It is important that you keep the firmware on your iPhone updated in order to obtain the best performance from your device. In this Techspirited write-up, we present to you an easy-to-follow procedure for upgrading your iPhone’s firmware to the latest version.
The iPhone is an impressive gadget which boasts of a number of features, including a media player, wireless Internet access, visual voice mail, Wi-Fi connectivity, multi-touch screen, and many more. It is capable of supporting these features due to its three main components which work seamlessly together. They are the hardware, the iPhone operating system (iOS) firmware, and the iPhone baseband (modem) firmware.
A firmware is a hardware-specific software, that is designed to work only on a particular type of device and is usually embedded within it. It basically acts as an interface between the hardware and the overlaying higher-level software applications, and establishes intercommunication between them. The main advantage of the firmware in commercial technology like the mobile phone, is that it can very easily be upgraded to a newer version, even after the device has already been distributed to the customers.
The iPhone firmware has had several updates till now, with each new version incorporating useful changes and important bug and error fixes. Needless to say it is necessary to keep your iPhone updated to the latest available firmware, to keep it in top working condition.
Apple Inc. is the parent company of the iPhone which keeps updating its software to provide the users with all the advanced facilities. In the following lines we show you how you can upgrade the firmware on your iPhone to the latest available version.
iPhone Firmware Update
Apple Inc. is committed towards providing better customer service and therefore, it keeps on releasing newer and better upgraded versions of the firmware on its devices. This allows users to avail and benefit from the latest changes in the technology. The good news is that Apple provides these updates for free.
Follow the simple steps mentioned below to get your iPhone firmware (which includes the modem firmware), updated to the latest version.
- As uploading new firmware can delete the previous data, it is recommended that you first create a backup of all the information existing in your iPhone
- After creating the backup, if you have installed any additional software such as games etc., restore your phone’s settings to the original or default ones.
- Once the phone is restored and its memory is clean, connect it to the computer through the USB, and let iTunes launch. Locate and select the name of your device on the left side of the iTunes program window below “Devices.”
- Click on ‘Check for Updates’. This will run a search and notify you if an update for your iPhone is available.
- If an update is available, click on ‘Download and Install’. This will first download the installation file to your computer, and then iTunes will create a backup copy of all your personal phone settings. It will then install the new firmware in your device, and restore all the settings from the backup file. Once this process is complete, remove the phone from the computer and turn it on.
- Check and see if the firmware is upgraded properly by launching ‘Settings’ from the Springboard, then tapping on ‘General’, and then selecting ‘About’. There you will find the latest update date and the version number as well.
Firmware List
Given below is a list of the firmware versions that you can refer, to check the graph of improvement so far.
- 1.0
- 1.0.1
- 1.0.2
- 1.1
- 1.1.1
- 1.1.2
- 1.1.3
- 1.1.4
- 1.1.5
- 2.0
- 2.0.1
- 2.0.2
- 2.1
- 2.2
- 2.2.1
- 3.0
- 3.0.1
- 3.1
- 3.1.2
- 3.1.3
- 3.2
- 3.2.1
- 3.2.2
- 4.0
- 4.0.1
- 4.0.2
- 4.1
Some of these versions were only meant for the iPhone, while others could also support Apple iPod Touch and Apple iPad. Apart from this, Apple announced a new operating system, and thus, new firmware in 2010 for the iPhone, with the latest applications such as iPod support, wireless printing with print center, text search on the web pages, and AirPlay which offers streaming of videos, photos, audio and music, etc., through Wi-Fi.