The iPhone 16 isn’t even out in stores, and it might seem too early to talk about issues that might brick one of the four models. However, the iPhone 16 handsets have a new software feature you absolutely need to be aware of. You’ll be able to restore an iPhone 16 by using a different iPhone.
Hopefully, you’ll never have to use the procedure. But if your iPhone 16 gets into Recovery Mode, you’ll be able to restore the software with any other iPhone. That’s much easier than connecting the handset to a Mac or Windows PC to reinstall iOS 18.
First spotted by 9to5Mac, the software feature builds on what Apple has done with other devices. You can use the iPhone to restore an Apple Watch running iOS 15.4 or later. Apple introduced that feature in early 2022. It also works with Apple TV models running tvOS 17 or later.
iOS 18 brings the same functionality to the iPhone 16 series. iOS 18 includes the RecoveryOS tool that lets you wirelessly restore Apple Watch and Apple TV firmware.
All you have to do once the iPhone 16 gets into Recovery Mode is to bring it close to an iPhone or iPad. After that, the Apple device that is still working will download a new iOS firmware and transfer it to the iPhone 16 model.
That’s actually the only issue here. To recover the bricked iPhone 16, you’ll need an iPhone or iPad running iOS 18 or iPadOS 18. That shouldn’t be too difficult. You don’t have to own other Apple hardware; you just have to have a friend or family member help out with the recovery.
At the time of this writing, only the iPhone 16 models can be recovered wirelessly. It’s unclear whether a hardware component makes the feature possible or whether Apple will bring it to older iPhones and iPads.
Whatever the case, the wireless recovery feature is a great addition to the suite of iPhone tips and tricks. The new tech also paves the way for an iPhone without ports, which will need to connect to other devices wirelessly for software recovery tasks. Think iPhones as thin as credit cards. It sounds crazy right now, but those ultra-thin devices won’t fit the current USB-C port.
As for why an iPhone goes into Recovery Mode, there are plenty of reasons for that to happen. Maybe you forgot your iPhone password, and that’s the only way to access the phone. Or perhaps an iOS update or some sort of feature bricked your device. A bug in a previous backup or some kind of software corruption could also brick the device.
You should also know that phones in Recovery Mode are still protected. Thieves can’t steal your handset, and then enter Recovery Mode to bypass the Activation Lock. They’d wipe the data and recover the firmware, but they’d still need a password to get into the phone once a fresh version of iOS 18 is installed.
