iPhone XR Problems: 5 Things to Know

iPhone XR Problems: 5 Things to Know is a post by Adam Mills from Gotta Be Mobile.

Some iPhone XR users are running into bugs and performance issues after downloading Apple’s latest iOS 15 update.

The colorful 6.1-inch iPhone XR has been out for more than a year now and we’re still getting a lot of feedback from those who’ve adopted Apple’s colorful phone. A lot of the feedback is good. That said, we’re also seeing negative feedback emerge.

Some iPhone XR users are dealing with hardware problems while others are experiencing issues with the device’s operating system.

In this guide we’ll take you through the most common iPhone XR problems. We’ll also provide you with some tips and resources that will come in handy if you start noticing issues on your new phone.

iPhone XR Problems

Some iPhone XR users have had problems activating the phone at home. This is a common issue with new phones and it’s sometimes easy to fix.

If you’re unable to activate your iPhone XR, take a look at Apple’s System Status page. If the circle is anything other than green, you’ll have to wait until it’s green before trying to activate again.

If the circle is green and you still can’t activate your phone, make sure your SIM card is in properly. If you’re getting a “No Sim” or “Invalid SIM” error, head here for help.

iPhone XR users are also complaining about restore issues, issues setting up Face ID, Bluetooth problems, Wi-Fi problems, weird battery drain, Exchange problems, issues with first and third-party apps, crashes, abnormal amounts of lag, crashes, and iCloud problems.

We expect this list to grow as more people buy the iPhone XR throughout the year.

Where to Find Feedback

If you own an iPhone XR or if you’re thinking about buying one for yourself or a loved one, you’ll want to dig into feedback from iPhone XR users.

We recommend keeping an eye on YouTube, Apple’s discussion forums, social media sites like Twitter/Facebook, and the MacRumors forums for information about the iPhone XR’s performance.

If you’ve moved your iPhone XR to iOS 15, have a look at our iOS 15 guide.

How to Fix iPhone XR Problems

If you’re dealing with issues, and your iPhone XR is running an older version of iOS, try updating it to the latest version.

If your phone is already on the latest version of iOS 15, or you don’t want to upgrade just yet, take a look at our list of fixes for the most common iOS problems.

We’ve also released some tips to help improve your iPhone XR’s performance and tips that could help you improve your battery life.

If you can’t find a fix for your iPhone XR’s problem in those walkthroughs, check Apple’s discussion forums for other potential fixes.

If you’d prefer to get in touch with Apple, get in contact with the company’s support account on Twitter. You can also get in contact with Apple Support via the company’s website.

If Apple’s frontline customer service can’t find a solution for your issue, you might want to take your phone into your local Apple Store or your local carrier location. They might be able to diagnose the issue in minutes.

If you’ve got an Apple Store in your area, schedule a Genius Bar appointment. Your iPhone XR is under warranty so if the problem is serious, you might be able to get a replacement.

How to Downgrade the iPhone XR

Sometimes you’ll have the option to downgrade your iPhone XR to another version of iOS. Downgrading can have a positive impact on your device’s performance.

Our guide to the iOS downgrade will walk you through everything you need to know about the process.

What’s Next

If your phone is struggling on iOS 15.3 or an older version of iOS, keep an eye out for a new version of iOS 15.

Apple’s confirmed a new iOS 15.4 update for the iPhone XR and the software is currently in beta testing ahead of an unknown release date. We expect the iOS 15.3 release date to land sometime in the spring.

If your problems are really bad, and you can’t/don’t want to wait for the official release, you might try moving your iPhone XR to the iOS 15.4 beta.

For more on iOS 15.4 and the beta, have a peek at our walkthrough. For more about the iOS 15.4 release date, check out our guide.

4 Reasons Not to Install iOS 15.3 & 11 Reasons You Should

Install iOS 15.3 for Better Security

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If security is important to you, you'll want to think about installing Apple's iOS 15.3 update right away.

Apple says iOS 15.3 has 10 new security patches on board. If you're interested in the details, you can read more about the patches right here.

If you missed iOS 15.2.1, you'll get its security patch with your upgrade. You can learn more about the change over on Apple's website.

If you missed Apple's iOS 15.2 update, you'll get its 30+ security patches with your upgrade. You can read all about them over on the company's security site.

iOS 15.2 also included some important upgrades to privacy. The software brought the company's App Privacy Report to Settings. This lets you see how often your apps have accessed your location, photos, camera, microphone, contacts and more during the last seven days. You can also see their network activity.

In addition, iOS 15.2 brought Apple's communication safety features for kids. You'll find these features in the Messages app, in Siri, in Spotlight, and in Search.

If you missed iOS 15.1, iOS 15.3 will bring its security patches to your iPhone. You can read more about them on Apple's website.

If you missed iOS 15.0.2 you'll also get its security patch with your upgrade. You can learn more about it right here.

iOS 15.0 also brought numerous security patches to your iPhone. If you'll be moving up from iOS 14 and you're interested in the exact nature of these improvements, you can read about them over on Apple's security website.

Apple's updated its website with new information about iOS 15's batch of security patches. The company now says the software patched up an issue that could have exposed a user's private Apple ID information and in-app search history. It also says iOS 15 patched up an issue that allowed apps to override Privacy preferences.

If you skipped iOS 14.8 or any older versions of iOS, you'll get the security patches from those updates with your iOS 15.3 update as well.

In addition to those patches, iOS 15 comes with some security and privacy upgrades including improvements to Siri. Requests made to Siri are now processed on the device itself using Neural Engine. This makes it more secure.

If you're an Apple Card user, you'll now get a security code that changes regularly to use when you make online transactions.

Apple's also included a built-in authenticator that's similar to Google Authenticator. This will let you generate verification codes for enhanced sign-in security under your Passwords.

There's also a Mail feature that hides your IP address. The company will add a new App Privacy report feature in the next version of iOS 15 that will tell you when an app has accessed sensitive information.