iPhone 12 Pro freezing on iOS 17.4(.1) when selecting text (or sometimes when trying to type)

SOLVED: It's been 24hrs without the bugs (stall when highlighting text, no access to Updates, Siri Voice, Dictionary, iCloud Security setting etc.)

I did the following steps:

• Update to 17.5.1 via my Mac (since no access is possible to Update on the device itself)
• Backup to disk via Finder on my Mac
• Full Device Reset via Finder
• Set up device from backup on my Mac

(Those of you who've been following the thread for a while may remember I wasn't able to do a full disk backup before, I had it hooked up for >24hrs and still it just wouldn't finish; yesterday, after lots of tinkering around, it DID work; if I had to take a guess it was the cable, which is weird since it allows for full data transmission with any other device, at least when testing it by hooking up SSDs ... anyway, weird, but eventually it did work).

A strange phenomenon that occured: When resetting the device via Finder, after starting up again, a message came up that a previous incomplete installation (or a similar message, I didn't memorize it verbatim) was found and if I wanted to do another reinstall? I sure did.

So - 24hrs and everything works as it's supposed to. Just a bit of a pain since all of my banking apps need reauthentification (by snail mail, unfortunately), I need to reauthorize all my IoT apps, reauthorize Apple Pay cards etc.

Seems like 17.4 left some sort of "relict" that wasn't removed by any further updates, nor by the first full reset to factory settings. But this time, the OS caught the issue and offered another reset.

Theoretically, it could also have been the 17.5.1 update, which I didn't even test since ChiffaNe stated it didn't resolve the issue.

If anyone else wants to have a go, maybe try 17.5.1 and see if it works, if not - go the route of backup -> factory reset -> maybe the second reset -> set up from backup as outlined above. Just keep in mind you may not be able to use your banking apps for a few days and will need at least half a day (if not more) to finish the process. Please also make sure you have Wifi access w/o any data restrictions since all apps will not be installed from the backup, but downloaded from the App store again (even with disk backup). Make sure all the apps you really need are still available there.

Please report back here since anyone else affected will certainly appreciate it!

What I did, which has almost eliminated apps freezing after selecting text and also keyboard freeze is:

• Disabled all dictionaries except for one (Oxford English)
• Disabled all keyboards except for default English keyboard for my region and Emoji keyboard
• Disabled Predictive Text and Check Spelling
• Disabled Accessibility -> Spoken Content -> Speak Selection

I didn’t even know I had that Accessibility setting enabled, but that seemed to help a lot.

This has not fixed the software update, iCloud Sign In & Security problem, etc.

Also another interesting observation, I also noticed that I’m not able to use the ChatGPT app anymore, whatever issue is affecting the network traffic also impacts this app specifically.

I’m on an SE

and text select is useless. I can select once, sometimes adjust the selection but always freezes whatever app I’m in.Cannot cut, copy, or paste! Notably Safari, notes, mail & texts all native apps that I use most often and killing my productivity. ‘Word processing’ the first ‘killer app’ is now dead?! Please help us with an update or solution. I’ve also been searching for days for anyone solutions and now after about 5 separate searches I finally found this thread… but still no solution??!

[Edited by Moderator]

Hi all, I’ve been having this problem too on an iPhone 12 Pro. I tried some steps like resetting network settings and keyboard dictionaries a few times and clearing the cache. I didn’t totally reset my phone as I don’t have iTunes on my computer to create a backup. It was just something I added to my to-do list to complete eventually.

Orthogonally I couldn’t check for updates, it would spin forever and fail. Back when I reset network settings that helped in the past to get the update check to work.

A couple of days ago (April 22), I reset network settings once again to see if I could check for updates. Since then I haven’t been able to reproduce this issue at all. Last time resetting this/keyboard dictionary, I was able to reproduce it right away. I can’t say if it’s fixed, but will update if it happens again.

iPhone 13 Pro Max 512Gb with the same freezing upon using the keyboard.

can happen in any app, even in iOS’s spotlight.

The issue started in 17.4 and continues in 17.4.1.

The longest working workaround until now has been to enter Settings -> General -> Keyboards -> Keyboards after an hard reset and remove the Ukrainian keyboard. I also have these keyboards in use: English (US), German, Spanish, Italian and French.

Also, all six keyboards did show that something wasn’t downloaded to the device (each keyboard had a cloud with an arrow icon on its right side).

I downloaded all the dictionaries after deleting the Ukrainian one.

Inside Settings -> General -> Keyboards all options are active.

I will update the post if anything changes. The Issue seems resolved for now. Maybe anyone can double check on her side if this helps at all.

I hope this can help someone.

Best!

Thanks, jososem, blissfulinferno and especially ChiffaNe (very detailed and helpful!) for your feedback on this issue.

@jososem: I've also tried tinkering around with deleting and adding various keyboards, also changing the iOS system language, doing resets in between - didn't solve the issue for me (except for the first minute or so ...)

Judging from ChiffaNe's info, we can rule out so far: iMazing, former crash due to (wrong) space full, sync errors iCloud Notes or Messages.

To sum up the main issues - here are a few additional ones, worth checking out if you have any, all or none of the same - will help us pin-point the isse:

Hang / stall / crash / pause when selecting / highlighting text in any app

System > iCloud > "Password & Security" -> nothing happens

Open "Dictionary" in Settings -> not loading / crashing

Opening Updates leads to spin-balling, nothing happening

full back up to disk not working

Can you please check the following and verify if you experience the same issue or not? Maybe we can find a common denominator in addition to the hang / crash when selecting text:

Can you do a full back up to your Mac?

Can you successfully open System Settings > iCloud > "Password & Security"?

Can you open "Dictionary" in your system settings?

Can you open "Updates" and either an update shows, or the message that you're up-to-date?

In addition to that:

is your system language non-english?

are you using more than one Apple ID (e.g. for mail or contacts)?

My guess so far: When highlighting text, a context menu pops up. Dictionary ("look up") is somehow messed up, since it cannot be accessed via system settings - hence the crash. Not sure about the other issues, though ...

Seeing this is a super-minor issue with almost NO reports whatsoever here or on the other forums, chances are no one from Apple is going to help us. I'm hoping for another update to somehow resolve this, but don't get my hopes up too much ... Let's see if we can somehow solve this on our own.

Upgraded to 15 Pro Max after a long time with my 12. Very enthusiastic at first, the last few weeks I've waited till I'm on my Mac to write text or do anything serious. Shame ...

ChiffaNe: Can confirm, trying to switch Siri voice also causes a freeze for me 😂

haven’t tried to open a case so far, Care+ and under warranty, but didn’t want to have to go through the usual hoops (factory reset etc - I’ve got my backup onc iCloud, but w/o a full backup to disk reauthentification for banking apps etc is going to be a terrible procedure).

well - will try anyway, can’t hurt - thanks for the suggestion.

I'm on a chat with an Apple Advisor. Here's what he says:

Reset All Settings: All settings—including network settings, the keyboard dictionary, location settings, privacy settings, and Apple Pay cards—are removed or reset to their defaults. No data or media are deleted.

I am positive this will fix the issue for you.

I can't do this as I'm currently travelling, but if anybody does eventually try this – please report back. That will be extremely helpful.

Hi - I have the same issue using a iPhone 13 Pro max. I can not select text nor enter into dictionary settings. Using a non-english language as default. Using iOS 17.4.1. In addition - the phone app freezes randomly and I am unable to make a call until restart.