iphone 4s wifi greyed out.

First, there is no issue with upgrading via Wi-Fi versus USB. Whoever told you that was just trying to get you to go away. They didn't provide any real answer, just something that 'sounded good'.

Second, as far as 'why this wasn't looked into'? The products were tested appropriately and passed during all phases, from concept to design to initial production. However, ANY electronic device, there will be defects during the manufacturing process. That's what happens with mass production. Errors occur.

Now, the incidence of these errors is extremely low. So low, that doing a product wide recall would be ridiculous. There is no inherent danger of using Wi-Fi to upgrade the iOS, so why would they issue a 'warning'?

What upgrade are you talking about? With your wireless carrier? How is that relevant? If the maximum warranty on a product is 2 years, and you choose to continue using the product after the warranty expires... in what other situation do you complain to the manufacturer? When my 8 year old TV started to fizzle out, I didn't call the company to complain. It had a 4 year warranty. It worked for 4+ years. The manufacturer upheld their promise. So, if your 3 year old iPhone starts acting up... get a new one.

And as far as the replacement costing the same as a new one? Hogwash. A brand new iPhone 5 costs between $649 - $849, no matter where you buy it. An Out-Of-Warranty replacement is only $229.

If you were factoring in the discount that a wireless carrier provides with a two-year contract, that's not the same thing at all. Compare apples to apples, not apples to oranges.

i badly need help on this .. though, i can still connect my phone via data network, i'd prefer using wifi because i think it saves more batt compared to the cell data network .. however, i'm unsure what'll happen .. having tried all the suggestions posted here .. nothing worked out .. i took my phone to apple store yesterday and since i'm locked in with Globe (ph carrier), they told me to go to Globe directly .. i was told that they have to send my phone to Manila (i'm based in Cebu) and ETA will be 30-70 days max .. SERIOUSLY??? .. i can't wait that long .. and what's odd is, if my phone needs replacement, they'll hand me a REFUBISHED one!! are they crazy!!

my phone's under warranty with them .. and if i'll get the ip5, i have to pay the remaining months of my contract before i can even do an upgrade .. i don't know if the problem is related to iOs update or overheating issues but i still use my ip3gs and didn't have issues with it .. if it's overheating, i know itouch is irrelevant, but my brother uses his gadget much more and even charges the device 4-5 times a day because of heavy usage .. but didn't really have the wifi greyed out issue ..

how come apple didn't really have a direct response over this matter and what can be done for the fix .. as expensive as their phone is, i think i deserve a replacement .. anyway, they can always take the phone back ..

First, there is no issue with upgrading via Wi-Fi versus USB. Whoever told you that was just trying to get you to go away. They didn't provide any real answer, just something that 'sounded good'.
-- I agree, that is why I think that was something worth sharing here.

Second, as far as 'why this wasn't looked into'? The products were tested appropriately and passed during all phases, from concept to design to initial production. However, ANY electronic device, there will be defects during the manufacturing process. That's what happens with mass production. Errors occur.

-- I agree as well. I was referring after the manufacturing and there were users experiencing this problem. I do not discount the fact that some users may have handled the device inappropriately, resulting to such errors or defects. But given that it is still unclear what triggers this issue, or the lack of transparency on what accurately triggers this error is something 'worth looking into', don't you think?

Now, the incidence of these errors is extremely low. So low, that doing a product wide recall would be ridiculous. There is no inherent danger of using Wi-Fi to upgrade the iOS, so why would they issue a 'warning'?

- The product recall they did for the iPod shuffle was not ridiculous? I am asking because I never experienced any issues, or any defects with the product. I was using it way past the warranty period but hey, they sent me an email and recalled the product. I know these two products are completely different but the since you raised the factor about the incidence, which I myself was not aware of any prior to their email, leads me to question exactly how many incident is identified as 'extremely low'.

