iPhone 3G / Wifi problem / 4.2.1

Please see Coop's post earlier. Many different issues may result in the same symptoms.

One suggestion would be download the 'iPhone Configuration Utility' - http://support.apple.com/downloads/#iphone .

If you tether your phone via the cable which came with your iPhone after the utility is started, and then click on the iPhone under the Devices in the left pane. There is a 'Console' tab in the right pane. which can show what is happening on the Device. Try connecting to WiFi and watch the console logs and see if you see any error messages.

These messages may help diagnostics and problem resolution.

Hardware failure is much harder to diagnose. I have yet to see a customer-facing hardware diagnostic tool, unless jailbreaking is considered an option of last resort.

Go to DFU mode and reinstall firmware.

Reboot your internet modem and wifi station or router.

Thank you.

Hey Stanley,

I know I should be more tech savey but would you explain how to do this? Please?

"Go to DFU mode and reinstall firmware."

Folks, this is a LARGER problem than you ALL think!!! I have an iphone 4s thru AT&T and i am having the battery problems, but im also having 3g problems. i can call and text, but it is REALLY SLOW sending pics thru text or pulling up the internet. I cant even watch videos, which before 6.1 and 6.1.1, i had no problems doing all of the above!!! And also, having problems with the lighting being dimmed and have to go back into settings to tap it to brighten again.

And i guess the thing that ****** me off the most, is we havent heard a peep from Apple. When the I phone 4 came out and had antenae issues, it was plastered all over the news and Apple was commited to making the fixes needed. I havent heard hardly anything in the media and anything from Apple. ****, they pretty much only have 4 phones out there now...the 3gs, 4, 4s and 5 and when 25% of your phones are not working properly, I would think Apple would be jumping thru hoops and apologizing and willing to make things right. But, I dont see that. I think they just hope people buy the 5 instead. I think Apple is getting too big for their britches to think they need to suck up to us. Im very disappointed in Apple. I have left, after this message, 5 messages on Apples discussion pages, and no response from Apple. I also sent them an email to their customer support and have not heard a peep from them. I think if everyone threatened to go to android and take 25% of their business, then they will do something. But, seems like they think they can do anything they want. Im sorry, customer service nowadays *****. I thought the customer was always right!?!?!? As bad as these phones are, they should be willing to give us new ones for free!!! But, Im not asking for that, I just want my old IOS 5 back, so my 4s works again!!!! Is that too much to ask for!?!?!?!?

Check out this page on Apples discussion...

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/4310494?start=2040&tstart=0

this page has over 200,000 views...my Iphone 4s page has close to 500,000 views. so, between the 3G and 4S, they have a LOT OF PROBLEMS THAT NEED TO BE FIXED OR THEY ARE GOING TO LOSE SOME CUSTOMERS!!!!

446828 Views 2,062 Replies

Hi ,

I got an iphone 3gs with ios 4.1. Connected to wifi once and internet worked fine. After taht next day again when i tried , got this error. "Unable to connect to ''NetwrkName" .

Two changes i did.

1. Changed ip address frm DHCP to static

2. In the wifi router configuration on my broadband device, i changes security to WAP . It was WEP earlier.

After that Wifi started working fine again in Iphone.

Hope this helps.

ok...so i have a 3g which i just got back from my son... it has 4.2.1 on it and ever since the day it was upgraded to 4.2.1 WiFi quit working. i will assume the solder didnt melt away while i did the upgrade....so i will rule out the "hardware" issue.

so i undertook the task of troubleshooting this thing yesterday....took more than an aft and eve and a couple of beers but i did get it DOWNGRADED to 3.1.3 at which time the WiFi miraculously came back on...connected with WEP security and worked. Presto. I did however notice the range was very short...lost signal where my 4s does not etc. then suddenly it was gone.....details details

yes my bluetooth is on and works...everything seems to work finethe icon spins looking for WiFi and nothing.

let me tell you the DOWNGRADE from 4.1.2 to 3.1.3 was not an easy task......BUT it is possible

my phone does NOT seem to run any faster or better with 3.1.3......hmmmmm

I've reset the network...restored the iphone .....ive used the stock ipsw.....i have burned incense....and faced mecca.......i am wearing my yamukah.....the phone doesnt care

i'm basically using the phone as an ipod but would like to be able to use wifi to stream music and use apps etc....

