iPhone and iPad Pro with N1 chip: Wi-Fi issues after 26.4

This is a known issue. The 26.4 update took down WiFi 7 on N1 equipped Apple devices on certain brands of WiFi equipment. However, they should still connect fine on WiFi 6E and below standards. Turning on MLO on these WiFi systems appears to correct the concern in most circumstances. Unfortunately, MLO can be an issue for other devices connecting to the same SSID. Too soon to know if it is an Apple or WiFi equipment issue, but it is real.

Same is/was happening to me, dropping and reconnecting WiFi on and off. I figured out, this happens on 2.4GHz, when you are far away from AP and you have BT enabled. If you turn BT off, WiFi signal is stable as before 26.4. update.

I’ve had the opposite experience: on my wifi6/7 LAN using Ubiquiti APs, my iPhone 17 resolutely refused to roam, and kept dropping out altogether. Apple support was utterly hopeless and refused to acknowledge the problem, even after I rejected the phone as not fit for purpose. But the 26.4.1 upgrade seemed to fix it. The only remaining device that will not cooperate now is - ironically - an Airport Express

Macropolis wrote:

After updating both devices (iPhone 17 Pro Max, iPad Pro 11 with M5) to version 26.4 of their respective operating systems, I’ve been experiencing serious Wi-Fi issues. At home, I use a mesh Wi-Fi system (Nokia Beacon 3) with a central router and a satellite. As long as the devices are within range of the central router, there are no problems. But when they move into the satellite’s range, they lose their Wi-Fi connection. They constantly try to reconnect. The Wi-Fi keeps turning on and off on the devices; they try unsuccessfully to connect, but after a short while, the whole process starts over.

I suspect this is due to the combination of iOS 26.4 and the N1 chip. Older devices without this chip have no issues at all with iOS 26.4.

I’m afraid Apple needs to release a bug fix for this as soon as possible!

I have a whole house mesh network and a modem to power the network and two iPhone 17 Pro Max and iPad Pro M5 (the newest Pro iPad) and no devices are experiencing any issues with Wifi connectivity.

By chance, do you have a VPN installed on any of your devices? Apple has been pretty clear that their devices don't need a VPN and VPN's cause connectivity issues. Unless you are required by a school or employer, VPN's provide little to no benefit.

You're blaming something you have no clue could be the issue. I have no less than 9 Bluetooth devices connected to my iPhone 17 Pro Max and iPad Pro M5, without any disconnection issues. If the NI Chip caused such issues, this forum would be flooded with complaints as there are millions upon millions of users with an N1 Chip at this time. But it's not. The tech press would be all over this if the N1 Chip caused such issues. But they're not.

Did you or do you have a VPN installed? Even if you turn it off, it's still going to cause connection issues. If you have one, open Settings > General > VPN & Device Management and remove the VPN profile. If there is a VPN app, or cleaner app, like Norton Anti-Virus, delete the apps completely from your phone. Then restart your iPhone and test connectivity again.

If you insist on blaming something you know little about, I'll depart this conversation and recommend instead that you schedule an appointment at your Apple Store Genius bar and make sure to take a Bluetooth device with you that disconnects and show the issue to Apple. Genius Bar appointments can be made here --> Genius Bar Reservation and Apple Support Options - Apple

I wish you success solving this.

Yep facing it even with the new update, slightly disappointed since the 17 pro max is my first apple device I’ve ever own I just hope they fix it soon it’s really annoying when the WiFi randomly doesn’t work and i constantly need to turn airplane mode on and off