This differs depending on which iPhone model you’re using: If your iPhone is completely unresponsive or appears to be frozen, you’ll need to force a reset by holding some buttons. RELATED: Having a Weird iPhone Problem? Reboot It! Recover an Unresponsive iPhone Once your device has powered off, you can restart it by holding the Sleep/Wake button until the Apple logo appears. iPhone 7 or earlier: Press and hold the Sleep/Wake button, either on the top (iPhone 5s and earlier) or right side (iPhone 6 and 7), until “Slide to Power Off” appears, and then swipe the bar to turn off your device.iPhone 8, X, XS, XR, or Newer: Press and hold Volume Down and Sleep/Wake until “Slide to Power Off” appears, and then swipe the bar to turn off your device.The method you use to restart your device depends on your iPhone model: Much of the time this will be a FAQ, but there’s usually contact info for the developer, too. Tap on “App Support” to be taken to the developer’s support website. To contact the developer, find the app on the App Store, and then scroll down to the “Ratings and Reviews” section. If you’ve just downloaded the app and it refuses to work, you can reach out to the developer or request a refund.
Learn how to create free space on iPhone or iPad. Head to Settings > General > iPhone Storage to see how much free space you have. You might also encounter a general operating system slowdown. This is particularly true of apps that require free space to function, like camera apps, audio recorders, and so on.
If your device is full to the brim, you may encounter weird app behavior. Any apps that require your permission to access services or information will be listed here. Head to Settings > Privacy and check any relevant categories, like Camera, Microphone, or Location Services. For example, if a mapping app can’t fetch your location, you need to make sure it has access to that information. Sometimes, privacy settings can wreak havoc with your apps.
Keep in mind, if the app is no longer available on the App Store, you won’t be able to download it again.
Occasionally, one refuses to open altogether, crashing each time you try to start it. Sometimes, apps crash way too frequently. You can view a developer’s other apps by tapping its name under the app description in the App Store. For example, the note-taking app Drafts 4 was renamed Drafts (Legacy Version) after Drafts 5 was released. Sometimes, developers upload new versions as new apps. If an app hasn’t been updated in quite some time, you might want to seek an alternative.