iOS 18 bugs: Messages app crashes and reopens old conversations
A very specific bug can lead to data loss in the Messages app. Another problem concerns the stored Apple account.
Complex crash: The Messages app in iOS 18 has problems with certain attachments.
(Image: Apple)
Users of the popular messaging app are reporting problems in several areas of the software, which has been significantly revised in iOS 18. One of the bugs can potentially lead to chats no longer being accessible, while another is causing confusion in account management. Apple is likely to address both problems in iOS 18.1, but has not yet commented on them.
Crashes when sending watch faces
Although the first error can be traced, it should rarely occur in practice. The error was first described by the Apple blog 9to5Mac. According to this, you have to be careful when sending Apple Watch dials. It is known that these can be sent to other users via iMessage. That alone is not the problem. However, as soon as you reply directly to the message with the watch face in a thread (via the long press reply function), the Messages app crashes. What exactly happens here is unclear.
More problematic than the crash itself, however, is that the corresponding conversation history can no longer be opened due to the crash. Every time you try to do this, the messaging app crashes again. The only solution is – if you want to continue communicating with the person –, delete the chat history and start again. However, all messages exchanged so far, including pictures and other attachments, will then be lost on the iPhone. Until Apple has a fix, it is better to refrain from sharing watch faces or never reply to them in a thread.
Apple account with email instead of phone number
Another, less serious bug concerns the assignment of iMessage chats. With the launch of iOS 18, the application tends to use the Apple account (aka Apple ID) instead of the phone number. This means that chats are suddenly (re)opened with an e-mail address. If this is not assigned to the phone number, you suddenly have several chat histories with one and the same person.
The remedy is to store the e-mail address in the contacts, then the chats are merged again. It is unclear why the problem occurs. On iOS, you can configure which address or phone number is used to start a new chat – but this does not affect existing conversations.
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