Q: iOS 8 Wi-Fi problems

RParker.

since you have no problems, could you please try a test...

go to phone settings and under calls select Wi-Fi calls (on)

see if this is stable.. mine works for for a while and then a while later I get a call and the call is  not on on the wifi. I then have to hang up, go to wifi settings and the phone reconnects to wifi calling and I dial out..

Apple R&D has concatenated me and asked me to send my test files. they also have setup a reporting log file on my phone and they are monitoring my phone to figure out the cause of the problem..

It seems to be that the network connection is not stable when not actively being used (actively would be when you are streaming pandora for example). The VOIP feature seems to disconnect when there is a minor packet loss or something that they are trying to figure out.

We have also tried setting the phone up as per Riddick suggestions and this while a bit more stable has not solved the wifi calling stability issue.

thanks,

London Lad wrote:

 

I thought I'd try this again having made a few alterations and watered it down a bit to try to prevent it being deleted again.

 

Unfortunately this thread has been totally overrun and ruined by a few idiot trolls and naysayers recently who have driven away most of the people who were attempting to compare notes and make some form of informed technical diagnosis of the iOS8 Wi-Fi problem.

 

 

For the benefit of anyone who can't wade through all the bickering :-

 

The ios8.x Wi-Fi problem started after the launch of iOS8 and it is still present in iOS8.2. For me and a huge number of others it can manifest itself as poor Wi-Fi speeds, difficulty in connecting to a WAP (wireless access point) or Wi-Fi router, rejection of Wi-Fi passwords and very slow or no hand off in a cluster system or one with multiple WAPs. It can also cause poor airplay performance, no airplay and / or dropped airplay connexions. In some cases it can cause poor Wi-Fi performance on other equipment on the same Wi-Fi network as the ios device.

 

The probable cause is clearly documented on another web site.

 

None of the 'fixes' talked about here work although they may appear to do so as forcing a reconnection will often temporarily cure the Wi-Fi problems for a few minutes or even an hour or so in some circumstances but it is the reconnection that is having a temporary effect not the 'fix'

 

The other site explains the likely reason why.

 

Despite the trolls and the naysayers this is very real problem for a lot of people since they started running iOS 8 and there are numerous threads and sites complaining about it all over the web. In recent weeks national newspapers have taken up the cause of users who have received huge cellular data bills due to this problem i.e. they are connecting to cellular date when they would normally expect to be connected to Wi-Fi.

 

BTW I have no ‘dots’ on this forum but over the last 15years I did start-up, run, build and subsequently sell what has become one of, if not the, largest mobile phone insurance repair companies in the U.K. I remain a minority shareholder and have ready access to 40 plus skilled and experienced mobile phone engineers who repair or process up to 4000 handsets per month, so I do have a little experience in recognising the difference between a software problem and hardware faults, settings or Wi-Fi environment problems.

So let's just distill this entire post.

The router, what does it do?  ALL those things you said.

Here is a suggestion go buy the SAME router as someone that does NOT have problems, why keep banging your head against the wall?

My router works, unfortunately it's a router that comes with my service provider you cannot buy it, but I will tell you I have 4 routers at my house because 3 of them do NOT work with my phone.

So I share your frustration BELIEVE me, that's how I *KNOW* the problem is router related I did my own empirical testing.

DLink are the worst (my opinion).

Linksys work great.. until they require a reset..

Netgear is take it or leave it but for me it depends on settings, higher encyrption is a much lower success rate to compromise security not a good trade off, so I have my service provider router which is PERFECT not a single problem even have many people connected at various times..

Only one downside..it's not AC, that's my only complaint, otherwise perfect.

$450.00 dollars later and the solution is to switch providers because they gave me a router.. who knew.

I tried DLink on everything from WEP, to no security, N, 20Mhz, 40Mhz, 100% power, 20% power nothing mattered DLink would drop.. for no apparent reason after hours of working then all of a sudden nothing.  If I reset it works.. for 2 hours or a whole day.

