Iphone4 has fatal email bug??

Question

Iphone4 has fatal email bug??

My iphone4 email functionality has been getting progressively worse within 3 months from purchase (17 months ago). It came to the point when I can't set up new email accounts, can't reply or send emails, it keeps saying that user name of password on my email account is wrong which is NOT true. I have uploaded new software from new - didn't help. Apple Tech can't fix it.

Is it firmware issue? or iPHone's fatal email bug that Apple doesn't bother to fix?

I can send it for repair under warranty (Optus REFUSED to simply replace it), but what if the problem continues with the new handset?

Is it a well known issue? what Apple is doing about it?

I"m running a business and NEED to have full email functionality on my phone, If they can't fix it, I'm switching to something else.

Any ideas?

iPhone 4, iOS 5.1.1

Posted on Aug 18, 2012 2:19 AM

Reply

Answer 1

Aug 18, 2012 2:26 AM in response to Freespirit777

Who is your email provider, for starters? How is it configured? IMAP, POP3 or Exchange?

Reply

Answer 2

Aug 18, 2012 2:41 AM in response to Julian Wright

I have various mail accounts sitting on 3 different servers. All POP3. One is on my ISP server (Westnet), and two others are linked to my 2 websites hosted by JustHost (up until August they were with AussieHQ - same problems).

This issue has nothing to do with my emails servers, because my iphone has registered one or two emails on each server, and does not recognise all the others (which have exactly same settings, just different user name). ALso, even with those accounts properly set up - every few days or so it decides they have incorrect user names or passwords. Then it works fine, then it doesn't again.

I have checked with the server companies the settings etc - everything is correct.

Reply

Answer 3

Aug 18, 2012 2:54 AM in response to Freespirit777

So you've deduced that it is completely impossible for your email provider to have intermittent connectivity issues which may prevent the iPhone connecting at times, giving the login error?

What about your actual Internet connection? Does it make any difference whether you try to access your email over 3G or WiFi, or on different WiFi networks from different companies / locations to determine whether this is a connectivity issue between your iPhone and email provider?

Do you use these email accounts on any other mobile devices, or computers completely successfully? Have you tested them on another iPhone to determine whether the issue is device specific?

Reply

Answer 4

Aug 18, 2012 3:25 AM in response to Julian Wright

At this frequency - yes, it is not possible. I am unable to reply to emails from my iphone or send emails from some accounts AT ALL (at all times) now - while I receive, reply and send email from my computer with no problem to and from my 3 servers.

I don't use WI FI - only 3G on my phone. The problem exists regardless of my location.

I don't have access to another iphone, so no - I have not tested this issue elsewhere. No one else has access to my iphone but me.

My website host tech said that Apple iPhone is known from being very picky and sensitive about emails, ie if there are some settings that it doesn't like, it will not connect (even though the settings are perfectly correct)

How can you explain that my iphone:

- set up some email accounts ok, yet refuses to set up the others with same settings?

- email account that was set up ok, suddenly "has the wrong username or password"?

- when replying to an email, it says "Unable to send email as (quotes an email account which is NOT the one I am sending an email from) has incorrect user name or password"?

- when the Apple tech (over the phone) asked me to clear the cache, which I did, and then proceeded to setting up my email accounts from scratch - suddenly my email accounts had an AUTOMATICALLY inserted host - Bigpond - which I have NEVER EVER used, or had anything to do with on this phone, my emails, internet etc - EVER???? The Apple Tech was speechless and unable to explain this sort of "miracle".

this phone has a bug, or - has been hacked into.

Reply

Answer 5

Aug 18, 2012 3:47 AM in response to Freespirit777

on a different matter - why am I getting email notifications about completely unrelated post replies, while I have ALL email notifications turned off?

Reply

Answer 6

Aug 18, 2012 3:53 AM in response to Freespirit777

I don't use WI FI - only 3G on my phone.

Test it over WiFi - then you'll know if there is a connectivity issue with your carriers 3G network. It could be something as simple as dodgy DNS servers which prevent the iPhone connecting, or provide the wrong IP addresses for mail server lookups.

I don't have access to another iphone, so no - I have not tested this issue elsewhere.

Which means you can't determine whether this issue affects all iPhones or only yours. Would your local carrier store not let you temporarily test your accounts on one of their in-store iPhones?

