Apple has confirmed an issue on the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max in which the screen freezes and the device restarts during a Face ID attempt. The company stated that the problem is software-related rather than hardware-related and that a fix update will be released early next week.
The issue is triggered when the face, hand, or another object covers the sensors, it was reported. No hardware replacement will be required for the error associated with the new Face ID sensor architecture; users will only need to install the update.
Why it matters
This shows that affected users do not need to seek a hardware replacement because they mistake the issue for a device malfunction. The fact that the error occurs only when the Face ID sensors are covered by a face, hand, or another object indicates that it affects a specific interaction condition rather than the entire user experience. The issue’s association with the new Face ID sensor architecture should be treated as an assessment, not a confirmed cause. The key question remaining for users is exactly which day early next week the fix update will be released and whether the restart and freezing issues will be completely resolved after installation.
Background
Apple is not a new name in the FikirPilot archive: we have published 66 news reports mentioning the name in the last 90 days; the latest is dated September 25, 2026.