16.4.1 update now phone calls drop.

I have an iPhone 11 that worked perfectly. I did the recent 16.4.1 update and now my phone calls drop constantly. I have rebooted. I have reset network settings. I have no interest in a full reset that will cause me to start from scratch. I've had this phone for years. I love this phone. I can't tolerate that every 2 to 3 minutes phone calls disconnect. This only started after that update. It doesn't matter if it's incoming or outgoing. Anyone else have this issue? Any ideas?

Posted on Apr 19, 2023 3:02 PM

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Posted on May 23, 2023 8:16 AM

As colopaly suggested and few others had also confirmed. I did the below today after much hesitation and doubt. I really don’t want the hassle of setting everything back again but I do desperately want the issue to be resolved at any cost.


General >> Transfer or reset iphone >> Reset >> Reset all settings


I’m in iOS 16.5 version. And it did fix the issue. I made multiple long duration calls and none of the calls dropped. Hoping this will remain the same throughout.


Also really hesitant to due any software updates further.


I had to redo my Face ID, mark all notifications for the apps, my screen time set up was erased, all my Wi-Fi details and paired devices details are lost. Basically whatever changes we had already done in “Settings” app is reset to defaults. I took a lot of time for me to do those again. I’m not sure I’ve missed anything else. May be I’ll set them up whenever I discover.


Thank you every one for your valuable inputs. It was really helpful. Please try this step once and take your chance.


Thanks again.

71 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

May 23, 2023 8:16 AM in response to pwoodies

As colopaly suggested and few others had also confirmed. I did the below today after much hesitation and doubt. I really don’t want the hassle of setting everything back again but I do desperately want the issue to be resolved at any cost.


General >> Transfer or reset iphone >> Reset >> Reset all settings


I’m in iOS 16.5 version. And it did fix the issue. I made multiple long duration calls and none of the calls dropped. Hoping this will remain the same throughout.


Also really hesitant to due any software updates further.


I had to redo my Face ID, mark all notifications for the apps, my screen time set up was erased, all my Wi-Fi details and paired devices details are lost. Basically whatever changes we had already done in “Settings” app is reset to defaults. I took a lot of time for me to do those again. I’m not sure I’ve missed anything else. May be I’ll set them up whenever I discover.


Thank you every one for your valuable inputs. It was really helpful. Please try this step once and take your chance.


Thanks again.

Aug 11, 2023 12:52 PM in response to Reddsonja

Saw this on another Apple communities forum and here's how to fix it! Finally after many months of Apple insisting it was the carrier's fault. It wasn't. It's a Siri bug!


1) Go to SETTINGS----- click "SIRI & SEARCH"----- click "CALL HANG-UP"----- "TURN OFF" it.

2) Go to SETTINGS----- click "ACCESSIBILITY"----- click "VOICEOVER" ----- then click "AUDIO"----- then turn off "AUTO-SELECT SPEAKER IN CALL".


Found this in this forum: Call drop in iPhone 11 - Apple Community


And they referred to this forum: iPhone 11 Call Drop FIXED - Apple Community







Apr 20, 2023 7:39 AM in response to pwoodies

pwoodies wrote: "80% is what it shows when I check that setting."

80% is not healthy and is probably the reason for the dropped calls. (The battery failing to provide sufficient power to the iPhone's antenna to maintain a connection with cell tower signals.) Apple recommends replacing the battery at around 80%. So have the weak, aging battery replaced and all will be well:


iPhone Battery & Power Repair


About genuine iPhone batteries


Repair Provider Verification


(Articles found by searching Apple's Knowledge Base.)


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May 19, 2023 3:32 PM in response to Colopaly

Update: I contacted my carrier (AT&T) and although it took two separate attempts (first one did nothing) with them resetting something with the network settings, my calls seem to work now. No clue if this was a fluke or the solution, but thought I’d pass it along. Phone no longer drops calls mid-convo, whether phone, speaker, watch, or AirPods. Maybe Apple should coordinate with providers to make sure updates don’t mess with network settings if this is indeed the problem?



May 20, 2023 11:08 AM in response to pwoodies

Finally i found a solution and test it and working fine


go to General >> Transfer or reset iphone >> Reset >> Reset all settings


this will reset all settings to factory settings, don’t worry media, photos and data will not be affected, only wifi passwords, paired devices and apps setting like notifications will need to be arranged again


i hope this fix works with all of you

Jun 8, 2023 12:41 PM in response to pwoodies

After I updated my iPhone SE 2020 from iOS 15 (I forget which sub-version) to 16.5, most of my calls started dropping — some of the short ones, and all of the longer ones. A network reset seemed to solve it, but only for a day. Then I did a full reset, first ensuring I had an iCloud backup. That seemed to solve it, but within a half day I was back to all calls dropping. Whether I was the caller or the person being called, it would “hang up” within seconds to minutes.


Finally, from another phone (not iPhone) I contacted my carrier. They basically had me re-try things I had already tried, like reset network settings. Did not help, of course. So they escalated the case, and eventually the supervisor said she would have a networking refresh engineer work on it and call me back in 24 hours.


Never got a callback, but the next day everything was back to normal. Been four days now, and no more dropped calls! So they probably did fix something on the carrier end (I have Xfinity Mobile, which uses the Verizon network).

May 22, 2023 9:22 AM in response to Colopaly

I did like you said , reset all . I had previously did simply the reset which did not work. I was able after reset all to get a call that didn’t drop. Haven’t had a chance to really test it, not many incoming calls since my phone drops calls no one wants to call me lol! Thanks for suggesting reset all instead of simply reset. Hope it continues to work. Thanks again!

Aug 11, 2023 1:13 PM in response to Reddsonja

That sounds incredibly frustrating. Based on my experience (detailed in another post in this thread), the solution probably has to involve the carrier (in my case Xfinity Mobile, which uses the Verizon network). My guess is that something about the new OS required carrier intervention to stop the new call-dropping issue — at least on my (and obviously some others’) SE 2020. I assumed that the many things I had tried previously, such as network resets, hadn’t actually been necessary, but I suppose some of those things could have been a prerequisite to allowing the carrier intervention to work.


I think the fact that you’re having the same problem with a new phone cements the notion that the carrier probably has to be involved in the fix, even if it’s Apple that created the issue.


I don’t know if this is related in any way, but ever since I got my first iPhone, a 6S, in 2018, voicemail audio alerts have almost all been delayed, by an average of 5 to 6 hours. No change on that count when I switched to the SE 2020 in December 2020. But as soon as I updated from iOS 15.x to 16, that 5-year problem instantly resolved, with vm alerts coming immediately. But then I noticed the calls dropping (almost 100% of them, with only a few very brief ones completing).


EDIT after seeing some other new replies: If the call-drop problem consistently goes away with speaker, then the source of your problem is probably different than mine was. For me speaker seemed to help some initially, but that didn’t last. BTW, once when I was having dropped calls, it turns out the problem was with the proximity sensor failing to realize I was on a call. Result was my face was touching the End Call button. IIRC a little cleaning solved it. But that wouldn’t be a problem with a brand new phone unless it was defective.

Apr 20, 2023 8:24 AM in response to pwoodies

pwoodies wrote: "So to be clear, you are suggesting that because my battery was not in great shape, the update corrupted in someway?"

No. The update didn't corrupt anything. Simply, you had an already weak battery (only 80% max capacity) which was made even weaker by the long, demanding process of applying the iOS update. That update was the proverbial "straw that broke the camel's back."


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16.4.1 update now phone calls drop.

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