Done with DLink I didn't give a model because I actually took 2 of them back to the store (different models) tried 3 in total..

Netgear worked but only for open WSK, not a good solution, otherwise same problems with DLink, overall range was poor also.

Linksys love it, AC, works great.. only one problem I have to reset once a week ( did firmware updates, called Cisco, everything, no solution).  Tried 2 different Linksys models..  Reset is power off / power on.  or reset settings to default and change settings again, even with default settings out of the box still have to power off / on to allow my devices to connect (not just limited to phone)

At this point my days of beta testing grow weary done with it, not fun any more.

Between my knowledge of phones, routers, servers, switches and the fact I am a Certified Network engineer, MCSE, and I own 5 different Phones to test (Samsung, HTC, LG, Sony and Apple) across ALL those routers and found similar patterns..

I can safely say its the ROUTER period bar none.  I am confident of the problem.

Go buy a router that EVERYONE else uses that has ZERO issues, and therefore it should work!

RParker, I hear what you say and thank you for a civilized reply, but:-

At home I use a cluster of four Cisco AP541N wireless access points. I have run this set-up for just over 4 years with zero issues. Wireless N, WPA2 encryption, 20Mhz spacing, latest software etc etc. I have numerous clients, 2x apple tv, an airport express, 2x freesat boxes, a TV, 8 CCTV cameras, 2x airplay speakers,2x windows laptops, 3 x iphones 2x ipads, plus visitors equipment from time to time.

All the iphones and ipads that were updated to ios8 developed the bug. No ios7 products have a problem, no non Apple products have any problem

I use 2 offices, one has a BT home hub 5? wi-fi router, the other has a BT fibre set up and a BT businesses router providing Wi-Fi.

I spend time in friends offices and houses and they have a selection of wi-fi set-ups. In my companies workshop we have 6 or 7 wi-fi routers set up to provide different environments for testing. My iphone 5s running ios8.2 shows the bug symptoms on all of them as does my ipad 3.

Prior to ios 8 I had no wi-fi related problems.

I have found that setting my waps to wireless g only and WPA (not WPA2) will eliminate the password rejection problem but the slow / no hand off, slow speed and airplay problems remain.

If you are correct (and I don't believe this for one minute) and apple have made ios8 only compatible with a handful of wi-fi routers that most people have never come across its still a problem with ios and not the properly certified router.

If you are correct (and I don't believe this for one minute) and apple have made ios8 only compatible with a handful of wi-fi routers that most people have never come across its still a problem with ios and not the properly certified router.

So my reply removed because it was speculative (see the e-mail for original comment)

Trying to word it in an approved manner - if that was correct then all it would need would be a firmware upgrade to the router

old_chap wrote:

 

If you are correct (and I don't believe this for one minute) and apple have made ios8 only compatible with a handful of wi-fi routers that most people have never come across its still a problem with ios and not the properly certified router.

 

 

So my reply removed because it was speculative (see the e-mail for original comment)

 

Trying to word it in an approved manner - if that was correct then all it would need would be a firmware upgrade to the router

Here's a hint.

When your statement starts with "If" then it is speculative, just like the last one you made.

The approved manner is not to guess (speculate)

London Lad wrote:

 

It strikes me that the so called experts with lots of dots are not only in denial of the ios8 wi-fi bug but exceptionally rude and add nothing of worth to the thread. A quick look at their more recent activity just shows more of the same in other threads. Very strange indeed......??

Looks like nothing changes, despite the bragging of how many points they have

Carlcats wrote:

 

RParker.

 

since you have no problems, could you please try a test...

go to phone settings and under calls select Wi-Fi calls (on)

 

see if this is stable.. mine works for for a while and then a while later I get a call and the call is  not on on the wifi. I then have to hang up, go to wifi settings and the phone reconnects to wifi calling and I dial out..

