10 Fixes iPhone Microphone not working after iOS 16.4.1 update

Table of Contents Show

1. How To Check If Your iPhone’s Microphone is Not Working?
   1. What are the Reasons for Your iPhone’s Microphone Malfunctioning?
   2. Solutions For Fixing the Microphone Issues After the iOS 16 Update
   3. Clue #1. Reboot Your iPhone
   4. Clue #2. Please Clean microphone on Your iPhone
   5. Clue #3. Unplug All The accessories and Turn Off Bluetooth
   6. Clue #4. Shut Down and Reopen the Communication Apps
   7. Clue #5. Give Microphone Access to the Applications – iPhone microphone settings
   8. Clue #6. Reset Your iPhone’s Settings
   9. Clue #7. Check for Available Software Updates and Download or Install Them
   10. Clue #8. Check If The Accessories block the mic
   11. Clue #9. Use An External Microphone
   12. Clue #10. Reach to the Apple Support For Help

Apple has recently launched the iOS 16 update with incredible upgrades and features, and iPhone customers have shown a keen interest in this update. Besides the iOS 16 update being clean, interactive, and loaded with features, there have been several instances where the users have complained about the microphone not working correctly after updating to the new operating system for their iPhones.

Some of the microphone problems that the customers face include being unable to use Siri as the voice is not captured by the mic or people not being able to hear your voice on a phone call. Other problems include static or muffled or static audio in a video call, facetime, recording audio clips, etc.

This article features the reasons and the solutions related to fixing the iPhone microphone problem after updating to iOS 16.

How To Check If Your iPhone’s Microphone is Not Working?

If you constantly hear people saying that your voice keeps on breaking, is unclear, or they are unable to listen to your voice on a phone call or facetime, then you should try testing your iPhone’s microphone. The ideal way to test your iPhone’s mic is to record your voice using the camera or any other audio recording app and listen to the audio. Here are some ways by which you can test your smartphone’s mic.

Read More:– where is the microphone on iPhone? – Complete Answer

• Testing the Primary Mic of your iPhone- Launch an audio recording application like the memos app to test your iPhone’s primary microphone. Tap on the record button, say something in the mic to record the audio, and stop recording. Now listen to the recording and see if the audio is clear or distorted.

• Testing the Front Mic of your iPhone- To test the front microphone of your iPhone, launch the camera application and move to the front camera. Now go to the video option, click the record button, and say something on the mic. Listen to the recording; if you don’t hear any audio or the recorded audio is muffled, you have some problem with your front microphone.

• Testing the Rear Mic of your iPhone- To test the rear microphone of your iPhone, open the camera app and switch to the rear camera mode. Now start recording the video while speaking on the mic. Check the recorded video for audio issues to verify that the microphone is working correctly or is faulty.

Once you have figured out that there is some problem with your device’s microphone, you should try understanding the reasons for the microphone not working properly on your iPhone.

What are the Reasons for Your iPhone’s Microphone Malfunctioning?

If you have tested your microphone using the methods described above and discovered that the mic is not recording any audio or the audio is muffled or static, then your mic has some issues. Some of the primary reasons for this issue are the dirty or blocked microphone, in which you hear muffled sounds.

Other reasons for the microphone not working properly after the iOS 16 update are related to the software updates of your device. If the software configuration of your device is incorrect, you may face this problem. Also, if you have some third-party or untrusted applications installed on your device, it might interfere with the microphone of your iPhone, leading to the mic malfunctioning.

Besides these problems, if you have recently dropped your phone, causing the microphone to endure some physical damage, then the microphone might not work correctly.

Read More – How to Turn off Microphone on iPhone

Solutions For Fixing the Microphone Issues After the iOS 16 Update

Now that you have tested that there is some problem with your iPhone’s mic and have understood the causes for it to malfunction, it’s time that we get into the process of resolving these issues. Here are some practical and reliable solutions to help you fix the mic issues after the iOS 16 update.

Clue #1. Reboot Your iPhone

Something as easy as rebooting or restarting your iPhone can fix many issues, including problems with your device’s microphone. Restarting the iPhone means all the apps open on your device are shut down, and the system processes running in the background are refreshed or reloaded. This method fixes a lot of minor as well as significant issues caused by bugs or glitches. Hence, try restarting your iPhone to fix its microphone.

Clue #2. Please Clean microphone on Your iPhone

If you are someone who barely takes care of their iPhone or cleans them frequently, then dirt and lint might get inside the ports of your smartphone, causing the microphone to sound muffled or muted. It is essential to clean your smartphones now and then for them to last long without any issues.

To clean your iPhone and its ports, you need to use a cleaning agent like isopropyl alcohol instead of blowing into the ports, as it will only push the lint or dust deeper into the ports. Take a cotton swab or a cue tip and some isopropyl alcohol. Moderately dip the cue tip in the isopropyl alcohol solution and gently clean your iPhone’s front, back, and sides. You can also try inserting the cue tip in the various ports of your iPhone but be gentle, as pushing the cue tip too hard can damage the ports.

Hint: I recommend, you should clean your iPhone microphone every 3 months.

Once you have cleaned the ports of your iPhone, try testing the microphone using the methods pointed out in the earlier sections of this post to check if the issue is resolved or not.

Clue #3. Unplug All The accessories and Turn Off Bluetooth

If you have any accessories or add-ons like headphones, earbuds, earphones, etc., connected to your iPhone, try unplugging them, as these might be causing some interference with your smartphone’s microphone.

Also, if your device’s Bluetooth is enabled, turn it off as the device might think there are available Bluetooth devices nearby and try connecting to them, causing the microphone to malfunction. You can disable Bluetooth on your iPhone using the methods listed below.

