My iPhone Wi-Fi Signal Keep Dropping After iOS 13.3 Update

Having troubled with your iPhone’s Wi-Fi signal that suddenly keeps dropping in iOS 13? If that is so, then this post is for you. Read on to find out how to deal with this post-update Wi-Fi issue on your iPhone.

Wi-Fi drops often results in intermittent connectivity. This is when your internet randomly disconnects. It’s one of the annoying Wi-Fi issues any smartphone user could encounter at some point. Aside from an update bug, there are many other factors that can trigger the same problem to occur on your iPhone. Network outages, modem/router issues, Wi-Fi interference, invalid network settings on the phone, and other software-related factors are usually the underlying causes. Tackled in this post is a similar issue on the iPhone Wi-Fi signal that keeps dropping in iOS 13. Find out what to do if this happens to your iPhone too after updating to the iOS 13 platform.

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Troubleshooting iPhone Wi-Fi signal keeps dropping in iOS 13

Proximity matters when using Wi-Fi. This means that the farther your device from the network equipment is, the weaker the Wi-Fi signal it gets. And if your Wi-Fi signal is weak, your device is prone to experiencing random Wi-Fi disconnections. Before you begin troubleshooting, try to move closer to your wireless router or modem and see if that makes some positive changes to your phone’s wireless Internet connection. If it doesn’t, then you’ve got to try other means to make your Wi-Fi signal stable in iOS 13 again.

First solution: Power cycle the modem/wireless router.

The main source of your internet connection is either a wireless router or modem. Although the symptom has started from an iOS update, it is still imperative to work on the network equipment. Like any other electronic devices, modems and routers also succumb to random firmware crashes. And when this happens, all devices connected to them would experience various internet problems. This is when you need to power cycle your network device. If you can access your modem/router right now, follow these steps to power cycle it real quick:

  1. Turn off the modem/wireless router as you normally do.
  2. While it’s powered off, unplug its AC adapter from the power source and keep it unplugged for about 30 seconds to 1 minute.
  3. After the elapsed time, plug it back in then turn back on.

This should help resolve minor internet problems attributed to random firmware crashes and errors on the network equipment.

ALSO READ: How to fix iPhone XS Internet very slow after iOS 13

Second solution: Soft reset your iPhone to fix Wi-Fi signal that keeps dropping in iOS 13.

Another simple solution you shouldn’t miss is a soft reset on your iPhone. A simple turning off and on can do a lot of wonders to a glitching device. And this could be what your iPhone needs after the recent iOS update installation. Thus, if you haven’t already, follow these steps to soft reset your iPhone. 

  1. Press and hold the Top or Side button until the Power off slider appears.
  2. Drag the slider to the right to turn your phone off.
  3. After 30 seconds, press and hold the Top or Side button again until the Apple logo appears.

The above steps are only applicable to the iPhone X and later X series. If you’re using an iPhone 8 or earlier model, performing a soft reset is carried out through these steps:

  1. Press and hold the Top button and either Volume button for a few seconds.
  2. Release both buttons when the Slide to Power Off label appears.
  3. Drag the slider to power off your device completely.
  4. After 30 seconds, press and hold the Top button again until the Apple logo appears.

Wait for your iPhone to finish its boot sequence and then wait for it to re-establish Wi-fi signal.

Third solution: Toggle Airplane Mode on and off.

There’s an old trick that has been proven by many to have worked wonders for them whenever they would experience random problems with their phone’s wireless internet connection. This is the so-called Airplane mode trick. It works by giving a simultaneous restart on your phone’s wireless functions and thereby eliminates random Wi-Fi errors. If you wish to give it a shot, then here’s how it’s done:

  1. Tap to open Settings app from the Home screen.
  2. Scroll to and tap on the Airplane Mode menu. 
  3. Tap the Airplane mode switch to turn it on. Doing so will disable your iPhone’s wireless radios as well as its Wi-Fi features.
  4. While the Airplane mode is enabled, perform a soft reset on your phone.
  5. Once the phone is finished booting up, go back to Settings-> Airplane mode then toggle the switch to disable the feature. 

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After disabling Airplane mode, allow your device to regain signal from the Wi-Fi network and then reconnect your iPhone to Wi-Fi when everything is set.

ALSO READ: How to fix iOS 13 no internet problem on your iPad Air 3, no internet access while connected to Wi-Fi network

Fourth solution: Forget your Wi-Fi network then add it back.

