When iOS 16.3 arrives, it could have two big fixes that iPhone users have been waiting for. According to reports, Apple will patch a problem with the iPhone 14 display and an issue with the new Home app architecture.
Over the past several weeks, some iPhone 14 users have complained about horizontal lines flashing across their screens. According to reports on social media and discussion boards, the lines appear when the iPhone wakes up or restarts.
According to MacRumors, Apple has internally acknowledged that the bug is related to software rather than hardware, so Apple Stores won’t be replacing or repairing affected devices. Rather, a software fix is reportedly “coming soon that will resolve the issue,” an internal company memo states.
The other issue is related to the new Home architecture that previously arrived in iOS 16.2. Just before the holidays, Apple pulled the feature, which improves reliability and efficiency, due to a sharing issue–but without providing an update on when it would be restored. In the second iOS 16.3 beta, the Home architecture upgrade option has returned, suggesting that Apple has fixed the issue.
It’s possible that both of these updates will arrive in the iOS 16.3 update, which is expected to arrive next month, or in a 16.2.1 update earlier than that. Apple often ships updates between development releases to patch security holes and major issues, and these certainly could rise to that level. However, since the Home app architecture upgrade was pulled without an app or system update, it’s possible Apple could restore it independently without an update.