We have 2 x iPhone 8Plus. Earlier today we installed the apple - recommended iOs update to v 16.7.13 to address Triple Zero issues here in Australia.
Now we can not make calls, send SMS and have no 4G connection. I have tried the steps suggested online, namely
Turn off & on again, remove and reinsert SIM, resett network settings
Can I revert to the version prior to that one?
Earlier iPhone models
Per Telstra page, Update is now available:
Update 29 Jan 2026 at 3:30PM (AEDT):
iPhone X is now fixed. The guy from AppleCare (Jean) was excellent. He contacted me yesterday and set up a time to call this afternoon. I had already backed up the phone using "Apple Devices", but was put off taking it back to factory defaults with the warning about the phone being unable to activate.
Long story short, spent a good 90mins on the phone as we went through a full bare bones restore of iOS and applying the backup I had taken the day before, and apart from a couple of hiccups, all was resolved with the phone now at 16.7.14 and the Telstra carrier version at the elusive 54.1.1.
Really appreciate the posts on this forum too. Wishing the best of luck to anyone out there still experiencing problems.
Then contact Apple and work with them. Telling Apple to "fix this" in a user to user forum is not going to help you.
Contact Apple for support & service.
Contact Apple Support - Apple Support
or call
Canada/United States
1-800-275-2273
For other locations, look here -
Contact Apple Support – Apple Support (AU)
Just been speaking with Apple. This is an issue with IPhone 8’s and X using Telstra as their carrier. They are urgently looking at this with Telstra and Telstra have put a warning on their home page. Hopefully they will fix it soon.
Ok so I wanted to loop back here to put more information out there.
Like KimSBok, this troublesome phone I have is also an iPhone 8 Plus, and it is also on AldiMobile.
Just to set the record straight...my wife and my daughter are on Aldi Mobile (Telstra Wholesale), and I am on Telstra proper.
After more testing last night and today - here is what I've discovered.
Yesterday when the battery was below 70%, the phone would not establish a connection to the mobile network. The phone could not call out and nobody could call it.
I did as suggested regarding the "weak battery" and plugged the phone in and let it charge up. After the phone got to 90% and plugged in, it was able to establish a call! I let the phone charge up to 100% and we ran a dozen or more tests last night.
iPhone 8 to my phone - it called but took a very long time to connect.
My phone to iPhone 8 was also successful but took a very long time to connect. A few times the call timed out, and after the call had ended on my phone, that's when the iPhone 8 started to ring.
iPhone 8 to my wife's iPhone 15 (Aldi to Aldi) - the call connected normally (within a few seconds)
iPhone 15 to iPhone 8 - again with success
We then unplugged the phone and kept trying to make calls, and again it was successful but at times, unreliable. We then left the phone off charge all night. In the morning the phone had only dropped to 95%, and again was still able to call my phone and my wife's phone successfully.
My daughter then took the phone to school and this afternoon, was unable to make calls again. It should be noted that SMS text messages are also not working. Most of the time they timed out, but every now and then one got through.
This evening, I check the phone again and it's at 54% battery. It makes a successful call to my phone once, and also to my wife's iPhone 15. I then try to call it from my phone and the call fails.
What I've been able to conclude from this is it is 100% an issue with the iPhone 8. The phone is able to connect to the network and establish a voice connection. Therefore I don't think this is a carrier issue. It seems to be a problem with the phone itself. Whether that problem is caused by the software update or this is just a coincidence with a hardware fault I don't know.
Long story short - I think we will just need to put this phone into recycling and sort out another one.
Only way I know of is the recommended way to manually trigger a carrier update check - i.e. go to Settings -> General -> About, and you may either get a prompt when you go into that screen, or may see something next the Carrier / Service Provider info section. You're not likely to find much about 54.1.1 given it must just have been released, and will be limited to probably just these handset models, running iOS 16.7.14 (carrier updates are handset model, modem hardware and OS version specific, among other things).
I was able to get at least get data working on Telstra LTE instead of 4G, by going to Settings, Mobile, Mobile Data Options and toggling on Data Roaming.
Make sure that your device is connected to Wi-Fi or a cellular network. · Tap Settings > General > About. · Follow the onscreen instructions to ...
Manually update your carrier settings on your iPhone or iPad
Updated my iPhone X to iOS 16.7.13 and the experience hasn’t been great. Personal Hotspot is missing, Wi‑Fi Calling stopped working, the phone won’t make calls, and it only shows LTE if I enable Data Roaming. My data speeds have also dropped significantly, and Speed Test shows Telstra LTE. I genuinely didn’t expect a software update to cause this many network issues.
Friend of mine with the iPhone X did the 16.7.13 update this morning, and not had any cellular functionality since - unable to make/receive phone calls, personal hotspot is missing, unable to make/receive text messages unless connected to WiFi (and probably only iMessage contacts). Phone carrier was unable identify any issues on their side, so now it's over to Apple.
Key Specifications: My model in Settings → About is MQA82X/A, which corresponds to the A1865 hardware variant of the iPhone X.
• Model Name: iPhone X
• Internal Hardware Model: A1865 (Global – CDMA + GSM)
When restoring, you need to select the IPSW that matches your exact hardware model. Each device on the IPSW site has its own download link, so for anyone with an iPhone 8, they should simply choose iPhone 8 from the list and it will show the correct 16.7.12 file if it’s still being signed.
For context, Australia now operates exclusively on GSM networks. However, Apple sold both the GSM‑only (A1901) and the Global/CDMA‑capable (A1865) iPhone X models here. Even though CDMA hasn’t existed in Australia since 2008, the A1865 hardware still requires the Global IPSW, because the firmware must match the modem hardware — not the network used in your country.
It’s definitely confusing at first glance, because you’d assume GSM country = GSM firmware, but in reality it’s all about the internal hardware. Since my device is the A1865 variant, the correct IPSW for me is the Global version.
I followed the link that darkmatta put up but then entered in my phone (iphone 8 +) and chose the 'global' option instead of gsm, but it looks like it uses the same file he listed, so go with that. It takes a while to download 1-2 hrs, and you have to install itunes on your computer, but it worked perfectly. Don't be an idiot like me and forget to make a backup to the cloud before you do it, now I have to download all my apps and remember all those bloody passwords.
My understanding is the carrier update was only needed due to the iOS 16.7.13 update (which was subsequently withdrawn), so if you don’t have any cellular issues, you are fine, the carrier update is not needed.
It appears 16.7.14 is working its way out, there is an article on MacRumors indicating it has been released… and given carrier updates are iOS version (and modem hardware) specific, unlikely the workaround carrier update will be needed going forward.
Mmm...I don't think it's a cell provider issue. We just took the SIM out of the iPhone 8 and put it into an iPhone 6. It works perfectly. We took another Telstra SIM and put it into the iPhone 8, same problem as before.
The issue is definitely related to the iPhone 8 and not related to the SIM/plan.
DreamensioN wrote:
Mmm...I don't think it's a cell provider issue. We just took the SIM out of the iPhone 8 and put it into an iPhone 6. It works perfectly. We took another Telstra SIM and put it into the iPhone 8, same problem as before.
The issue is definitely related to the iPhone 8 and not related to the SIM/plan.
It certainly is possible your battery is failing, so it is unable to provide enough power to maintain a cell connection. You can contact Apple for remote diagnostics. A Lithium battery that has been left in a drained state for a long period of time will have a significant effect on the Battery Health.
Contact Apple Support - Apple Support
nope, downgrade not possible according to apple support
they can't help me
just need to wait for apple to fix this i guess
No Calls or SMS after iOS16.7.13 earlier today
