iOS 18 made iPhone SE 2022 slower?!

[FruitSodaa]

Opening and closing apps doesn't feel as snappy, also scrolling and interacting in apps also feels sluggish.

It might be a step in the planned obsolescence from Apple, but I don't know.

Is it possible to buy a used iPhone SE 2022 with iOS 17 and use my iCloud backup on the device to go back to iOS 17, or am I screwed since I updated?

Reason I'm freaking out it because I'm PWM sensitive and this may be the last iPhone I can use, ever.

 

[Theophil1971]

I wouldn’t call it planned obsolescence. Just the reality that older devices, with less powerful CPUs and less RAM will always run newer, more robust, resource-intensive software slower.

 

[msephton]

Your phone is running the same speed, it's just got more to do in the new software. This is called progress.

That said, there is still a window to downgrade. As long as iOS 17.6.1 is available as IPSW and being signed by Apple. So act quick, because they will stop signing it fairly soon.

- https://betaprofiles.dev/downgrade/
- https://www.macworld.com/article/2020596/downgrade-iphone-older-version-ios.html

 

[FruitSodaa]

Your phone is running the same speed, it's just got more to do in the new software. This is called progress.

That said, there is still a window to downgrade. As long as iOS 17.6.1 is available as IPSW and being signed by Apple. So act quick, because they will stop signing it fairly soon.

- https://betaprofiles.dev/downgrade/
- https://www.macworld.com/article/2020596/downgrade-iphone-older-version-ios.html

Thanks, but basically it says Ican't use my backup anymore since it's been made on ios 18?

If I were to buy a used iPhone with ios 17, and restore my iCloud backup, will I be forced to update?

 

[jimmy_uk]

Thanks, but basically it says Ican't use my backup anymore since it's been made on ios 18?

If I were to buy a used iPhone with ios 17, and restore my iCloud backup, will I be forced to update?

Why can you not downgrade on your phone, then perform a backup with iOS17?

 

[FruitSodaa]

Why can you not downgrade on your phone, then perform a backup with iOS17?

So you mean it can be done?

Just to be clear:

• I now have iOS 18 on my device.
• My iCloud backup was made yesterday (when on iOS 18).

So you mean I can:

1. Download and install iOS 17 which is still signed by apple.
2. Set up the phone as if it was brand new.
3. Log in to my Apple ID.
4. Use my current backup in iCloud (which was made on iOS 18)
5. Backup now works and I am now running iOS 17?

Many thanks for your reply!

 

[JForestZ34]

Sorry you’re dealing with this!! I miss the days when the software side was released when it was close to perfect. Not like it is today. Totally rushed..


James

 

[jimmy_uk]

So you mean it can be done?

Just to be clear:

• I now have iOS 18 on my device.
• My iCloud backup was made yesterday (when on iOS 18).

So you mean I can:

1. Download and install iOS 17 which is still signed by apple.
2. Set up the phone as if it was brand new.
3. Log in to my Apple ID.
4. Use my current backup in iCloud (which was made on iOS 18)
5. Backup now works and I am now running iOS 17?

Many thanks for your reply!

Ah no, I didn't think my reply through. I forgot you have to wipe the device to downgrade. So if you restore your current backup it will update the OS again. Sorry.

 

[ian6969]

I’ve been extremely happy with iOS 18 on my 13 Pro, which I think has the same processor. It’s feels quicker than it ever has (same with my iPad), Safari in particular absolutely flies. However, I did do a DFU wipe and start again as I always do when a new iOS drops, then set it up as new and then sign into iCloud - so not setting up from a backup. Could be worth a try?

 

[BugeyeSTI]

So you mean it can be done?

Just to be clear:

• I now have iOS 18 on my device.
• My iCloud backup was made yesterday (when on iOS 18).

So you mean I can:

1. Download and install iOS 17 which is still signed by apple.
2. Set up the phone as if it was brand new.
3. Log in to my Apple ID.
4. Use my current backup in iCloud (which was made on iOS 18)
5. Backup now works and I am now running iOS 17?

Many thanks for your reply!

You can downgrade to 17.6.1 but you have to setup the phone as new and not use your iOS18 backup. You can get most of your data back when you sign into iCloud but you'll have to do some extra work to get your phone back to the setup you had before. If you think iOS18 is your issue you should downgrade as soon as possible, once Apple stops signing 17.6.1 you'll be stuck on iOS18

 

[Dylan33x]

In the past you could get around the backup issue by backing up to a Computer and then editing one of the plist files in the backup from 18.0 to 17.6.1. Not sure if this is possible, but you could try that. I expect today to probably be the last day to downgrade though, so I would get on it.

 

[Reverend Benny]

I would argue and say stay with iOS 18 and do some troubleshooting to fix the issue rather than going backwards.
Another alternative is wait for 18.0.x patches to arrive that might address some of these issues.

Since the SE2022 has a lower resolution screen I'd say it should run better than on the regular iPhone 13. Less pixels to shuffle.

 

[FruitSodaa]

Thanks for the replies everyone!

If I do a downgrade to 17, but not a full backup, can I recover stuff from iCloud individually like messages, notes etc? (the things listed as "saved on iCloud")?

 

[Dylan33x]

Thanks for the replies everyone!

If I do a downgrade to 17, but not a full backup, can I recover stuff from iCloud individually like messages, notes etc? (the things listed as "saved on iCloud")?

Yes, all the toggle-able things will still sync.

 

[Dylan33x]

Signing window just closed. Hope you made it

 

[Paddle1]

I'm sure it's still usable on iOS 18. It's a currently sold device that has an A15 chip and iOS 18 supports all the way back to A12 chip from 2018.

A few reasons it might feel slow:
- You just updated and it's still indexing
- The update process has made your phone hot
- Low battery health
- You need a restore for whatever reason