What upgrade are you talking about? With your wireless carrier? How is that relevant? If the maximum warranty on a product is 2 years, and you choose to continue using the product after the warranty expires... in what other situation do you complain to the manufacturer? When my 8 year old TV started to fizzle out, I didn't call the company to complain. It had a 4 year warranty. It worked for 4+ years. The manufacturer upheld their promise. So, if your 3 year old iPhone starts acting up... get a new one.

-- I am referring to the iOS Upgrade. The recommendation is automated, when connected to a data network, you will receive a notification suggesting to upgrade the iOS, thats how I remember why I updated the iOS in the first place, against my better judgement. I have not seen any user on 6.1.2 having the same issue as this. I did this while within the my warranty period and had not have any issues since then.

And as far as the replacement costing the same as a new one? Hogwash. A brand new iPhone 5 costs between $649 - $849, no matter where you buy it. An Out-Of-Warranty replacement is only $229.
- Please consider that the rates I was referring to was local rates for a brandnew iPhone 4s, which is still sold locally in the Philippines. I was not comparing the pricing for an iPhone 5.

If you were factoring in the discount that a wireless carrier provides with a two-year contract, that's not the same thing at all. Compare apples to apples, not apples to oranges.

- There is a discount when availing a two year contract, in fact the device comes as free when availing the contract. I was not comparing the pricing from a contacted device from a base handset retail price. 🙂

Mine worked for one minute and now its back to constant searching.....

Amazingly I fixed my friend's iphone 4S using Ralph's suggestion. Many Thanks

You're welcome, good to hear it worked for you.

Apple's solution to wifi grayed out is to replace your phone that you purchased in full price with a refurbished phone, not new one. Here is my story: I had the same problem - my wifi grayed out without a reason. After learning what saw on the thread, I took my iPhone 4s, which still have 2 months of warranty left, to an Apple Store. The guy behind the Genius Bar didn't even bother to run any diagnostic test on my phone and said it staight that they need to replace my phone, which tells me that they knew their OS 6.1.3 update broke the phone. Then he took out an iPhone from a white box and represented it to be new. I asked if the phone is refurbished, and he said the case is new but the electronics are refurbished (factory tested to be funcitonal). I walked in with a new phone that Apple damaged, and walked out with a refurbished phone. Not a happy customer.

Apple remanufactured phones have completely new components, except the camera and the processor, both of which must pass the same inspection as a new device.

Apple did not damage your phone. It was defective at the time you bought it, and the extra heat produced by the iOS update revealed the defect. It didn't cause it.

As far as 'not running a diagnostic'? Just because he didn't hook it up physically doesn't mean there wasn't a diagnostic run.

Did he every say "This is a brand-new iPhone 4S", or did he say "This is your replacement".

The replacement has the same warranty as your original had left, or 90 days, whichever is greater. So, you actually got some extra warranty time out of the deal. And your original phone wasn't 'new' anymore. You've had it for at least 10 months. How is a ten-month old phone 'new'?

is there any solution for this grayed out problem?

updated to ios 7 and the problem still persists.

How did you update to iOS 7? Beta software cannot be discussed on these public forums, that is restricted to the Developer's Forum.

Ralph's suggestion helped my iphone 4s working for 8 minutes, after that wifi greyed out again.

(Turning on & off Airplane Mode and Do Not Disturb)

Thanks for comments and suggestions on this post.

I will keep trying some other methods.

Like others have been saying:

There is NO RELIABLE way to "fix" greyed-out WiFi on an iPhone.

It is more than likely a hardware problem in ALL CASES and Apple can offer in-warranty or out-of-warranty replacements depending on ownership/AppleCare status for your particular device.

With this recurring it would be a good idea to take it to an Apple tore genius bar and have the techs test it.

this helped me a lot!!! thanks!!

This did not work for me. Went to Apple store and they immediately said that the WiFi problem is likely very serious and the would swap out the phone for another 4s for $200. The new phone would only have a 90 day warranty. Fat chance I will go for that.

This tells me that Apple knows all about this little problem, but has limited confidence in their hardware.

Last iPhone for me!