 

Apple R&D has concatenated me and asked me to send my test files. they also have setup a reporting log file on my phone and they are monitoring my phone to figure out the cause of the problem..

 

It seems to be that the network connection is not stable when not actively being used (actively would be when you are streaming pandora for example). The VOIP feature seems to disconnect when there is a minor packet loss or something that they are trying to figure out.

 

We have also tried setting the phone up as per Riddick suggestions and this while a bit more stable has not solved the wifi calling stability issue.

 

thanks,

That is a carrier issue that opens up a whole new set of problems, calls over internet (not just WiFi) and not to mention internet routers.

The basic premise is technology is NOT perfect, so nothing will work perfectly all the time, still if your phone connects to WiFi and you simply cannot make calls OVER WiFi that to me is simply a "gimmick".

I cannot test it because my carrier does not have WiFi calling yet, I had it with my last phone, but apparently the iPhone has a special setting that needs to be supported.

The original issue is WiFi, it either works or it doesn't.

The phone works the routers job is to accept / reject devices, route traffic and provide service, so you are arguing something that is now completely a "dead horse".

The router is to blame, don't know how else to explain it.  Everyone keeps insisting this is an Apple issue.

go to ANY manufacturer, Samsung, Sony, LG, HTC and look at their forums this "WiFi issue" is across ALL manufacturers but the burden of reliability still falls 100% squarely on the router and manufacturer of the router.

I also stipulated that I have 4 routers at my house 2 of them work only part of the time, one of them works great, but the router loses signal or has a memory leak.. but it works until I reset.

I have another router provided by my service provider that has been stellar, no problems at all.. this should be PROOF of what I am saying, but apparently not.. the ROUTER is the problem NOT THE PHONE.

baldy1983 wrote:

 

But if my phone (iphone 5S) drops the wi-fi signal at home, in cafes, malls, anywhere yet other people using laptops, Android phones etc do not have a problem, what does that suggest? Friends who visit with non-Apple phones don't experience loss of wi-fi. My dad still has an iphone 4 with IOS7, never has a problem

 

And I suppose it is coincidence that it worked fine on IOS7 but since upgrade to IOS8 the problems started

So find someone with IDENTICAL iPhone 5s, do they have the same problem at your house, cafes, malls.. ?!?!?

That's what YOU need to find out.  It's ONLY a problem if you take the SAME phone and find commonality.

Now same thing applies here, if you find that a common problem is the router (or maybe WiFi interference) but the phone WORKS even intermittent still means that PHONE does in fact WORK, the ROUTER cannot maintain the connection.

I don't care if Android does, or a laptop does, the ROUTER may not maintain all the necessary protocols with that phone.

ROUTERS have the same compatibility issues that computers have with software, there is no way you are guaranteed any of this will work, it's luck.

Your phone works FINE, it loses connection because of the ROUTER the device DESIGNED to keep integrity between device and host, so maybe Android is sloppy, more tolerant or has a "false" positive, it SHOWS WiFi connection, but if you do a speed test or do something consistently for say an hour I *BET* that connection drops or has sporadic connectivity you can't use the WiFi meter to demonstrate this you have to transfer a very LARGE file or listen to music the whole time WHILE maintaining the WiFi signal.. THEN come back with an update.

Apple might simply drop the connection to keep the router from being spoofed.

This is what you people FAIL to understand about consumer grade ROUTERS, just because it SHOWS connected doesn't mean there is a RELIABLE or same state of connection, I can take a ROUTER to the mall give it the SAME SSID as existing router, if you are closer to my router you will connect to guess what.. MY router without your knowledge..

Maybe Apple checks this more frequently or has some kind of stringent rules that are supposed to be in place on a router but are simply not enforced properly by the manufacturer.

You people trust WiFi hot spots WAY too easily, you trust that a ROUTER with an internet connection is deemed secure?  Seriously?

