Apple fixes its Studio Display update woes by backtracking on iOS 15.4 signing

News
By Oliver Haslam
published

Mac Studio And Studio Display
Mac Studio And Studio Display (Image credit: Apple)

What you need to know

  • Apple's Studio Display couldn't be updated over the weekend.
  • The Studio Display required iOS 15.4, but Apple had stopped signing it.
  • Apple appears to have re-signed the update, allowing it to be installed.

People who found that they couldn't update the software on their Apple Studio display of late should probably try again — because Apple fixed it. And you won't believe how it did it.

We saw reports over the weekend that people were unable to update their Studio Display, a process that required the installation of a new version of iOS. Specifically, iOS 15.4. The problem? The company had already stopped signing iOS 15.4 following the release of iOS 15.4.1.

Apple routinely stops signing older versions of iOS, preventing people from installing them. The problem came about, so Macworld posits, when Apple effectively stopped people from updating their new Studio Display to iOS 15.4 as well. With no iOS 15.4.1 update available for Apple's new monitor, the update simply failed.

As it turns out, the root of the problem was Apple itself. On Friday, Apple stopped signing iOS 15.4 after it released iOS 15.4.1 on March 30. When Apple stops signing a version of an operating system, it becomes unavailable and devices can't install it. Since the Studio Display basically has the guts of an iPhone 11, it couldn't properly install version 15.4—and 15.4.1 isn't available for Studio Display.

The fix was pretty simple — enable iOS 15.4 to be installed by re-signing it. Macworld says that's what has been done and people with Studio Displays that need an update should now be good to go.

The new Studio Display is one of the best Mac displays you can buy right now, despite its reportedly shoddy camera and a price that some might consider high. Its 5K resolution and support for Retina output help make it a standout option for those who want those specific features.

Oliver Haslam
Oliver Haslam
Contributor

Oliver Haslam has written about Apple and the wider technology business for more than a decade with bylines on How-To Geek, PC Mag, iDownloadBlog, and many more. He has also been published in print for Macworld, including cover stories. At iMore, Oliver is involved in daily news coverage and, not being short of opinions, has been known to 'explain' those thoughts in more detail, too.

Having grown up using PCs and spending far too much money on graphics card and flashy RAM, Oliver switched to the Mac with a G5 iMac and hasn't looked back. Since then he's seen the growth of the smartphone world, backed by iPhone, and new product categories come and go. Current expertise includes iOS, macOS, streaming services, and pretty much anything that has a battery or plugs into a wall. Oliver also covers mobile gaming for iMore, with Apple Arcade a particular focus. He's been gaming since the Atari 2600 days and still struggles to comprehend the fact he can play console quality titles on his pocket computer.