Looks can be deceiving. Following the troubled rollouts of iOS 9.1 and iOS 9.2, Apple AAPL +0.90% doubled the development time of iOS 9.3 and still ran into significantproblems. So yesterday Apple rushed out iOS 9.3.1 to provide an urgent fix – but can it be trusted? I’m not so sure…
Let’s take a look:
Who Is iOS 9.3 For?
As with previous iOS 9.x releases, iOS 9.3 is compatible with the iPhone 4S or later, iPad 2 or later, iPad mini or later, iPad Pro and 5th generation iPod touch or later. Users will be prompted to upgrade, but if you haven’t receive a notification this can be triggered manually by navigating to Settings > General > Software Update
Apple iOS 9.3.1 – Image credit: Gordon Kelly
The Deal Breaker
Right now there is no iOS 9.3.1 jailbreak. In fact the Pangu and TaiG teams haven’t managed to jailbreak anything since iOS 9.1 in October so owners of jailbroken iPhones, iPads and iPod touches could be in for a long wait.
So What Do You Get?
Unsurprisingly iOS 9.3.1 claims to be all about one thing: fixing the Universal Links bug which impacts web surfing. In fact its entire feature description reads:
“Fixes an issue that causes apps to be unresponsive after tapping on links in Safari and other apps”
Do we get any bonuses or secret features? Having dug through the update it seems not. Even the Apple SecurityUpdates page linked to in the iOS 9.3.1 release notes actually has no reference to iOS 9.3.1 at all and the update itself is just circa 35MB (size can vary on different devices). Which begs the bigger question…
Does iOS 9.3.1 Work?
Thankfully the prevailing response I’ve seen is ‘Yes’. That said it isn’t working for everyone.
The official Apple Support Communities forum has several small threads from users saying the links bug is not resolved for them after updating to iOS 9.3.1 (sources 1, 2, 3) as well as reports of issues around battery life, photo syncing, iMessage and iBooks.
It has to be stressed that these are very limited reports, but they are still worth bearing in mind.
Apple iOS 9.3.1 Install Verdict: Wait Unless You Have The Safari Links Bug
As it stands the iOS 9.3.1 update is extremely limited. It was released to address a single serious problem, so if you suffer that problem it is worth trying the upgrade to fix it: the majority of affected users report it works and none of the newer issues are as serious as not being able to surf the Web.
That said there are enough hints of small teething problems that if you are currently unaffected by the links bug you might as well stay put for now. You aren’t missing out on any new features or even security upgrades and it is worth being cautious until it is clear none of the Apple Support Community problem threads are picking up momentum.
As always, I will update this guide should that happen.
The Road Ahead
I suspect iOS 9 still has several major releases in the pipeline. It remains five months until the launch of the increasingly controversial iPhone 7 and a second generation Apple Watch should appear before then. So brace yourselves for iOS 9.4 and maybe even iOS 9.5 before the iPhone 7 brings iOS 10 (iOS X?) with it.
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