Apple Releases iOS 17.0.3 With Fix for iPhone 15 Pro Overheating

Wednesday October 4, 2023 10:19 am PDT by Juli Clover

Apple today released an iOS 17.0.3 update for the iPhone, with the software coming a week after the launch of iOS 17.0.2. Apple has also released a new version of iPadOS, 17.0.3, for iPad users.

iOS 17
The iOS 17.0.3 and iPadOS 17.0.3 updates can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update.

iOS 17.0.3, which is build 21A360, addresses a significant overheating issue on the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max. Shortly after the new iPhone 15 models launched, customers began complaining that the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max were getting too warm, and even shutting down due to heat problems in some cases.

Apple confirmed that there was a bug in late September, and said that it would be fixed with an update to iOS 17. Some third-party apps had also been overloading the A17 Pro chip, leading to problems with heat dissipation. Apps affecting performance included Instagram, Uber, and more, and in addition to releasing an update to address the iOS 17 issue, Apple has also been working with app developers to optimize apps causing problems.

In comments to MacRumors, Apple clarified that customers experiencing temperature problems would see the issue resolved with an update, and that the titanium frame of the iPhone 15 Pro is not at fault. Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo claimed that the overheating was likely caused by "compromises made in the thermal system design," and he suggested that Apple would only be able to fix the issue by lowering processor performance.

Apple said that it has no intention of tweaking the A17 Pro chip, and that the titanium and aluminum design of the iPhone 15 Pro in fact provides better heat dissipation than the stainless steel frames used in previous models.

The iOS 17.0.3 and iPadOS 17.0.3 updates also address a kernel vulnerability that could allow an attacker to gain elevated privileges. Apple claims that it is aware that this security flaw was exploited on versions of iOS before iOS 16.6.

Related Forums: iOS 17, iPadOS 17

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Top Rated Comments

ProfessionalFan

40 months ago

nice, quick fix out. now fire the inept engineers who manage to miss it in the first place.

If people got fired every time a software release had bugs in it, nobody would be employed.

Score: 136 Votes (Like | Disagree)

antiprotest

40 months ago

It's amazing to me that users have kept gaslighting those who encountered the issue: "it's just warm. that's not overheating"; "it's indexing"; "you are using it too much"; "no issue with mine"; "first world problems"; "just be grateful"...on and on and on. The issue is with Apple's end all along. Even Apple admits it. Next time, just accept that some people might have problems with their devices that might not be happening to yours, and that the problem could be with Apple and not the users. You can believe other people's complaints and still be happy with your own device. Don't take it personally.

Score: 83 Votes (Like | Disagree)

missingar

40 months ago

All I'm saying is there seems to be far more updates now than there was ten years ago. That it seems like it's near-constant, and that I find it very annoying. I just updated the thing a few days ago. I don't want to do it again. That's all.

Ten years ago there weren't even 5 generations worth of iPhone to make updates for, and each year only had one main configuration with two colors available.

In contrast, iOS 17 is compatible with 23 devices and iPad OS 17 is compatible with 20 devices. So, in total, 43 different devices are receiving this software. Software, which is exponentially more complicated than it was 10 years ago, with many more APIs and specific applications to account for.

What's remarkable is that in less than 2 weeks, they've been able to identify, correct, test, and deploy a fix.

Score: 35 Votes (Like | Disagree)

ProfessionalFan

40 months ago

As soon as I did update. Went on TikTok and screen had dimmed. Way to cook!

This seems like a warranted punishment for using TikTok though.

Score: 31 Votes (Like | Disagree)

midkay

40 months ago

Maybe some of you guys who've been here for years can chime in but... it sure seems like there's way too many updates these days compared to ten years ago. Seems like every few days, there is a reported issue, then I have to sit through another update. And another, and another, and another and... it's just out of control.

So you'd prefer fewer enhancements, improvements and fixes? This seems obvious, but if you don't like it, don't update manually and just let your phone update automatically overnight whenever it wants to.

Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)