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Level 1

0 points

Unable to connect to wifi on new out of the box iPhone 4S

Hi,

I preordered two iPhone 4S units - a black 32G and a white 16G, received both units yesterday (Oct 14).

The black unit is fine. Issue is on the white 16G unit.

The white 16G unit did not have any battery charge out of the box. So we had to charge it so it would atleast power on. (the black unit had partial charge). Going through the setup, it asks for the WiFi info. I can see the available networks, I choose mine (home) SSID, enter the WPA (personal) key. After doing this, I get the "Unable to join the network" error. I tried this a number of times and was not successful. Eventually, I decided to setup/configure by connecting the unit to iTunes directly. (I am upgrading from 3GS).

After the intitial setup (and restore of a 3GS backup) + activation, I tried the join the my local home Wifi (out of a Dlink DIR 655). I still get the "Unable to join the network" message. I also get the same message if I try to join a unprotected network.

Things I have tried so far (and still not successfull in getting this issue resolved):

- Rebooting the router (DLink 655)

- Change the router channel from "auto" to 11.

- On the iPhone: "Forget this network" and attempt to rejoin.

- Rebooted the iPhone 4S (countless times)

- Reset the iPhone Network configuration (again countless times)

- Connect to an unprotected network. (in addition to a WPA).

What currently works on WiFi at home: all othe wifi devices - two 3GS units, a different 4S unit, iPad2, a MBP, ATV2, a Logitech audio streamer.

Only this white iPhone 4S is giving me issues.

When I called Apple, the automated phone (as well as the online express support) states that I need to purchase an incident support. (really?). Either case, the automated response told me to call back later as no one was available today (Sat). (I was not able to purchase AppleCare+ for my preorder yesterday - due to technical glitches on AT&T and/or Apple. I have to call back on Monday to continue with the purchase; I have a case# for it).

Has anyone else had issues with the iPhone 4S (I know, it just over 24 hrs) and wifi connectivity? If so, did you find a solution?

Thx.

iPhone 4, iOS 5

Posted on Oct 15, 2011 11:53 AM

26 replies

Nov 12, 2011 12:14 AM in response to LuvMusic55

Perfect solution. works great now. MAC filtering was the issue. Thanks

Nov 12, 2011 4:14 AM in response to mat27777777

Not sure if "Changing the Router Channel" as you wrote is the same as what I figured out, so here is the solution that worked for me :

Log into the router through Safari

setup > wireless setting

Scroll down to manual wireless network setup

Uncheck enable auto channel scan

Pick the channel you want. (it was on CH6, I chose the highest channel which is CH11)

That was a close call Apple, I was just about to return my iPhone and go back to Blackberry. I think making this information more accessible would be appreciated by a lot of your loyal customers, it took me a long time to figure this out.

Starnet

Level 1

0 points

Nov 12, 2011 9:06 AM in response to Mike Petersen

Look folks, these are all band-aids for the real problem, which basically means that is some places were the Iphone should work it won't!

Apple needs to get busy and provide a fix that actually fixes the problem....

GeeBee63

Level 1

0 points

Feb 11, 2012 2:45 AM in response to mat27777777

BIG UP to mat27777777, I tried everything to get my new iPad2 and iPhone 4S to connect to my home network, and this worked, first time. FAAAANTAAAASTIC!!!!!!

DEBB2012

Level 1

8 points

Feb 19, 2012 3:18 PM in response to sandun

mat27777777 has the solution.

My dad's 4s would not connect with his router (just spinning wheel) BUT my older 1st generation iphone joined no problem. Tried a few of the other "fixes" to no avail. After setting the router to the highest channel and disabling AUTO, the 4s joined the network...... so far so good. Hope it stays that way (need it for facetime)

Jun 30, 2012 8:09 AM in response to mat27777777

have you made sure that both wireless keys match?

tonefox

Level 6

9,362 points

Jun 30, 2012 10:23 AM in response to chloejacobs1

He's probably sorted it out, it was eight months ago. 😉

Starnet

Level 1

0 points

Jun 30, 2012 3:22 PM in response to sandun

Tonefox,

Your absolutely right, I sold the 4s on eBay and bought a Motorola Droid Razr! Got tired of the band-aids and multiple OS releases that didn't fix it. Also got fed up with the battery going dead in 1 day.

Needless to say I have moved on to a better platform, works as it should, last over 2 days on a charge and I can load any software I want without Apple's permission. Took me 3 iterations of Iphones to finally get fed up and jump camp but I can only say thanks to apple for making such a crappy phone in the 4s. This made me switch and it really opened my eyes. I always thought there was nother better than the Iphone, boy was I wrong.

Now all I need is to dump the Mac for a PC and I will be done with apple altogether! A better future awaits!

Nov 13, 2013 4:59 AM in response to mat27777777

I too had the same issue. In my case, two changes happened in our network at the same time. At first, my iOS is upgraded to iOS7.0.3. In parallel, my IT people changed my wireless router to a new wireless router. I did chat with Apple support, I did call Apple support, they all suggested basic settings and they also asked me to "Restore iPhone". Even after all those troubleshooting, it was unable to connect to WiFi. Finally, I managed to see this reply from "mat27777777" and I went and checked my WiFi Router. My router was earlier configured to use "Auto Channel" and it was selecting channel "6" automatically. Now, I manually changed that Channel number to "13" and rebooted my wireless router. After this change, my iPhone is able to connect. Thanks mat27777777 for providing this catch. But still, I dont see any reply/explanation from Apple why this issue is happening even after two years. I did not expect this kind of thing from Apple.

Mar 17, 2014 5:42 AM in response to kannankvs

And, after the recent software upgrade, my WiFi is completely GREYed out. Its horrible.

Jul 14, 2014 7:11 PM in response to kannankvs

I spoke to my ISP

they send to clear the Network Cache by going > Forget this Network ... then reconnect to the new name/password on the Wifi

Unable to connect to wifi on new out of the box iPhone 4S