iPhone 18 Pro and New Apple Watches Hit by Random Reboots
Users report random reboots on iPhone 18 Pro and Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4. Apple released a watch patch and promises an iPhone update soon.
Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event
- iPhone 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max users experience freezing and random reboots after failed Face ID scans.
- Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4 are also suffering from unpredictable random reboots.
- Apple released watchOS 27.0.1 on Wednesday specifically to fix the issue on affected smartwatches.
- A software update is currently in development to address the reboot bug on iPhone 18 Pro units.
Following last week's official release of Apple's latest hardware lineup—featuring the A20 chip and variable aperture on the iPhone 18 Pro models, alongside advanced health tracking and Siri AI capabilities on the Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4—users have quickly noticed an unexpected drawback. Despite being clear performance upgrades over their predecessors, these new devices share a frustrating common issue: they keep randomly rebooting.
According to reports originating from 9to5Mac, several iPhone 18 Pro users have observed that their smartphones freeze completely following an unsuccessful Face ID authentication attempt. During this freeze, users cannot interact with the display even if the "Try Face ID Again" button remains visible on screen. Moments later, the device automatically shuts down and reboots. While not a catastrophic hardware failure, it has proven to be a persistent nuisance for a significant number of consumers, as highlighted in various online community discussions.
Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event
A strikingly similar situation affects the newest Apple Watch iterations. Although the Series 12 and Ultra 4 do not utilize facial recognition, owners are still reporting random and unpredictable reboots. Unlike the iPhone 18 Pro scenario, affected smartwatch users are not performing any specific triggering action when the crash occurs; watches have been known to spontaneously flash the Apple logo in the middle of a physical workout, during an interaction with Siri AI, or while navigating via the Maps application. Some independent technical analyses have pointed toward Neural Engine anomalies, though Apple has not officially confirmed the root cause.
Unprompted device reboots in newly launched consumer electronics typically stem from low-level software conflicts in handling brand-new silicon architectures or tightly integrated machine learning workloads. When manufacturers roll out advanced neural processing units and proprietary chips simultaneously, edge-case race conditions in the operating system can trigger kernel panics. Apple's swift response in deploying targeted firmware updates highlights the critical role of rapid over-the-air patches in maintaining modern device stability.
Fortunately, Apple has already identified software resolutions across the board, with a current fix already deployed for the wearable division. On Wednesday, the company released watchOS 27.0.1 exclusively for Series 12 and Ultra 4 owners, designed to permanently eliminate random reboots on those models. Meanwhile, iPhone 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max owners must wait slightly longer, though Apple confirmed directly to 9to5Mac that a dedicated update is actively in the pipeline.
Affected iPhone 18 Pro owners are advised against rushing to an Apple Store for hardware replacements if random restarting is their only symptom. The upcoming software patch—expected to follow a naming convention similar to iOS 27.0.1—should resolve the glitch completely. Users can prepare by regularly navigating to Settings > General > Software Update to ensure the patch installs the moment it becomes available to the public.
Source: Lifehacker
Found something wrong in this article? Report an issue with this article
Comments
Leave a Comment