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iOS 8 Wi-Fi problems

WI-Fi problems on iPad Air, iPad mini with Retina display and iPhone 5S after upgrading to iOS 8.

Typical results from OOKLA Speedtest before upgrade: Ping 17 ms, Upload 21 Mbps, Download 4.4 Mbps

Typical results after upgrade: Ping 39 ms, Download 2.9 Mbps, Upload 0.47 Mbps

iPad 2 with iOS 7.1.2 get 15 Mbps download and 4.4 upload on the same network.

Resetting network settings on the iOS 8 devices did not improve the performance.

Changing band on the router from 2.4 GHz to 5 GHz did give me back the speed on all devices.

However the speed occasonally drops on the iOS 8 devices, and the signal strengt can go from full til lost connection without moving the devices.

Also sometimes the Wi-Fi SweetSpots app report 0 mbps when the signal strenght is indicated as full and then suddenly go up to around 58 Mbps again.

It is almost like the device is trying to use cellular network that I do not have on the iPads before it suddenly switches back to Wi-fi nettwork again.

I am thinking about going back to my iPad 2 with iOS 7.1.2 that is working perfectly until the Wi-Fi issues are resolved.


Any help will be very much appreciated!

iPad Air Wi-Fi, iOS 8

Posted on Sep 20, 2014 9:17 AM

Reply
3,343 replies

Aug 31, 2015 7:55 AM in response to xanda1983

Xanda, I have cut and pasted your post below and my comments are in blue.



OMG you were right it came back again, the same issue, the same problem.. Not surprising, have seen this before, the issue appears to go away or get "fixed" only to come back later.

i remember now the first day when i unlocked my iphone 6, the wifi connection was so slow comparing to my other devices but i did not suspect anything could be wrong with it..I mean who could believe that something as new and beautiful as my iphone 6 have any major problem like that..

These past two days when my wifi connection came back it was like heaven and i became addicted to my iphone..God I even purchased more apps from the app store..what should I do now?.. You apps will be there for download again from the App Store for free, you already paid for them and the App Store remembers this (use the same Apple ID)


First I have to answer your questions before switching to panic mode again..right? Let's begin. Thanks for doing so, you are thorough and that really helps in diagnosing the issue.


1- I have four other Samsung phones and an HP laptop and the wifi at my home is fast and furious on them, only my Iphone is crawling..i think that answers your Q2 too. Yes it does and it suggests that it is unlikely to be your router since your other devices work well. There have been many reports of iPhone/Router incompatibilities but we will deal with that later.


3- I tried at a restaurant and it was the same slowness and dropping and safari freezing..and it's the same with using 3G network from my sim card service. The fact that it behaves the same at the restaurant suggests that it is the phone however, the restaurant could have a poor Wi-Fi network, would not hurt to try it at another location. You also mentioned that even on a 3G network the iPhone behaves poorly, this also suggests that it is a phone issue. How reliable is 3G in Iraq now?

The best test I can envision is take one of your "super fast" Samsungs to the same restaurant or another good Wi-Fi hotspot and then compare the iPhone and the Samsung side by side, do the same on 3G and the comparisons will give you the "answer"... More about that in a minute.


4- No, not on a friend's house wifi..but the restaurant has wifi either..so it's basically the same right? Yes


5- My father is a traveller because of his job..and i'm with him of course..and right now we are staying at a country named Iraq, at it's capital Baghdad..I bought it from an ordinary store here but the Iphone was new and super locked..i unlocked it with my own two hands..so there is no hope for an exchange. What do you mean by "super locked", sealed in the original box? And what kind of dealer is this that would not exchange a defective phone? I do realize it is Iraq. While in Hong Kong a while back I bought a calculator at a store in Kowloon, the seller punched all the numbers to test it as once I walked out of the store it was mine regardless...


Please I just want to diagnose my problem..and I want to know for sure if IOS9 will do something for me. Impossible to know as iOS 9 is not out yet. Even if someone here knew they would not be able to discuss it. I can tell you a few details however but they are a bit technical. With iOS 8 Apple changed the Wi-Fi networking code from the routine it was using in iOS 7. They did the same for Macs at about the same time when Yosemite replaced Mavericks. Apple has had difficulties getting this routine to work properly across the myriad of combinations possible, countless versions of iPhones, iPads and Macs on different operating systems and countless variations of routers, new and old, from many 3rd parties, a difficult and challenging task. Apple released a new version of OS X for Macs in June, 10.10.4, and they ditched the new problematic routine in favor of the old one used in iOS 7 and Mavericks (easy to test on a Mac using Activity Monitor). No one on this forum knows what iOS 9 will contain however we should soon know after the update is released. Whether this solves your issue or not is also impossible to know. If your issue is a defective Wi-Fi chip on your iP 6, it will definitely not solve anything.


If they released ios9 and the problem still the same i might sell it for a low price..because i can't tolerate a phone without internet or with a slow one..that is the only solution for me right now. If it was me, I would not sell it yet unless you get a good price and to be fair to the new buyer, you should disclose the issue so they are not blind sided like you are now. I would wait for iOS 9, like I said impossible to tell, but iOS should be out soon (officially in the fall) - Apple is already placing announcements on top of new threads here.


I think it's my fate to come to this country and buying a super device like an Iphone from here, only to be defected among million other iphones around the world..i'm so sad guys.. It is sad indeed - buying from dealers that are not reliable is a risk.

