iOS 4.2.6 Update: How to Download, What Features Are Included, and Why It is Different Than iOS 4.3

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Verizon iPhone Update

The Verizon iPhone came out and signalled an explosive expansion of the market beyond the confined limitations of AT&T, which had limited the iPhone expansion as far as the user commitment to AT&T as a mobile service provider. With the recent release of the Verizon iPhone 4, it looked like Verizon was being brought up to speed. The problem with this is that the iOS for the Verizon iPhone 4, which is the operating system for the device, was off the same release pattern. When the iPhone 4 was first released it was matched with the iOS 4, and since then there have been different incremental releases, such as iOS 4.0.1 and iOS 4.2. When the Verizon iPhone 4 was released, since it was already brought up to speed for some of the necessary bugs, it was instead matched with its own version called the iOS 4.2.5. Since the iOS 4.3 update was the most major advancement for the AT&T iPhone, Verizon was kept somewhat in the loop by including this in their iPhone from the start. Now that we are looking forward to the iOS 4.3.1, we see that the iOS 4.3 update has been released as the next stage for Verizon iPhones. Though this is not a major Verizon iPhone update, the iOS 4.2.6 update does have something in store for the personal hotspot feature that is making iOS 4.3 such a big step forward. Here is a look at how to download and install the iOS 4.2.6 on your Verizon iPhone 4.

iOS 4.2.6 Download

Like all the iOS version you will download the update through iTunes, which will automatically signal you that the iOS 4.2.6 update is ready for your iPhone 4 when you plug it in to sync the Verizon iPhone. If you have already canceled this update you can just go into the iPhone from under the Device heading, go to Summary, and then check for available updates. Once the process is initiated you will go through the Terms and Agreements, the listing of exactly what the iOS 4.2.6 download is and what iOS 4.2.6 features there are, and you will need to select that you want to continue with the download.

Once you have completed this series of screens, which is brief and standardized, the download will begin and will continue through your iTunes for a few minutes. Once the iOS 4.2.6 download is complete it will initiate with the iPhone, make it go black, and then process through the Verizon iPhone update until the screen returns to normal and the process has been completed.

iPhone Personal Hotspots

The only real thing that had been in place in the iOS 4.2.5 that was not in the iOS 4.2.1 was the iPhone’s personal hotspots, which was then gained in the iOS 4.3 for AT&T iPhone holders. With the iOS 4.2.6 there is not a set of features to match the iOS 4.3, but instead just an updated and fix for the iPhone personal hotspot feature that it had previously. When you are doing the iOS 4.2.6 download you will notice that it lists the only iOS 4.2.6 feature as “Fixes a bug to ensure Personal Hotspot data usage is accurately reported (for Verizon iPhones).”

What this means, essentially, is that the iPhone personal hotspot item, that is becoming one of the new standards for the iPhone 4, is going to be more practical. Here you will now be able to actually see what amount of data you are going to be using during these tethering moments, and that will hopefully help people see the iPhone’s personal hotspot as a little bit more user friendly.

The reason that this is the only real feature is the same reason why there they are only releasing a minor update instead of the full iOS 4.3. Since the Verizon iPhone 4 is only a single device and the opposing iOS pattern goes for a variety of devices including the iPod Touch and the iPad, the update would only be singular for this device. This will likely change with the release of the iPad 2 with Verizon abilities.

References

“Apple iOS.” https://www.macupdate.com/app/mac/28341/apple-ios.

“Apple iOS 4.2.6 Update Fixes Verizon iPhone Bug.” https://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2380124,00.asp.

Source: Author’s own experience.