Just a day after Apple said it would launch iOS 8.0.2 “in the next few days”, Apple has released iOS 8.0.2 in a move that might cause some to wonder whether Apple is rushing its release to fight back against the bad publicity generated by the iOS 8.0.1 scandal.
iPhone owners eligible to upgrade to iOS 8 can now find the iOS 8.0.2 update ready and available to download in the “Software Update” section of the iOS settings page.
It was only yesterday that Apple came out with an official apology for the “great incovenience” iPhone 6 and 6 Plus owners who had updated to 8.0.1 had faced through the disabling of cellular access and the Touch ID fingerprint sensor, as we reported here.
UPDATE: Just as I was about to go to press in what was a case of excellent timing, an official statement on iOS 8.0.2 from Apple appeared in my inbox, which states:
“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. We apologize for inconveniencing the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus users who were impacted by the bug in iOS 8.0.1.”
Original story continues below:
Despite Apple stating it was “working around the clock to prepare iOS 8.0.2 with a for the issue, and will release it as soon as it is ready in the next few days”, Apple has gone ahead and released iOS 8.0.2 approximately 24 hours after that statement.
Exactly why Apple felt it could compress “the next few days” into what has ended up being not much more than “the next few hours” is unknown to me beyond speculating they’re really keen to get a working update out to all users, but the Company must be supremely confident that 8.0.2 will definitely not need an 8.0.3 in short order.
The 8.0.1 issues only affected the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, with earlier compatible iPhones unaffected by the bug.
Apple’s update says that it:
– Fixes an issue in iOS 8.0.1 that impacted cellular network connectivity and Touch ID on iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus
– Fixes a bug so HealthKit apps can now be made available on the App Store
– Addresses an issue where 3rd party keyboards could become deselected when a user enters their passcode
– Fixes an issue that prevented some apps from accessing photos from the Photo Library
– Improves the reliability of the Reachability feature on iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus
– Fixes an issue that could cause unexpected cellular data usage when receiving SMS/MMS messages
– Better support of Ask To Buy for Family Sharing for In-App Purchases
– Fixes an issue where ringtones were sometimes not restored from iCloud backups
– Fixes a bug that prevented uploading photos and videos from Safari
Apple says that “For information on the security content of this update, please visit this website“.