Apple has acknowledged a serious connectivity bug affecting a "small number" of iPhone 18 Pro Max users on AT&T's network — and says software updates cannot fix the phones that have already failed.
What is happening
Affected users have seen their devices lose cellular service entirely: no calls, no mobile data and no text messages. The phones show SOS in the status bar where signal bars should be and are usable only over Wi-Fi, according to customer reports cited by Bloomberg, which first reported the story.
The $1,299 iPhone 18 Pro Max — Apple's flagship outside its forthcoming foldable line — went on sale only about two weeks ago, making the failure especially painful for early buyers.
"We have identified an issue affecting a small number of iPhone 18 Pro Max users on the AT&T network that may cause a device to lose service and be unable to make calls," an Apple spokesperson told Bloomberg News. The company has not said how many users are affected or what causes the failure.
The fix — and its limits
Apple has released iOS 27.0.1 along with a carrier settings update meant to prevent the bug from reaching more phones. The carrier update will download automatically for AT&T customers over the next two weeks; users can pull it manually under Settings > General > About.
But for phones that have already dropped off the network, the updates will not help. Apple says those customers must swap their devices for new units through Apple or AT&T.
One notable hardware detail: the US iPhone 18 Pro Max is the only new iPhone sold there with a Qualcomm cellular modem, while models like the smaller iPhone 18 Pro use Apple's in-house C2 modem. Apple has not linked the modem to the problem, and says no other models or carriers are affected.
Sources: iPhone 18 Pro Max users face major AT&T glitch | Apple iPhone 18 Pro Max Users Hit With AT&T Glitch: What's the Fix?
What is happening
Affected users have seen their devices lose cellular service entirely: no calls, no mobile data and no text messages. The phones show SOS in the status bar where signal bars should be and are usable only over Wi-Fi, according to customer reports cited by Bloomberg, which first reported the story.
The $1,299 iPhone 18 Pro Max — Apple's flagship outside its forthcoming foldable line — went on sale only about two weeks ago, making the failure especially painful for early buyers.
"We have identified an issue affecting a small number of iPhone 18 Pro Max users on the AT&T network that may cause a device to lose service and be unable to make calls," an Apple spokesperson told Bloomberg News. The company has not said how many users are affected or what causes the failure.
The fix — and its limits
Apple has released iOS 27.0.1 along with a carrier settings update meant to prevent the bug from reaching more phones. The carrier update will download automatically for AT&T customers over the next two weeks; users can pull it manually under Settings > General > About.
But for phones that have already dropped off the network, the updates will not help. Apple says those customers must swap their devices for new units through Apple or AT&T.
One notable hardware detail: the US iPhone 18 Pro Max is the only new iPhone sold there with a Qualcomm cellular modem, while models like the smaller iPhone 18 Pro use Apple's in-house C2 modem. Apple has not linked the modem to the problem, and says no other models or carriers are affected.
Sources: iPhone 18 Pro Max users face major AT&T glitch | Apple iPhone 18 Pro Max Users Hit With AT&T Glitch: What's the Fix?