My website host tech said that Apple iPhone is known from being very picky and sensitive about emails

I've never heard that, and I'm on these support forums almost daily reading various iPhone issues. Almost all email related issues posted here ultimately end up being incorrect settings somewhere, or connection problems, or email provider problems. I've yet to see an email problem that hasn't been resolved in the end. If the iPhone had an inherent problem with email, you'd hear about it all the time, since email is one of the most common iPhone uses.

this phone has a bug, or - has been hacked into.

Or your 3G internet connection has issues (bad DNS, dropping connections etc). It cannot have been hacked into without your knowledge. I presume it isn't jailbroken?

Reply

Answer 7

iinami

Level 4

1,856 points

Aug 18, 2012 4:05 AM in response to Julian Wright

Julian Wright wrote:

I've never heard that, and I'm on these support forums almost daily reading various iPhone issues. Almost all email related issues posted here ultimately end up being incorrect settings somewhere, or connection problems, or email provider problems. I've yet to see an email problem that hasn't been resolved in the end. If the iPhone had an inherent problem with email, you'd hear about it all the time, since email is one of the most common iPhone uses.

i was going to say the same thing. i don't have email on my iphone 4 but my wife and daughter do, 2 different email providers as a matter of fact, and neither has ever had a problem since the day the email was set up.

Reply

Answer 8

Aug 18, 2012 4:31 AM in response to Julian Wright

thanks - I will try on WI FI. No, my phone isn't jailbroken.

I don't think my local store would let me try on their phone as they don't have demo phones. I wouldn't want to insert my SIMcard into someone else's phone, either. Too risky.

You said " Almost all email related issues posted here ultimately end up being incorrect settings somewhere, or connection problems, or email provider problems. I've yet to see an email problem that hasn't been resolved in the end." [btw how do you quote only part of the message? sorry, I'm new to this forum :-) ].

that's encouraging in itself, except that I have already (1) checked all the settings several times; (2) checked the 3G connection; (3) determined that if at least one email account from the server is working on my phone, there is no email provider issue. I have spoken with my mobile carrier (Optus), with Apple and with my website host. Everyone says that everything from their end is working fine and there is nothing they can do.

I have also restored the phone from new. I really don't know where to go from here.....

Reply

Answer 9

Aug 18, 2012 5:05 AM in response to Freespirit777

Breakthrough!!!

in desperation, I decided to change the password (on my cpanel) for the email account my phone refused to set up (all my email accounts on one server had the same password).

IT WORKED!!!!!

It looks like iphone doesn't like 2 email accounts on the same server with the same password!

Phew.....:-)

could someone now telll me please how can I stop receving email notifications about unrelated posts, while having ALL notifications turned off..?

Reply

Answer 10

Aug 18, 2012 5:09 AM in response to Freespirit777

I wouldn't want to insert my SIMcard into someone else's phone, either. Too risky.

You wouldn't necessarily need to insert the SIM (and there's no risk in doing that anyway). I was just thinking more of trying to setup your email accounts on another iOS device. Even a friends iPod touch or iPad would do. That would help determine whether there is something in iOS in general that for some reason doesn't like your email accounts.

btw how do you quote only part of the message?

Copy and paste the relevant section, highlight it and click the quote icon in the toolbar above the reply text.

Reply

Answer 11

Aug 18, 2012 5:20 AM in response to Julian Wright

Thank you!

Reply

Answer 12

Aug 18, 2012 5:48 PM in response to Freespirit777

I'd like to add - for the benefit of others who might be experiencing similar issues - that I have changed passwords on each of my email accounts that my iphone refused to set up (not recognising them on the server), so that eaqch email account has a different password.

This DID SOLVE the problem, which confirms what my website host tech told me, ie that iphone IS very sensitive/touchy/picky when it comes to emails. It didn't like that all my emails on the same server had the same password.

You can now add this solution to your database, Julian :-)

thank you for your support!

Reply

Answer 13

Aug 18, 2012 11:54 PM in response to Freespirit777

Glad you found the solution.

From an account security point of view, it's not good practise to share the same password between multiple accounts. It makes hackers jobs much easier. I'm surprised your website tech person didn't flag up.

At least the iPhone is clever enough to stop you from sharing the same password! ;-)

Reply