• Using the Setting app to Turn Off Bluetooth

Step. 1→. Initially, launch the Settings app on your iPhone.

Step. 2→ Go to the Bluetooth settings by tapping on the “Bluetooth” option.

Step. 3→. At last, please tap on the toggle button next to Bluetooth to disable it. The toggle button will turn grey once the Bluetooth is disabled.

• Using the Control Center to Turn Off Bluetooth

Step. 1→ First, swipe down from the top right corner of your iPhone’s screen to access the control center.

Step. 2→. Look for the Bluetooth icon denoted by a symbol similar to the letter “B.”

Step. 3→ Tap on the Bluetooth icon to disable it. The icon will turn grey once the Bluetooth is turned off.

You can also use Siri to turn off the Bluetooth on your iPhone, but since you are having trouble with your microphone, Siri won’t be able to work correctly; hence we have not included it in this solution. After following the methods given here, try testing out the mic of your iPhone to see if the problem still exists.

Clue #4. Shut Down and Reopen the Communication Apps

Suppose you are on a call, shooting a video, or recording a voice memo on your iPhone, and your iPhone’s mic is working perfectly. But then you open a communication application like Facetime, Google Meet, MS Team, WhatsApp, Skype, Instagram, etc., and your microphone stops working. In that case, your smartphone’s mic has no problem, and the cause of it malfunctioning while using the app is a bug or a glitch.

iPhone users can quickly fix the issue of the microphone not working while using communication by restarting the application. To restart any communications apps on your iPhone, go through the process explained here.

1→. Go to the “App Switcher” function by swiping up from the bottom of your screen.

2→. Look for the communication app (for example, Instagram) where you have the issue and close it by swiping it up.

3→. Then, relaunch the communication app that had trouble opening to see if the problem is fixed.

Clue #5. Give Microphone Access to the Applications – iPhone microphone settings

Every application requires permission for proper working like- location, camera, microphone, gallery, etc. Usually, when we download an application and run it for the first time, the app asks for specific permissions, which, when denied, won’t allow the users to use certain aspects of the app.

So if you had dismissed the microphone permission for a particular app, you wouldn’t be able to use the mic while using it. iPhone customers can check the allowed permission of each application in the following ways.

1→ Navigate or head to the settings application on your iPhone.

2→. Now head to the “Privacy & security” tab.

3→ After that, choose the “Microphone” option.

4→. Now navigate the App on the list where the mic is not working to check its permissions.

5→. Turn toggle next to an app and allow permission. For Example, if Instagram Mic not working on your iPhone, here, turn the WhatsApp microphone toggle ON (green means active/ON). This is just an example only; in your case, an app may differ.

After following the steps listed above, open the application again and check if it the working fine or not. If not, then move on to the following method.

Clue #6. Reset Your iPhone’s Settings

Changes in your iPhone’s settings for any reason can affect the proper functioning of certain features or aspects of your device, including the microphone. Hence, resetting your iPhone settings can help fix this issue. Worry not, as resetting the settings will not erase or wipe out your smartphone’s data. You can reset your iPhone’s settings in the following way.

1→ The initial or the first step requires launching the Settings app on your iPhone.

2→ Select the General setting pane.

3→. Now tap on the “Transfer or Reset iPhone” action in the general settings pane.

4→ Following the above step, choose the Reset > Reset All Settings options.

5→. Finally, enter your device’s password when asked and select “Reset All Settings.”

Now your iPhone will take some time to reset all the settings to their default state and automatically restart itself once it is done. After that, you can test your iPhone’s microphone using the testing methods discussed earlier.

Clue #7. Check for Available Software Updates and Download or Install Them

Suppose you have recently updated to iOS 16 and are facing this issue even after trying out the methods discussed earlier in this article. In that case, it is quite possible that the update might not have been installed properly on your device. Hence, it is advised that you check for updates and install them. If your device does not show any available updates, then try reinstalling the iOS 16 operating system on your device. Go to Settings > General > software update to check for available software updates.

You should hard reset your iPhone’s settings if this does not fix your issue. Please note that hard resetting your device will wipe all the data out, so create a backup of all the important files. You can hard reset your device by clicking on Settings and selecting General. Now click on Transfer or Reset iPhone > Reset > Reset All Settings.

Clue #8. Check If The Accessories block the mic

Sometimes the accessories we use to protect our devices and improve our user experience can lead to specific problems like blocking some of the important ports of the iPhone. So you must check that the screen protector, back cover, or phone case does not block any ports, especially your device’s microphone and charging ports, before buying them.

You can check if the add-ons are the reason causing this problem by removing the phone cover and screen guard and then checking your device’s microphone.

Clue #9. Use An External Microphone

Here is a list of External microphones for iPhone. If none of the above-discussed methods help fix the issue with your iPhone’s microphone, it possibly means that it has a hardware problem or is damaged. Therefore, as a temporary solution, you can use an external wired or Bluetooth earphone, headphone, or any other audio device with a built-in microphone to make phone calls, record voice memos, and many more.

Make sure that you have wired headphone that supports the connectivity to the lightning port of your iPhone, as only devices with the lighting USB are supported in iPhones.

Clue #10. Reach to the Apple Support For Help

Now that you have tested out all the methods, it is pretty clear that the microphone is malfunctioning due to a hardware defect. Since the microphones of smartphones are delicate and intricate, they can easily get damaged if not maintained properly. Hence, you should take your iPhone to an Apple Store and get it checked by the experts. The support staff will diagnose the problem’s exact reason and help you resolve the issue.

Since the iPhone and all the other Apple products fall in the premium category of gadgets, you should take good care of them so that your device does not face problems like these. But face difficulty using your microphone, or the people talking to you on calls complain about your voice being choppy or muffled. The straightforward and trusted solutions compiled in this post will help you solve your problem.