Apple iPhone 7 Plus Overheating Issue: Why is my iPhone 7 Plus very hot? [Troubleshooting Guide]

Apple has designed its latest #Apple iPhone 7 Plus (#iPhone7Plus) device to operate in areas where the temperature is between 0 to 35 degree Celsius. This is why prudence must be observed in taking the iPhone into either extremely cold or hot environments as doing so can push the temperature beyond its operating norm. There are also other factors that can cause your iPhone to overheat aside from extremely hot ambiance. All these things along with the recommended solutions are what we are going to tackle and address through this posting.

iPhone 7 Plus heating up

But before anything else, if you have other concerns with your iPhone 7 Plus, make sure you drop by our troubleshooting page for we have already addressed some of the most commonly reported issues with this new iPhone. If you need further assistance or if you can’t find what you’re looking for in that page, fill up our iPhone issues questionnaire and hit submit. Don’t worry, it’s a free consultation service so you don’t have to worry about anything. Just give us more information about the problem and we’ll do our best to help you fix it.

Why is my iPhone 7 Plus overheating or extremely hot?

In line with the U.S. safety standard, Apple has programmed its iOS devices to prompt users with a temperature warning screen when it exceeds a certain temperature threshold.

The message prompt tells you that the, “iPhone needs to cool down before you can use it.” This warning message will normally appear on a black background and sometimes shows as an overlay alert if you are using Navigation with your device. In order to resume use of your iPhone as quickly as possible you will need to turn it off, move it to a cooler area, and then let it cool down. After that, you may restart and use your iPhone again.

What happens to your iPhone 7 Plus when it exceeds the normal temperature range?

Besides being extremely warm, some of your iPhone’s functionalities can also be affected by overheating as it switches in cool down mode. During this state, your iPhone stops charging, screen dims or goes black, and the camera flash is temporarily disabled. Cellular radios will also enter a low-power state, which means that the signal may also weaken. Navigation functions however will still be working as usual, and so your iPhone can still provide you with audible turn-by-turn directions.

Overheating can also result to a shortened battery life or quick battery drain issue on your iPhone. The same thing can happen when using your iPhone in very cold conditions outside of its operating range. To resume your iPhone’s normal functions, all you have to do is to give it some time to cool down.

What are other factors that can lead to iPhone overheating?

Aside from extreme heat, there are also other factors that can trigger your iPhone to heat up fast.

You will notice that device can also feel warmer when you set it up for the first time, when performing an iOS backup restore, or when applications re-index or re-analyze data after implementing a software update. Although you’ve got nothing to worry as these conditions are just normal, meaning that your device will return to a normal temperature when complete.

Enumerated below are some of the most common factors that can possibly cause your iPhone 7 Plus to become very hot:

Extensive, prolonged usage and multitasking. Using your iPhone for a longer period of time as well as simultaneous running of applications can overload the processor. This then could trigger your iPhone to overheat.

No signal or no service. With no signal or service, your device will keep searching for signal or service from an available network. Switching to Airplane mode can be an option to stop your iPhone from searching for available network, thereby preventing the device to overheat in time.

Third-party application. For some reasons, some third-party applications can also be the culprit. It might be due to some settings conflict or a software bug. If the onset of the overheating follows a third-party app download, then that app is likely to blame. Removing the suspected application can be the ultimate solution. Otherwise, you may contact the app developer to report the problem and if possible, ask for further assistance on how to configure the application correctly so as not to affect the iPhone’s overall functionality.

Bulky downloads. Downloading of huge files can take time to finish. The larger the file size is, the longer time it takes to complete the download process. Eventually, lengthy processes like this would cause the device to heat up.

Software update. Some software updates may also contain bugs that can cause the iPhone to overheat. Just like what happened to some iPhone 7 Plus owners who have reported that their device started to heat up after installing the latest updates following the iOS 10. In this case, your option is either to restore your iPhone from a previous backup or wait for the next iOS update to roll out.

Bad battery. Overheating is also a symptom of a bad or damaged battery. While it may be unusual for a new device to obtain a damaged battery, it is inevitable. Having said that, it would not hurt to take some time diagnosing the battery and ensure it is in good condition. Or have the battery replaced with a new one if necessary.

Hardware damage. Aside from the battery, damage to any of the iPhone components can also cause overheating problem to arise. If you suspect that hardware damage is present on your device, take it to an authorized Apple technician for further hardware check-up and repair. But if your iPhone is still under warranty, I would recommend availing of service warranty or unit replacement instead.

What to do when your iPhone 7 Plus is overheating?

Overheating problem in mobile devices like the new iPhone can be resolved by determining the underlying cause beforehand. This means that you need to look into the prior actions, like how you used the iPhone, or what you did before the symptoms manifest.

Highlighted below are recommended workarounds to deal with overheating problem on your iPhone 7 Plus. You may try these solutions before taking your iPhone to a technician or contacting Apple Support:

Step 1. Put your iPhone 7 Plus in Safe Mode to determine if the problem is triggered by third-party apps.

If your iPhone overheats while using a certain app, then more likely that app is the culprit. Many cases of iPhone overheating have been associated with third-party app issues. To determine whether this is what’s causing your device to overheat suddenly, put your iPhone into Safe Mode.

Both the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus have a Safe Mode feature that lets you access the phone system safely when diagnosing apps-related problems on the device. In this mode, you can uninstall apps and securely eliminate associated bugs without having to worry about damaging your new iPhone.