Yeah let me put up an ATM at your model with your bank logo on it and lets see you attempt to draw money I can steal your PIN and magnetic info, and use it later, you are GULLIBLE.

So for the LAST time, the ROUTER is responsible for the communication, 2-way traffic, security AND internet traffic, that's why its called a connection point.

Your phone connects, it transmits and works then it drops, if you actually spend time DIAGNOSING why that is like I have you will KNOW why.. the ROUTERS are largely HORRIBLE design, flawed and NON-standard..

Its like building a house with nails of all different sizes.. that's a SLOPPY job, consumer grade ROUTERS are not going to be GOOD they are convenient and you should be happy they WORK AT ALL.

>> London Lad wrote:

RParker, I hear what you say and thank you for a civilized reply, but:-

At home I use a cluster of four Cisco AP541N wireless access points. I have run this set-up for just over 4 years with zero issues. Wireless N, WPA2 encryption, 20Mhz spacing, latest software etc etc. I have numerous clients, 2x apple tv, an airport express, 2x freesat boxes, a TV, 8 CCTV cameras, 2x airplay speakers,2x windows laptops, 3 x iphones 2x ipads, plus visitors equipment from time to time.

All the iphones and ipads that were updated to ios8 developed the bug. No ios7 products have a problem, no non Apple products have any problem

I use 2 offices, one has a BT home hub 5? wi-fi router, the other has a BT fibre set up and a BT businesses router providing Wi-Fi.

I spend time in friends offices and houses and they have a selection of wi-fi set-ups. In my companies workshop we have 6 or 7 wi-fi routers set up to provide different environments for testing. My iphone 5s running ios8.2 shows the bug symptoms on all of them as does my ipad 3.

Prior to ios 8 I had no wi-fi related problems.

I have found that setting my waps to wireless g only and WPA (not WPA2) will eliminate the password rejection problem but the slow / no hand off, slow speed and airplay problems remain.

If you are correct (and I don't believe this for one minute) and apple have made ios8 only compatible with a handful of wi-fi routers that most people have never come across its still a problem with ios and not the properly certified router.<<

OK I see your point.

It worked and the only change made was with respect to the iOS.  OK that's good information..

However, I bet that if I brought my iPhone 6 plus to your setup it will work for me, how do I know that because I have taken my iPhone 6 out of the country recently, and I have been on a few planes, at 4 different airports, and many hot spots with just about every router brand you can think of and a bunch I never even heard of..  I didn't want to pay roaming so I used WiFi everywhere and whenever possible.

Ask me how many times I lost connection.

ZERO.

So you have problems but you are trying to pin this on iOS 8.. you said the magic word UPGRADE, there really is no such thing as an "upgrade" it merely replaces the binaries with newer binaries and not "refresh" the binaries with newer program.

So your phone had settings that worked before iOS8 came along, everything is great.

Now you move from iOS 7 to iOS8, and it fails.

Yea that does sound like a problem, but that's a problem with inherited settings.  If iOS8 were the root of the problem than ALL iOS8 devices would have the SAME problem but they do not, I am proof of this, and I upgraded from 8.0, to 8.01, to 8.1, 8.1.2, 8.1.3 and now 8.2.. still not a problem.

So you cannot simply blame the OS, that's my only point from the outset.  We share the same binary code, something else must be a problem which is probably why you are upset with Apple, and while that DOES sound like an issue with Apple, its hard to argue with logic that iOS7 worked but now iOS8 does not, that's a very sound argument to stand on.

I came late to the WiFi forums but the posts *I* saw said that iOS8 is the problem but clearly it's not, something on your phone was not fully tested with iOS8 that is causing a problem but iOS8 as a WHOLE works perfect, the upgrade with existing settings and firmware (you may have revealed a deeper problem that Apple is not prepared to admit) .

firmware is on wifi devices, and for devices to work firmware (which is an OS for hardware) and the OS for the entire phone must be in harmony.  Alas this doesn't sound like it in your case.

