Automatic app updates keep your iPhone running the latest version of apps. These updates usually contain bug fixes and new features.
However, they can also lead to a lot of mobile data usage. If you’re on a limited data plan, this can be a huge problem.
1. Go to Settings
You can turn off the auto update on an iPhone for many reasons, but it’s especially helpful when your data plan limits what apps you can download. Disabling automatic app updates can help save you money on data and keep your phone running smoothly and securely.
In iOS, you can also use the “Offload Unused Apps” feature to declutter your device and free up storage space. This option works by automatically removing apps that have been inactive for a while and are no longer useful. It’s a great way to clear out space and get rid of apps that you don’t need anymore, but don’t want to delete permanently.
The app update process on your iOS device is a good way to stay up to date with the latest versions of software and apps, but it can be a bit annoying if you don’t like seeing those nagging notifications pop up. You can stop these from happening in a few simple steps, though.
First, you need to open the Settings app on your iOS device. You can do this by tapping the app icon in Spotlight Search, Today View, or on your Home Screen (if you haven’t already).
2. Select General
To turn off the auto update on an iPhone, you need to open the Settings app. This is the app with a gear-shaped icon that you can find by swiping down from the top of the screen or by using the search function on your iPhone.
You can also change many other iPhone settings on the Settings app, such as ringtones, text tone, voicemail, mail, calendar alerts, lock sounds and silence mode. You can also customize accessibility features, change your passcode and set data and time preferences.
Before you start updating your iPhone, make sure that it has a strong, reliable Wi-Fi connection and that you have backed up all of your important data. This way, you can restore all of your data if anything goes wrong with your iOS device.
Keeping automatic updates turned on over Wi-Fi is recommended because it helps ensure that your apps are receiving all of the latest fixes and features. It also saves you mobile data usage since the updates download as a group, rather than individually over cellular networks.
However, there are cases where you don’t want to let your apps automatically update – this can be useful for large apps or games that you only use occasionally, for example. Disabling the auto update for these apps will mean they’ll need to be updated manually over cellular or when you have enough data on your plan.
3. Select Software Update
Apple offers the ability to automatically update your iPhone apps and software. This helps to ensure that your phone remains up to date and secure. However, there are some cases when it would be useful to turn off the auto update.
For example, if you are travelling and do not want to use up all your data plan on app updates, you can disable automatic iOS app downloads while connected to cellular data. Or, if you are concerned about your iPhone’s battery life and have a few large apps that you don’t want to automatically download, you can also disable this feature.
If you are on a cellular connection and wish to disable all automatic app downloads, simply go into the Settings app and select “iTunes & App Store”. After that, move the Updates slider to off/white.
While this is a very convenient way to stop all of your apps from updating, it can be a bit of a pain. This is because each time an app is updated, it requires a lot of data to be downloaded.
This can result in significant battery drain, especially if you have a lot of large apps or games installed on your device. This can lead to a poorer battery performance on your iPhone, which is why some people choose to disable the automatic update function entirely.
4. Select Turn Off
There are times when you don’t want your iPhone to automatically update its software. Perhaps you have an important conference call that you want to avoid being interrupted or are dealing with a serious emergency and need to be sure you can contact your phone at all times.
iOS updates can help your phone keep up with the latest software and app versions, but they also use a lot of data. Especially if you often rely on cellular data, turning off the auto update feature can save you a lot of money on your monthly subscription costs.
However, there are many users who don’t like the idea of their phones downloading and installing new software updates on their devices without their permission. It’s not just annoying to have your smartphone downloading and installing the installer for a software update that you don’t want, it can also be draining on your battery power.
To turn off the auto update, you’ll need to go to Settings on your iPhone and tap iTunes & App Store. In the bottom right hand corner, you’ll see a button called Automatic Downloads.
Once you’ve turned off the auto update, you’ll have to go through each of the apps on your iPhone and manually check if they need to be updated. This isn’t a great option if you have a large number of apps on your device, as it will take up a large amount of your cellular data every time the update is downloaded and installed.