Here’s how to enable Safe Mode on your iPhone 7 Plus:

 

  • Hold down the Power and Home buttons simultaneously until the screen goes black.
  • When the screen is black, release the Home button but keep holding down the Power button.

 

  • Once you see the Apple logo, hold the Volume Up button until the springboard appears. Your iPhone should already be in Safe Mode by then.

All third-party services and apps are temporarily disabled while in Safe Mode. If the problem is gone when your device is in Safe Mode, it denotes that the problem is more likely caused by a third-party app. In this case, the best possible solution is to determine which app is causing trouble, and then disable or uninstall the suspected application. Otherwise, you may opt to go for a factory reset if necessary. The latter process will erase your device completely therefore backing up your iPhone is a must before you proceed.

Step 2. Avoid leaving your iPhone in a car on a hot day or do not leave your device in a car. This is because temperatures in parked cars can exceed the normal operating temperature range.  Also, do not place or leave your iPhone in direct sunlight for an extended period of time. If you’re in some extremely hot places, then keeping your iPhone in a bag would be a better option.

Step 3. Avoid prolonged gaming. As much as possible, minimize your playtime especially with graphics-intensive games. Graphically advanced games can quickly overload the processor, thus resulting to your device heating up as well as the battery to drain so fast.

Step 4. Disable Bluetooth when not in use. Connectivity features like Bluetooth can also trigger your device to heat up when enabled. For this reason, disabling Bluetooth and similar features when not in use is highly recommended. To disable Bluetooth on your iPhone 7 Plus, open the Control Center, swipe up and tap the Bluetooth icon to disable it.

Step 5. Turn off Location Services on your iPhone. Several cases of overheating issues in mobile devices are tied to the use of Location Services like GPS. When using GPS, your phone must obtain a map from somewhere for the position to be shown on a map. Devices like the iPhone use multiple strategies to provide location information to the apps, depending on how much accuracy the app requests, and how much accuracy is available. Carrying out all these functions can also tax the processor, and likely resulting to your device heating up.

Step 6. Enable Airplane Mode. This is a quicker method to turn off GPS, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and Cellular Data features of your device. To do so, open the Control Center, by swiping up from the Home or lock screen. Toggle the Airplane mode icon to turn the feature on.

Step 7. Do Not Charge your iPhone. When your iPhone overheats, more likely the battery can also drain quickly. Even so, charging the iPhone in this state must be avoided because charging also heats up the device. As recommended, allow your device to cool down first.

Step 8. Remove any third-party casing or accessories. Removing the case can also be considered a temporary solution to deal with overheating issue on your iPhone. Majority of third-party accessories and casings does not actually fit the original iPhone 7 Plus body scheme, resulting this problem. To determine whether or not this is what’s causing your iPhone to heat up, try to remove them and observe your device.

Step 9. Update your iPhone software. Aside from system enhancements, software updates also contain bug fixes. Should the problem on overheating on your iPhone was triggered by a software bug, then updating to the latest iOS version could be a potential solution. To date, the latest iOS version available is iOS 10.2.1 beta. This iOS update is said to be a bug fix and performance improvement rollout.

Step 10. Reset settings. If your iPhone starts to overheat after configuring or making changes to certain apps settings, then most likely the problem is triggered by the most recent changes you’ve made. Perhaps, you have activated certain features or options that are not supposed to be turned on and that somehow messed up with the iPhone’s processor. In such cases, you may consider performing a reset on all settings or restore your iPhone instead.

Step 11. Check the battery. If your iPhone is overheating while charging, then there is a higher chance that the problem is due to a faulty battery unless a physical damage is present on any of the relevant components. Make sure that the battery is all good. Even a new device can have a bad battery. And in that case, battery replacement is required to resolve the underlying cause.

Step 12. Switch iPhone off. If you couldn’t figure out what caused your iPhone to heat up, just try to shut it down, give it some time to cool down, and then restart it.

If none of these workarounds is able to fix the problem and that you suspect that hardware damage is causing your iPhone 7 Plus to overheat, then it’s time to contact your carrier or Apple Support to escalate the problem for further assistance and recommendations.

Taking your iPhone to an authorized service center can also considered an option. This way, you can let a technician run a thorough diagnostics on the iPhone 7 Plus and see if the heat sensor had triggered the problem. But then again, if your iPhone is still under warranty, then I would suggest opting for warranty instead — either for service or unit replacement.

Engage with us

If you have other issues with your Apple iPhone 7 Plus, we are always willing to help. Contact us through our iPhone issues questionnaire and provide us with all necessary information about your problem so we can find a solution to your issue.

3 thoughts on “Apple iPhone 7 Plus Overheating Issue: Why is my iPhone 7 Plus very hot? [Troubleshooting Guide]”

  1. Every article I’ve found on this subject says to use the Power and Home buttons on an iPhone 7 or 7 Plus to force restart. This is correct for any previous iPhone, but the Home button on the iPhone 7 and 7 plus is not a physical button and cannot be used for this. You have to use the Volume Down button in its place.

    Since the wording on this instruction is identical everywhere, I imagine it’s just being cut-and-pasted from the original source. It’s still wrong.

  2. hello i just recently purchase an apple i phone 7. when i am use imo or skype the phone getting heat.can you please find out a solution for that
    thank you

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