my next try will be to take it to 2.0.2??? no clue any more

DFU = Device Firmware Upgrade

http://theiphonewiki.com/wiki/DFU_Mode

Didn't work for me though :-(

I'll try not to be boring by repeating too much of what's already been posted. I was given an iPhone 3G. I use the first version of the BT Home Hub for my internet connection to my Mac mini (OS 10.8.5) on www.btinternet.com and can find no way of altering its settings When i set up my wi-fi on the phone, I found my network, but it was not until I found a 'Manual' setting on the phone that I could use wi-fi.

Then (as prompted in iTunes) I upgraded to IOS 4.2.1, and, like everyone else, I could no longer connect to wi-fi. The network associated with my home hub is there, but after selecting it I can no longer find the 'Manual' option that worked before.

Can anyone remind me how to get to the 'Manual' setting, please?

And is there a simple way of undoing the upgrade to IOS 4.2.1? I am not technically expert at all.

Michael,

If you have a backup of iOS 3.x, before you upgraded to iOS 4.x, you may be able to restore it via iTunes.

Please take a look at this link - http://support.apple.com/kb/PH12124.

Thanks, Loner T. The 'phone is a new acquisition (which i was given by my daughter who now has a much more up-to-date 'phone, of course) and I am nearly sure that when I first connected it to my computer and iTunes opened, the first thing I saw was the message telling me that there was an update available and I acted on it before backing up. Is there no other (not too technically sophisticated) way of going back to an earlier IOS? In any case I have synced again since my first try, and the backup on my computer is post-update.

Michael,

Before you consider a downgrade of iOS, when you refer to 'Manual', are you referring to assigning an IP address 'manually' to your iPhone 3g?

The same functionality can be achieved by using 'Static' IP.

If your BT connection requires an HTTP Proxy (I am using iOS 4.2.1 on an iPod Touch 2G) which is under Settings -> WiFi -> (Click on the '>' ) to right of a given WiFi network and you will see a tab with 'IP Address' which has DHCP, BootP and Static optons.

If you scroll down, you will see options Off, Manual and Auto. Does the BT Home Hub require the HTTP proxy to be configured? The settings are Server, Port and Authentication. If you enter values for Server and Port, the Authentication 'switch' has On and Off. Turning it On requires a Username and a Password.

PS: There are 'hack' methods to go back to iOS 3.x. If you are interested, you can look at http://www.iphonehacks.com/2010/07/how-to-downgrade-iphone-3g-from-ios-4-to-ipho ne-os-3-1-3.html or search via your favourite search engine. You should have a 3.x ipsw (iPhone Soft Ware) file on the machine where you upgraded your iPhone.

Message was edited by: Loner T

There are two problems in all this now.

1. Clicking on the arrow next to my network's name no longer takes me to the page where I can configure the HTTP Proxy. Just like clicking on the network name itself, it just takes me to the password page, and my broadband password is not accepted.

2. My BT Home Hub is so out-of-date that the Hub Manager app in which i would have been able to change the hub's settings no longer accesses that settyings page, but just goes to BT's home page!

I am scared of trying hack methods, not being very technically competent. I don't want to mess things up more than I have alr4ady. But when you say that I should have a 3.x ipsw file on the upgrade machine (I take it you mean the computer on which iTunes is installed and into which I plugged the 'phone), how would I re-installit? Or is that what the hack methods are abou? I shall have a look.

But I have solved the problem! The 'Wireless key' (not the Wireless PIN' worked as the password! I am on the air!

Thank you very much for all the suggestions.

Ah, the wonders of wep, wpa and wpa2. Well done, Michael, in solving it. 😎

It had actually briefly crossed my mind before. But why call a password a key? I can't unlock my front door by whispering sweet words to it, and nor can I open any applications by waving my door key at my computer screen! But I should have tried it earlier. Ah, well, all's well that ends well.

I now have some minor questions. The alert time-intervals in Calendar are preset, and there is no tab for changing them in Settings/Mail, etc. Is there some way of doing it? Is this a limitation of iPhone 3?

And if I set a time-interval in the Calendar application on my Mac, this is not transferred to the 'phone's Calendar when syncing.