14 DAY TRIAL // Apple users experiencing issues with FaceTime on their iPhone, iPad, or Mac are finally being offered a fix, but not in the form you’d normally expect. The Cupertino giant basically tells people that they need to update their devices to the latest version if they want the patch.
Although some customers prefer to stick with a particular firmware / OS version for a good reason, they will be required to update (or upgrade, in some cases) in order to get a decent experience with FaceTime.
Support document TS5419 reveals that Apple is aware of the issue.
“If you started to have issues making or receiving FaceTime calls after April 16, 2014, your device or your friend's device may have encountered a bug resulting from a device certificate that expired on that date. Updating both devices to the latest software will resolve this issue,” says the company.
Customers who are using iOS 7.0.4 (or later) and iOS 6.1.6 are not affected by the problem. The bug also plagues Macs, but there are certain configurations that do not suffer from this issue (listed below).
• OS X Mavericks v10.9.2 or later • OS X Mountain Lion v10.8 with the latest security updates • OS X Lion v10.7 with the latest security updates • FaceTime for Mac version 1.0.5 or later for Mac OS X v10.6
Under “resolution,” Apple states, “Update both devices (your device and your friend's device) to the latest version of iOS, OS X, or FaceTime for Mac,” which basically means that the safest way to ensure a good video chatting experience is to be on the latest iOS / OS X.
The Mac maker also deployed a standalone FaceTime update for Snow Leopard users this week, the second one of its kind, addressing connectivity problems.
“This update resolves connection issues in FaceTime, and is recommended for all users of FaceTime on OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard,” the mother-ship said on Wednesday.
The aforementioned KB article outlines that leaving your device on an older firmware / OS version will cause FaceTime to continue to act up: “FaceTime calls will still fail if the iOS device or Mac that you're trying to connect to isn't up to date.”
Desktop users must update to the newest version of Mavericks (10.9.2) or install the latest security updates if they’re on Lion or Mountain Lion. Those who are still experiencing issues after doing all of this are told to consult KB article TS3367 (Troubleshooting FaceTime).