Q: "Phone" app freeze on iOS 10

My phone a 6 plus is doing the exact same thing since the update.  My screen stops interacting all together.  I basically can't open any apps, can't make calls, can't close screens that are open.  I can click the home button closing the phone but when I open the phone again the problem is exactly the same just as I left it when I parked the phone with the home key.  This is very frustrating.  Restarting resolves the issue temporarily but only for a short time. 

Someone on this post suggested to "Reset All Settings".  I was desperate so I did just that.  Go to SETTINGS->GENERAL->(at the bottom) RESET ALL SETTINGS.  Its scary because you think you are doing more damage than what it does.  But the WIFI Password needs to be input along with ring tones for email, texts, etc. It is not that big a deal to redo.  I did this last Friday and for 5 days now I have had NO PHONE issues like I was having before.  It still has been a short time to say it is fixed but it was happening EVERDAY, not just once per week.

Has anyone gotten any closer or heard anything from Apple regarding this issue? using my iPhone 6S to make calls has now become a frustrating process because im still getting the freezing issue even after a factory reset and iCloud restore.

A lot of people, including myself, got the problem fixed by following this one:

Re: "Phone" app freeze on iOS 10

i.e. disable the contact syncing from some email accounts. (especially hotmail or live.com)

good luck!

Hi Starr.C,

Thank you for the reply but we are talking about the "Phone" app which lets us make calls, this is not an app you download. I have been using apple for over 5 years and IOS 10, for the first time is a big disappointment which needs urgent update. I've updated with the latest IOS version which is 10.0.2 as well but still same problem.

I bit the bullet with a fresh install and my phone is working as expected and I have contacts switched on for all accounts.

I read on another thread that someone tried a restore from their PC/Mac seems to reinstate the problem. So

I made a full back up on my mac with itunes as fail safe option.

Then I went into Settibng>icloud>backup and switched that on and clicked "Back Up Now".  Check your photos are within your icloud capacity, or are synced somewhere else. I then checked backups were enabled for any apps with data that I wanted to save - Whatapp was the only one for me.  I didn't mind the other apps started afresh from a blank install.

Double check you backups have been completed!

Finally, go to settings>general>reset>erase all content and settings.    Wait ....

You'll be sent a text with the two step authorisation code which is a problem if this is your only phone because you can't access texts before authorising the phone.  However the "call me" option does work.

If all else fails, you can restore from a cable into your pc/mac - but this will restore the fault too.

My wife's iPhone has this issue too since update. Mine as well. POS is iOS10. Phone app freezes. Phone calls are missed or when connected go in and out. Phantom restarts periodically. Quite disappointed in Apple.

I have the same problem with Phone App. The app freeze and mot allow me to toggle within the different tabs (e.g. recent calls, contacts).

It's a bit of neverendig story. I have to jump out by pressing home button then try the phone app again. After 2 or 3 tries, the app crashes and only by now at a new try I'm abble to use the phone app.

I reset all settings: problem solved only for a few hours.

I tried to reset the phone via Itunes: it was Ok for almost one day.

Now i deleted my exchange mail accounts (Hotmail, Outlook) hopping for solving the annoyng problem.

Iphone 6S/ IOS 10.0.2

Hi. Same here. (iPhone SE, iOS 10.02)  but not only Phone hangs. Also the contact app and also maps hangs up every time the apps are running in the background for a while. After they crash or if i'm able to close them they will work for a while.

I just switched off my IBM-Verse (Exchange server)  contacts to sync. an it seems to work (i'm off to a holiday for a couple of days so i can live with that. Back at work again i have to switch it on again)

very annoying

Christian

Hi,

Yes mine is also doing the same, it freezes on the phone app and must restart the **** thing. For iPhone it's pathetic because you buy a iPhone expecting it to be the best of the best but then you get issues like this.  I will understand if the installed apps give issues but the apps that come with iPhone is having issues, makes you wonder if it's sabotage.

Someone on this post suggested to "Reset All Settings".  I was desperate so I did just that.  Go to SETTINGS->GENERAL->(at the bottom) RESET ALL SETTINGS.  Its scary because you think you are doing more damage than what it does.  But the WIFI Password needs to be input along with ring tones for email, texts, etc. It is not that big a deal to redo.  I did this last Friday and for 5 days now I have had NO PHONE issues like I was having before.  It still has been a short time to say it is fixed but it was happening EVERDAY, not just once per week.

Do you not think I have done that.  I have reset my phone more times I can count.  One thing I never tried was reset without pulling from my backup but that's not an option.

Well after "Reset All Settings" was done things got much better.  Not near the timeouts/hangups that I was experiencing.  Now the phone has a what I call a "rapper effect".  When it decides to hang up (which is not near as often) the last word from the caller repeats maybe 6 or 7 times really fast and then completely hangs up.  The last word is a stuttering of the person on the other end.

So, it is not near as annoying but is not fixed either.  Trying  to conduct business is frustrating.

Update on mine.

hangups continue after disabling my exchange account.

Did reset all settings.

Seems to be a little better, but still hangups once in a while ?????

So if its the exchange account causing the problem, i suppose even to setup as a new phone wouldn't help, right ?

Christian

You might try backing up to iCloud and restoring from that. Restoring from iCloud basically redone loads all of your apps fresh and restores relevant data.

Obviously you need to make sure you have enough room on your iCloud account. This made a diffference for me before I upgraded my phone.