iOS 17.1 to Launch by October 24

Apple's upcoming iOS 17.1 update is set to be released to the public by October 24, according to the French regulatory group ANFR (via iPhoneSoft). The release date was shared on the ANFR's website in an update outlining Apple's plan to address radiation levels in the iPhone 12.

iOS 17
"Apple has committed to deploy an update in France," reads a translation of the update, which is in French. "This fix will be available to all users no later than October 24."

Apple earlier this week confirmed that iOS 17.1 will include a tweak that will lower iPhone 12 radiation levels. Back in September, France ordered Apple to stop selling the iPhone 12 and "fix" devices to bring them into compliance with European electromagnetic radiation standards. The order came after the ANFR found that the ‌iPhone‌ 12's Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) came in at 5.74 watts per kilogram, above the limit set by the European Union.

According to Apple, the ANFR made an error in its radiation tests, using a testing protocol that did not account for the off-body detection mechanism in the ‌iPhone‌. iPhones have a built-in feature that allows them to increase their transmit power when not held on the body for optimized cellular performance.

Apple says that the off-body detection has been "thoroughly tested and verified internationally to be an effective mechanism to comply with SAR requirements," bur nevertheless, the company has agreed to disable this feature on iPhones in France.

According to Apple, the ‌iPhone‌ 12 is safe to use "and always has been." After the iOS 17.1 update, ‌iPhone‌ 12 models in France will no longer increase their transmit power when the off-body state is detected, so coverage in areas where cellular signal is low may cause lower cellular performance in some use cases.

The iOS 17.1 update brings a number of other changes to the iOS 17 operating system, including an Apple Music favorites system, support for AirDrop over the internet, new options to see bank and card balances in the Wallet app, changes to the iPhone 15 Pro Action Button and more, with a full list available in our iOS 17.1 features guide.

Related Forums: iOS 17, iPadOS 17

Popular Stories

apple tv 4k new orange

New Apple TV Expected Later This Year With These New Features

Saturday July 12, 2025 3:09 pm PDT by
A new Apple TV is expected to be released later this year, and a handful of new features and changes have been rumored for the device. Below, we recap what to expect from the next Apple TV, according to rumors. Rumors Faster Wi-Fi Support The next Apple TV will be equipped with Apple's own combined Wi-Fi and Bluetooth chip, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. He said the chip supports ...
iphone 16 pro ghost hand

5 Reasons to Skip This Year's iPhone 17 Pro

Thursday July 10, 2025 4:54 am PDT by
Apple will launch its new iPhone 17 series in two months, and the iPhone 17 Pro models are expected to get a new design for the rear casing and the camera area. But more significant changes to the lineup are not expected until next year, when the iPhone 18 models arrive. If you're thinking of trading in your iPhone for this year's latest, consider the following features rumored to be coming...
iPhone 17 Pro in Hand Feature Lowgo

iPhone 17 Pro Coming Soon With These 16 New Features

Friday July 11, 2025 12:40 pm PDT by
Apple's next-generation iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are only two months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models. Latest Rumors These rumors surfaced in June and July:A redesigned Dynamic Island: It has been rumored that all iPhone 17 models will have a redesigned Dynamic Island interface — it might ...
Apple Watch Ultra 2 Complications

Apple Watch Ultra 3: What to Expect

Sunday July 13, 2025 10:30 am PDT by
The long wait for an Apple Watch Ultra 3 is nearly over, and a handful of new features and changes have been rumored for the device. Below, we recap what to expect from the Apple Watch Ultra 3:Satellite connectivity for sending and receiving text messages when Wi-Fi and cellular coverage is unavailable 5G support, up from LTE on the Apple Watch Ultra 2 Likely a wide-angle OLED display that ...
iphone 16 pro pro max

iPhone 17 Pro Models With BOE Displays Will Be Sold in China Only

Thursday July 10, 2025 11:59 pm PDT by
iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max models with displays made by BOE will be sold exclusively in China, according to a new report. Last week, it emerged that Chinese display manufacturer BOE was aggressively ramping up its OLED production capacity for future iPhone models as part of a plan to recapture a major role in Apple's supply chain. Now, tech news aggregator Jukan Choi reports...
top stories 2025 07 12

Top Stories: iPhone 17 Pro Rumors, iOS 26 Beta 3, and More

Saturday July 12, 2025 6:00 am PDT by
The iOS 26 public beta release is quickly approaching, while developers have recently gotten their hands on a third round of betas that has seen Apple continue to tweak features, design, and functionality. We're also continuing to hear rumors about the iPhone 17 lineup that is now just about right around the corner, while Apple's latest big-budget film appears to be taking off, so read on...

Top Rated Comments

kc9hzn Avatar
23 months ago

Yeah blame France for caring for their citizens, and give the rest the best reception ever until their hairs falls off, just another form of darwinism.
First off, “hairs fall off” is completely the wrong sort of radiation. That’s ionizing radiation and not the sort of radio waves cell phones use. That’s like x-rays and gamma rays, and acute lethal doses at that. From non-ionizing radiation, there’s no strong evidence that it causes cancers or anything of the sort, and the most significant potential for injuries tends to be thermal effects. There’s some inconclusive evidence that talking on the phone could potentially cause brain cancer, but it’s not a strong link.

Second, it looks like Apple has a safety feature on phones (not to mention a battery saving feature) designed to reduce the power the cellular radio puts out when it’s near your body. Rather than test it to see if it does result in less overall exposure, it sounds like France decided Apple had to cut the power levels across the board.

Of course, by that logic, the French government should be putting more effort to end the cultural acceptance of tobacco smoking. After all, the tobacco-cancer link is much stronger than the non-ionizing radiation-cancer link, and it’s lung cancer at that. (Lung cancer metastasizes fairly quickly, since it’s part of the circulatory and pulmonary systems.)
Score: 29 Votes (Like | Disagree)
crsh1976 Avatar
23 months ago

I can’t believe we’re talking about updates to fix radiation levels. What a crapshoot Apple is sometimes.
Actually the real news about what's in 17.1 is crammed in the very last paragraph - the radiation fix is a legal compliance thing that only concerns France and is of little interest to most people.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
anthogag Avatar
23 months ago
France could use hot iPhones to zap bed bugs.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Wildkraut Avatar
23 months ago

Blame France ! They are insane for causing this mess
Yeah blame France for caring for their citizens, and give the rest the best reception ever until their hairs falls off, darwinism rules.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Wildkraut Avatar
23 months ago

I'm traveling and coming home on the 24th. I hope they release it on the 23rd.
Till then...



Attachment Image
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Gasu E. Avatar
23 months ago

This whole debacle just reminds me that you cannot trust these companies with your health. Remember that. They have one objective: profit for shareholders. It's business 101.
A feature that controls radiation level based on body proximity would seem to exemplify a company that DOES take user's health seriously. Why would you conclude the opposite? A company that just didn't care wouldn't bother implementing such a complex feature.
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)