I like how they changed the jack on the bottom so you have to spend 50 MORE dollars on a stupid adapter for all your old accessories . Apple you guys are some stank a55 greedy bastids . I’ve bought apple ever since the very first ipod . NEVER AGAIN! Next time it’s gonna be android of some sort .

    • Larry

      05/09/2013 at 6:10 pm

      Exactly them greedy bastards!! Thy don’t they use the same as other iPhone models?? It’s all greed there:((

  8. Tiffany Brandenburg

    05/09/2013 at 12:39 pm

    new update is crashing my battery. i was at the dentist today so i was not on my phone and my phone went from 98% to 22% with out any apps on. my phone battery life is lasting approximately 3 hours.

    • Big Dawg

      05/14/2013 at 7:59 am

      I am experiencing the same problem. Updated a couple of days ago and battery life has dropped significantly since. iP5 needs lots of juice now. I am going to try to uninstall this latest update if possible.

  9. MontrealPaul

    05/13/2013 at 7:59 am

    Thanks for all the feedback guys! I have several knockoff cables which otherwise work fine, and given the many people who have experienced issues with theirs since updating, I’m going to hold off. This’ll probably be the last update before version 7, so I can wait.

  10. Liam

    05/14/2013 at 7:38 pm

    In still plagued with Exchange “Cecking for mail…” issues. Drains the battery so fast. I have to delete my account reboot and add again. Really a pain.

    • Liam

      05/14/2013 at 7:39 pm

      In=I’m

  11. Deepak

    05/26/2013 at 7:46 am

    R all comments tru????

  12. Ach

    06/01/2013 at 3:37 pm

    This update was good so far I haven’t experience any performance problem with any cable or with the battery life if my phone … I like the fact that some people hates Apple because we as an apple users need limited users with some class and status.. Rest can switch to android they deserve it…

  13. Shey

    06/11/2013 at 4:40 pm

    A few days ago,i updated my iphone5 version ios6.1.3 to ios6.1.4.But i used it feel so terrible. the phone becomes very stuck, download the software is very slow(My friend has same problem),And i text messages to one of my friend,she couldn’t recieve anything,and i also can not get her messages .It’s normal to send messages to my other friends.What’s problem??!!!And there are some software tends to be delayed message notification two or three hours in order to receive. I went to the Apple store to ask them to change back to version ios6.1.3,that sever,chinese lady has so bad service !!!She said:”Why u think that’s our problem?Now nobody talk about these problems online ,i can not solve it to u .May that’s ur network’s problem or other something.”Therefore,she didn’t help me anything!!!I’ve heard of Apple’s service quality is very poor, I saw it!! I will not recommend my friends to buy Apple’s phone and also tell other users ,Don’t update to ios6.1.4!!!!!That is really bad!!!

  14. Kathytink

    07/12/2013 at 7:39 pm

    I just bought the iphone 5, using ios 6.1.4. Bluetooth just keeps searching. It won’t discover head set, ipad or Bluetooth in car. What a worthless piece of junk!

  15. Angel

    07/27/2013 at 1:51 am

    I have the same 3G connectivity problems with my iPhone 5. It simply does not load any data, but the signal seems to be ok.

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