AT&T and Apple are taking action today in an effort to fix the cellular issues of the second-placed iPhone 18 Pro Max MacRumors contributor Aaron Perris.
Thousands of iPhone 18 Pro Max users were unable to connect to the AT&T network for phone calls, text messages and data. The underlying cause has yet to be revealed, but AT&T and Apple continue to work towards a fix.
First, Apple today released an AT&T carrier settings update (version 72.1, up from 72.0.2) for iPhone. Given the timing of this update, it presumably includes some optimizations related to the iPhone 18 Pro Max’s cellular connectivity, but it’s unclear whether AT&T has completely fixed the issues or whether further changes will be necessary.
When a carrier settings update is available on your iPhone, you will be prompted to install it. If you ignore the notification or don’t see it, open the Settings app, tap General → About, and the update should appear there. You can see the current version of your iPhone’s carrier settings in the same About menu, next to your carrier name.
Second, Apple today began requiring iPhone 18 Pro Max users to install iOS 27.0.1 to set up the device, though most, if not all, affected users said the update doesn’t fix the issues. A leaked AT&T email states that iOS 27.0.1 is intended to help mitigate future impacts, so it could still help in some way.
In a statement shared with MacRumors AT&T today said it is “working with Apple” on this.
Apple did not respond to our request for comment.
It’s not yet clear whether a later update like iOS 27.0.2 will be needed as part of a fix or whether the carrier update alone will suffice.
