iPhone is criticized for more and more errors

Last week, on social network X, singer Justin Bieber expressed his frustration to his 90 million followers about a button in the iPhone’s Messages app. When pressed, the button automatically records voice. But what makes the male singer angry is that this button is in the same position as the send message button, causing him to often press the wrong button.

“When pressed by mistake, it not only makes an annoying beeping sound, but also stops the music playing,” Bieber wrote.

Bieber’s message quickly received tens of millions of views. Many people report experiencing similar situations where Apple’s User Experience (UX) design is frustrating. The male singer was later nicknamed “reluctant UX critic” by fans.

The feature Bieber mentioned appeared on the iPhone three years ago. But follow Telegraphthe criticism touches on a larger, persistent problem with the iOS operating system used by 1.5 billion people worldwide: the increasingly complex, error-prone platform.

In fact, the operating system for iPhone is constantly complaining about many errors. Most recently, iOS 26 version has been criticized by users on social networks and technology forums for slow notifications, overheating, app crashes, reduced battery life, and some functions not working properly…

The “bulge” of iOS

Since the iPhone launched 18 years ago, Apple has continuously added new features to iOS every year. iOS 26 version “overhauls” the design language with the name Liquid Glass – an interface with transparent notifications and controls, or introduces the Apple Intelligence feature to bring artificial intelligence to a series of iPhone applications such as Mail and Notes.

However, according to experts, having more and more features in a software leads to the “bloat” phenomenon, in which the more complex the software, the more likely it is to encounter errors. According to Josh Cohenzadeh, representative of mobile device reliability testing company Sentry, the important factor here is the cycle. Every year, Apple is forced to release major updates, even if not perfect, to keep up with the market and users. When constantly adding new features and changing the user interface, stability and reliability can be affected.

Although iOS often receives complaints every time it upgrades to a new version, Apple rarely speaks up to explain. However, many analytics companies have noted an increase in the number of errors over time, especially after major updates. For example, according to software testing company Luciq, iOS app restarts (a sign of a problem) on iOS 26 happen twice as often as in previous versions.

“The view that iOS is increasingly buggy is somewhat true, especially on the latest iOS 26,” commented Kenny Johnston, Product Manager of Luciq.

Trend of using iPhone for a long time

Experts say that users are sticking with iPhones longer and longer, meaning they are using older models that are less suitable for new software that requires more powerful specifications.

According to analyst Ben Wood of research firm CCS Insight, the average UK user keeps their phone for 3.7 years, up significantly from five years ago. He compared it to “installing a weak engine in a big car”. Apple still provides long-term software support for the iPhone, but much of it doesn’t work well on older phones.

While not admitting errors, Apple began prioritizing performance issues over new features. The company has also “opened” its beta testing programs to a large extent since 2015, something that was previously only available internally. In addition, the company also “slowly deploys” new iOS versions, allowing users to use old software longer, according to 9to5mac is “tacitly admitting that new updates may cause unexpected errors”.

In fact, users are increasingly hesitant to upgrade to new iOS. With iOS version 26, data from TelemetryDeck shows that currently only 40.6% of iPhone users upgrade after nearly three months. Last year, the iOS 18 update rate reached 62% during the same time period.

Apple’s artificial intelligence efforts have also led to some problems on the iPhone. For example, the notification summary feature that introduced serious misinformation, forcing Apple to temporarily discontinue it nearly a year ago, is now an “option” for users instead of the default as before.

Personnel change

Apple is experiencing personnel fluctuations, when senior directors and key engineers simultaneously quit or plan to leave. Among these is Alan Dye, Apple’s chief design officer and a pioneer in adapting the Liquid Glass interface. According to CNNhe is considered the face of the Apple design studio after Jony Ive left Apple in 2019. According to some rumors, Dye will come to Meta.

Joe Tigay, portfolio manager of Rational Equity Armor Fund, assessed Mark Zuckerberg’s decision to join the company “as a major direct threat” to Apple compared to other departures.

John Giannandrea, director of Apple’s artificial intelligence department, also resigned. There is information that he was fired by CEO Tim Cook. Bloomberg The verdict, either way, shows that Apple has failed in AI.

Theo TelegraphApple has had a series of internal changes that caused the company to not fully focus on upgrading the user experience on the product, and that is showing through iOS. Apple is expected to achieve record iPhone sales this year, but according to this site, if loyal customers feel the user experience is being affected, maintaining a string of success with this smartphone will be more difficult.