This is a great starting point to discuss with Apple on what the next steps will be,  It must be a very specific, limited problem.  Not giving excuses for Apple, just saying it could be a manufacturing or parts issues, like maybe FoxCon slipped in some defective hardware that didn't manifest itself until iOS8 was introduced, I don't know.

Thanks for your reply, I can't offer any more solutions for you, it seems like you did a great job already, I can find no compelling reason to ignore your findings.

but iOS8 as a WHOLE works perfect,

Right . 

There is the Wifi specification and there is reality.  It could be that the ios 8.x is up to specification, but failing in the real world.

I do not get all these people saying there is no wifi problem with ios 8.x.

-- ios device wifi worked with 7.x but not with 8.x.

-- non-Apple devices work fine with router, but ios device does not.

-- Apple engineers are asking ios device owners to provide technical information to them.

It's obvious there is a problem with ios 8.x wifi.  These sort of corner cases are nothing new in the software industry.  That's way these problem have a name; "corner cases".

Robert

London Lad wrote:

 

I have found that setting my waps to wireless g only and WPA (not WPA2) will eliminate the password rejection problem

I have seen instances of that before, a few years back with whatever the current iPhone was at the time, none could login to a corporate profile at their office unless security was lowered to WAP, a solution that IT found untenable so .... bye bye iPhone.

Don't know if there were any other problems but I do know that the access points were all Cisco, on an apparently well run network environment.

rccharles wrote:

 

but iOS8 as a WHOLE works perfect,

Right .

 

There is the Wifi specification and there is reality.  It could be that the ios 8.x is up to specification, but failing in the real world.

 

I do not get all these people saying there is no wifi problem with ios 8.x.

Because that is NOT what we are saying. Read this carefully.

The fact that numerous devices running IOS8 work perfectly well means that there is no systemic issue with IOS8, or devices that work correctly could not exist. So there is a circumstance driven issue affecting a subset of devices running IOS8. Less whining and more tests/info might help to find the cause. Blindly yelling that it's IOS8 itself flies in the face of the evidence, it's the Flat Earth approach

C'mon folks, this thread is getting tiresome and not at helpful. It has turned into a pi**ing contest long ago.

Please show some small measure of maturity and just walk away.

If iOS8 were the root of the problem than ALL iOS8 devices would have the SAME problem but they do not...

I beg to differ but the statement above is not accurate. The world is full of examples of defective technology affecting a subset of devices but not all. Automobile manufacturers have recently recalled a certain brand of air bag inflators due to an inordinate numbers of failures but not all cars equipped with such inflators have failed. As an engineer with years of experience I have seen instances of the same code yielding varying results under analogous circumstances. Modern software is very complex and slight variations in the devices can and does affect performance.  As another poster indicated there are many devices running iOS8 and working well so there is no systemic issue here but there is a subset running iOS8 which are having problems indeed. London_Lad provided a very good summary of the issue a couple of pages back, the likely cause of which has been documented as he said.

You joined this thread rather late and probably have not read my previous posts. In my own case I spent hours with AppleCare Level 2 who remoted in through my PC into my iOS devices. They verified that my Wi-Fi (3 different Cisco APs) and my 4 iOS devices were set properly. As advised, I reset my devices to factory and followed other recommendations but to no avail. AppleCare then authorized a replacement of one of my iPhones. The replacement
came with iOS7 and worked perfectly at the Apple Store and at home just like my MBP, my two Dells and my Toshiba PC (all flawless with the same ISP/router configuration). I then updated the new phone to iOS8 and prior to restoring my apps the new phone developed the same issue as before -- further calls to AppleCare and the case/issue is now in the hands of Engineering/Development. An Engineering tech then contacted me like many others on this thread and collected logs and data for analysis. So yes there is an issue and yes Apple is aware of it. And no it is not the router.