Please do the test I recommended above. Go out with both your iPhone an a Samsung that works well at home. Then connect to the best public Wi-Fi you can find and compare the iPhone to the Samsung. Download the OOKLA Speed Test App from the App Store (free) and do the same on the Android side. Run 3 speed tests on both devices, average the data, and compare devices. There will always be some differences but they should be rather small, on the order of 1 Mbps or so, not 20 Mbps on one and 2 Mbps on the other. Then go outside away from Wi-Fi, do the same while on 3G and compare again. You will then know if he issue is with the phone or not.

If it is with the phone, go back home and do a full Restore as summarized in the article I am linking at the very bottom. Your phone could have a corrupted iOS. If you lived in the US or Europe I would not recommend this - I would take it straight to an Apple Store but you are in Iraq. The Restore process may look daunting when you first read about it but if you do it with iTunes on your computer, iTunes will guide you through rather easily. In fact, I did so with my own iPhone yesterday and it took me 55 minutes with no issues, have done it several times in the past on both my iPhone and iPad, never a problem, never lost a thing (actually I lost a free app yesterday, iTunes warned me but it was easy to re-download). Make sure you do a backup to iTunes first. Also disable Find my iPhone first (iTunes will warn you anyway). After you do it, iTunes will turn Find my iPhone on again but it will not automatically turn Send Last Location, you will have to do that manually, Settings > iCloud > Find my iPhone. If you have any concerns about any of this, post back and I will be glad to help you. Again I would not do this if you were in the US or the EU, I would run to the Apple Store instead.

Another poster suggested sending your phone to New York, not a bad idea, although you may want to spend the money on a phone call or email to Apple Support to determine if they will honor the warranty in New York for a phone bought in Iraq from what appears to be a non-authorized dealer.


sorry for my bad English, I'm not a native speaker. Your English is very good, no need for an apology. Sorry for mine, I am not a native speaker either.


Thank you elcpu My pleasure, hope the above helps.... Beautiful day here in Texas, I am headed to a Starbucks (with the top down) but will connect there as well in case you have more questions.... Hang in there, I know iPhones are not cheap and hopefully we will sort it out.... 🙂


How to do the Restore:

Use iTunes to restore your iPhone, iPad, or iPod to factory settings - Apple Support

Sep 2, 2015 4:22 AM in response to E-2043

Hi old_chap,


Nice to hear from you. By the rules of the ToU I am not allowed to speculate about the release date of iOS 9. All I can say for certain is that Apple has stated that the release will be this "fall" and that they are including the following statement and link at the top of the iOS Support Pages for Using iPhone and Using iPad. Hang in there my friend... I am looking forward to the release myself.


iOS 9 is coming soon for your iPhone

iOS 9 adds new features and improves things that you love to do every day with your device. iOS 9 will be the most streamlined iOS update ever, and you can get it for free this fall. Here are a few basic things you can do to get ready for iOS 9.

Sep 2, 2015 4:58 AM in response to elcpu

I didn't expect you to speculate (wouldn't want you getting reported for violating the TOU!) was just wondering if you had any official announcements


The first preview link you posted was very interesting - something I noticed was the change to a 6 digit password, I expect quite a few people will be caught out after upgrade and have to quickly think of a new one as on all previous upgrades it simply retained the old password


And I'm really looking forward to the enhancement to improve battery life

Sep 2, 2015 5:33 AM in response to old_chap

old_chap wrote: (my comments in blue below)


I didn't expect you to speculate (wouldn't want you getting reported for violating the TOU! ha ha 🙂 ) was just wondering if you had any official announcements Nope, I am a customer/volunteer just like you and Apple would not tell me anything official before release. Even if I heard something from one of my contacts, I could not speculate about it here. My understanding is that Apple employees are not allowed to discuss non-released information either. So we have no choice but to wait.


The first preview link you posted was very interesting I found it so myself and thus he reason I posted it here - from the preview 9 looks very good indeed - something I noticed was the change to a 6 digit password, I expect quite a few people will be caught out after upgrade and have to quickly think of a new one as on all previous upgrades it simply retained the old password Good point, will have to see how it is implemented. They did mention that for Touch-ID devices it will hardly be an issue.


And I'm really looking forward to the enhancement to improve battery life For sure... 🙂

Sep 3, 2015 3:53 AM in response to iDeviceForever

So solution offered:-

Forget networks then reconnect
Reset network settings
Restart router
Reboot phone
Change DNS
Turn Wi-Fi off then on again
Connect to PC, back up and restore


If that doesn't work wait for next update, if you don't have time to wait downgrade to old version. If you don't know how to do this go to Apple store

If you'd read previous pages all of those have been tried

Sep 3, 2015 4:02 AM in response to elcpu

Actually I wanted to do what you told me to, about restoring my ios to the factory setting using pc itunes and then get back to you with the results..but it turned out useless..I downloaded the latest version of iTunes but I could not install it on my pc..

at first I thought my pc has some kind of registry error so I tried to install it on my father's pc..but it turned out with the same error..when I searched the internet for a solution I found that everyone has windows on there pc can't install itunes or even update it..

I think Apple guys really need to get it together 😉

Anyway, thank you so much for your kindness elcpu🙂

iOS 8 Wi-Fi problems

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