The previous methods may fail to fix the problem if the underlying cause is a corrupted Wi-Fi network. The Wi-Fi signal your iPhone gets would also depend on how robust your Wi-Fi network is. If by any chance, the recent iOS update caused your network to mess up, then it has to be repaired. And to do this, you’ll have to delete the corrupted network and then set it up as new. Here’s how it’s done:

  1. From your Home screen, navigate to Settings-> Wi-Fi menu.
  2. Make sure that the Wi-Fi switch is turned on.
  3. Scroll down and select your Wi-Fi network.
  4. Tap the information (i) icon next to the name of your Wi-Fi network (SSID).
  5. Then select the option to Forget this Network.
  6. If prompted, enter your passcode to proceed.
  7. And then tap the option to confirm that you want to forget the Wi-Fi network. The Wi-Fi network will then be removed from your device.

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After removing the corrupted Wi-Fi network from your device, soft reset or restart to dump junk files including corrupted network caches. Then wait for your phone to regain a stable Wi-Fi signal.

Fifth solution: Reset network settings on your iPhone.

Network-related problems in general can also be remedied by a network reset. This is usually needed if the recent update has ruined your phone’s network configurations and thereby resulted in some conflicts. You will be disconnected from your Wi-Fi network because your network will be deleted from this reset. Thus, take note of your Wi-Fi password as you need to use that later to reconnect. Just follow these steps whenever you’re ready:

  1. From the Home screen, tap Settings.
  2. Scroll to and tap General.
  3. Tap on Reset
  4. Select the option to Reset network settings.
  5. Enter your passcode if prompted.
  6. Tap to confirm that you want to reset network settings on your iPhone.

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Your phone restarts on its own when the reset is finished and then loads up the default network values. To get back online and use online services, you’ll need to set up your Wi-Fi network like the first time you did and then join or connect.

Last resort: Erase your iPhone and restore its factory defaults (factory reset).

The above solutions are usually good enough to get rid of minor system errors that caused your iPhone’s Wi-Fi signal to drop more often. But if the problem continues, more advanced solutions are likely needed. At this point, your option would be to perform a factory reset to erase everything from your device including complex system errors that might have ruined your iPhone’s wireless functions. Just be sure to back up files beforehand as this reset would result in permanent data loss. Then you may proceed to these steps whenever you’re all set to wipe your iPhone:

  1. Tap Settings from your Home screen.
  2. Select General.
  3. Scroll down and tap on Reset.
  4. Select the option to Erase all content and settings.
  5. If prompted, enter your passcode to proceed.
  6. Confirm that you want to factory reset your iPhone.

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Alternatively, you can use iTunes to manually erase and restore factory default settings on your iPhone through a computer. This is actually a better option given that your iPhone’s Wi-Fi internet connection isn’t stable. Just make sure that your computer has a stable internet connection. Then refer to these steps whenever you’re ready to manually erase and restore your iPhone through iTunes:

  1. Open iTunes on your computer. Close any other computer programs and remove any other external (USB) devices from your computer.
  2. Connect your iPhone to the computer using the original USB/Lightning cable that came with it.
  3. Wait for your iPhone to appear in iTunes then select it. Just click on its icon when it shows up in iTunes.
  4. Then, navigate to the Summary section.
  5. Click the command button to Restore [iPhone].
  6. Click Restore again to confirm that you want iTunes to erase your device.

The system wipe out will then instigate and once it’s finished, iTunes will install the latest iOS version for your phone. Wait for your iPhone to finish restoring its factory settings and then restarts. By then you can continue to set your iPhone up as new.

ALSO READ: How to fix iPhone XS Max iOS 13 cellular data that’s not working

Does your iPhone’s Wi-Fi signal still keep dropping in iOS 13?

The problem may be very complex that the previous solutions aren’t able to fix it. Should you wish to troubleshoot further, your remaining option would be to carry out an iOS restore. There are two ways to get this done and that’s either through recovery mode or DFU mode. Both these restore methods require the use of iTunes on Windows or Mac computer, so make sure you got that ready as well. You can visit this site’s tutorials section and refer to a more detailed walkthrough on how to restore an iPhone in recovery mode or DFU mode. 

Resorting to alternative iOS repair and recovery tools is also among the last options to consider if iTunes wouldn’t be able to provide a permanent solution to the problem. These tools can be downloaded for free or through a one-time purchase. Just select the most trusted tool that’s compatible with your iPhone and iOS 13. Download and install it on your computer. Then you can start using it to repair major system damage on your device including those inflicted by some iOS 13 Wi-Fi bugs.

If you think that the problem is with the network equipment, like a damaged modem or router, contact your Internet service provider for further assistance. You can ask them to provision the modem/router again, if needed. Also consider asking your carrier to help you update your iPhone’s carrier settings. Carrier updates usually embed network fixes to resolve existing network connectivity issues including post-update symptoms.

If all else failed to resolve the issue, then you can have it escalated to Apple Support for official recommendations.

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