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Apple’s latest iOS8 update is already out and available, coming only about 36 hours after its first iOS 8 update was quickly pulled back on Sept. 24 due to major problems that caused some new iPhone 6 smartphones to lose their ability to make phone calls.
“iOS 8.0.2 is now available for users, it fixes an issue that affected iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus users who downloaded iOS 8.0.1, and includes improvements and bug fixes originally in iOS 8.0.1,” Apple said in a statement emailed to eWEEK. “We apologize for inconveniencing the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus users who were impacted by the bug in iOS 8.0.1.”
The original iOS 8.0.1 update launched on Sept. 24 also disabled the Touch ID functions on new iPhone 6 devices, making life difficult for their owners, according to an earlier eWEEK report. The update was quickly pulled back and removed from Apple’s available downloads.
The swift action by Apple to get a working update out to replace the flawed code is impressive, but the release of the flawed code in the first place had many critics online discussing how such a glitch would never have occurred under the leadership of the late Apple CEO Steve Jobs.
Before the fresh iOS 8.0.2 code was unveiled late on Sept. 25, Apple provided a workaround so that affected users could take several manual steps to undo the errant update’s effects. Users whose phones were disabled were advised to reinstall iOS 8 through iTunes until a working update was released.
The bad update certainly isn’t the only Apple issue on the minds of owners of the new iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus smartphones today. Earlier this week, some iPhone 6 owners around the world reported that their thinner iPhone 6 phones are bending when keeping them in a pants pocket.
The bending issues have been widely circulated online along with graphic photographs that purport to show iPhone 6 phones with mild or more severe bending. An accurate count of such bending incidents is not yet known. Images of bent devices are appearing on Twitter, Facebook and other social media sites, as well as other Websites.
The bending issues arrived on the heels of Apple’s all-time record-setting first-weekend sales numbers for new iPhones since the first devices hit the market back in June of 2007.
The new iPhone 6 models went on sale on Sept. 19 to customers in the United States, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Puerto Rico, Singapore and the United Kingdom.
Apple had released its iOS 8 operating system on Sept. 17, with a full array of new capabilities and features, according to an earlier eWEEK report, including improvements related to photos, messaging, file sharing and device interconnections, according to the company. Among the enhancements are easier ways to find and edit photos, as well as the ability to add a user’s voice into a text message, the company said.
Meanwhile, starting Sept. 26, iPhone 6 smartphones will go on sale in 22 additional nations, including Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Isle of Man, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Turkey and United Arab Emirates. The new iPhones will be available in 115 countries by the end of the year.
Preorders for the new iPhones had reached huge levels, with more than 4 million devices preordered within 24 hours of the process opening on Sept. 12, just seven days before the official device launch date, according to an earlier eWEEK report. That high demand quickly led the company to advise customers that many devices won’t be delivered until October due to short initial supplies.
The new iPhones include the iPhone 6 with its 4.7-inch Retina HD display and an even larger iPhone 6 Plus with its 5.5-inch Retina HD screen, according to a recent eWEEK report. The new devices—which come in 16GB, 64GB and 128GB storage capacities—also come with many other new features and capabilities, making them popular before they ever hit store shelves. The new phones include an Apple-designed A8 chip with second-generation 64-bit desktop-class architecture, enhanced iSight and FaceTime HD cameras, and iOS 8. A new, built-in Apple Pay secure payments system will be added to iOS 8 as an update in October, according to the company.
The reported phone bending problem is not the first time that a potential problem has cropped up with new iPhones. In July 2010, Apple dealt with antenna issues surrounding its then new iPhone 4 that were inspired by consumer complaints of poor call quality when they held their phones. Called “Antennagate” by Jobs at the time, the problem was the location of the antenna inside the devices, which was solved with an add-on thin rubber case.