Apple’s iOS 10.2.1 Addresses Majority of iPhone 6/6s Unexpected Shutdown Issues

On Thursday, Apple revealed that iOS 10.2.1, an update that the company released a month ago, included a bug fix for an issue that caused iPhone 6s users to experiences unexpected shutdowns.

The iOS point update quietly patched what appears to be a power management issue that in some cases would cause iPhone 6s hardware with older batteries to shut down.

However, the software update does not completely solve the problem. In a statement provided to TechCrunch, Apple notes an 80 percent decrease in unexpected shutdowns among iPhone 6s devices and a 70 percent decrease for iPhone 6 devices.

With iOS 10.2.1, Apple made improvements to reduce occurrences of unexpected shutdowns that a small number of users were experiencing with their iPhone. iOS 10.2.1 already has over 50% of active iOS devices upgraded and the diagnostic data we’ve received from upgraders shows that for this small percentage of users experiencing the issue, we’re seeing a more than 80% reduction in iPhone 6s and over 70% reduction on iPhone 6 of devices unexpectedly shutting down.

We also added the ability for the phone to restart without needing to connect to power, if a user still encounters an unexpected shutdown. It is important to note that these unexpected shutdowns are not a safety issue, but we understand it can be an inconvenience and wanted to fix the issue as quickly as possible. If a customer has any issues with their device they can contact AppleCare.

According to the report, Apple determined that the unexpected shutdowns were caused by intensive processing tasks. Older batteries were unable to handle the power spikes prompting the power management system to perform an emergency shutdown.

The report notes that Apple is also planning to add a “service battery” notice to the battery information tool found in the Settings app under Battery, helping owners diagnose their own hardware.

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