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Day One iOS 26 Updates Required for All iPhone 17 Models

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Apr 12, 2001
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Apple today released a new version of iOS 26 (23A345) that's available for the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max. Reviewers who already have a device will be able to update now, while new iPhone 17 owners will need to update when receiving their devices starting tomorrow.

iOS-26-Glass-Feature.jpg

The new version of iOS 26 that Apple released today appears to be limited to the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max, but the iPhone 17 and iPhone Air will have a launch day update too.

All four iPhones have iOS 26 pre-installed, but they have iOS 26 23A330, and not the launch version of iOS 26 that came out on Monday. The iPhone 17 and the iPhone 17 Air will need to be updated to iOS 26 version 23A341 tomorrow.

The iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max will need to be upgraded to iOS 26 version 23A345, which is the update that Apple just released.

It's not clear what's in the new version of iOS 26 for the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max.

The iPhone Air, iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max will start arriving to customers on Friday, September 19.

Article Link: Day One iOS 26 Updates Required for All iPhone 17 Models
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2025/09/18/ios-26-day-one-updates-required/
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This has always been the case that when a new major release is available before the new iPhone models are available to the public, a new major release with a different build number gets released specifically for the new iPhone models.

iOS 10 Control Center only lasted one year replaced by iOS 11 Control Center. iOS 18 Photos app only lasted one year replaced by iOS 26 Photos app. I'm just not sure if Liquid Glass will last longer than 1 year.
 
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After two days, my standby battery drain has reduced, but every time I actually use the phone, it warms up and the battery percentage counts down like a timer. Thanks Apple, thanks a lot. But hope this lasts only a few more days instead of being permanent.

MacRumors people: "It's indexing!"
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Me: "I know! Just let me vent about it."
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now i see it said:
Kinda embarrassing
Click to expand...
Not really?
Most phones that are being delivered on launch day were packaged up and had the software flashed onto them likely about a month ago, I’d much rather my first experience using a phone be with a build from now, not a month ago.
Even the latest public release for all phones of 26.0 is 11 builds newer than what was flashed on the 17 series, and even the first RC after the event was still 10 builds newer.
This new day one update build is 15 builds newer than what comes preinstalled.
 
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now i see it said:
Kinda embarrassing
Click to expand...
Many iPhones over the years (including the 5s) had day one updates or updates that were really close to the time of release. It happens.

Google's Pixel phones usually have day one updates. Samsung's phones often do too. Game consoles, TVs, etc. all do too. Hardware gets locked in at some point with an OS installed. New bugs or security flaws are found, requiring a patch. Or, the software has otherwise been updated. This is the nature of software and product development.

If companies wait until software is perfect, they'll never release any products.
 
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The combination of the 15 series’ day one update and data transfer mixed with everyone jamming the Wifi had me stuck in the Apple Store for about 3 hours on launch day in 2023. To anyone doing an in store pickup + trade in for a 17, I recommend changing to send in the old phone via mail-in so you can just set it up at home.

As far as I recall, they ask you if you would like to change to mail instead before you sign it over if you already selected in store trade in.
 
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sumland said:
I have the same question. Do we update the 17 before we transfer the files from our current iPhone?
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Yes. During the transfer-process you will be required to update your 17 to continue. You cannot skip the update if you do a transfer from an old device.

The only option to use the 17 with the out-of-the-box software is to set it up as new.
 
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This sounds incredibly sensational, or not? The update isn't any more required for the 17's as any other update would be for any other iPhone.
To me it sounded like the update would e required upon activating the phone, like the new Microsoft Surface.
 
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sumland said:
I have the same question. Do we update the 17 before we transfer the files from our current iPhone?
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Whenever I have a new device and it needs to be updated out of the box, I run quickly through the setup entering only what is required (WiFI) so that I get straight to the home screen. I don’t put in an AppleID, or setup FaceID, I just skip them. I run the update and then erase the device again. Then I do the transfer/restore.
 
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travoose said:
How does this work/look for someone who has an iPhone currently running iOS26 but getting a 17 tomorrow?
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Same as for everyone else that is getting an iPhone 17 tomorrow, that device will require an update diring setup. The older phone is not relevant to the issue.
 
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When transferring from one device to another, don’t they have to be on the same OS version? If so, I sure hope it’s not updated out of the box.
 
I’m just gonna be thankful that Apple has an update ready to go for those of us anxious to use our new phones tomorrow. Having a new phone that we can’t transfer to & use due to needing an unreleased update seems much worse to me than having to update.
 
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