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Release appearance

iOS 2.1 Public

Full article
Public release

Recorded context

About this appearance

iPhone 2.1 combined call, battery, backup, mail, application, messaging, contact, signal, passcode, and Genius improvements with six documented security repairs.

Date
Sep 12, 2008
Availability
available
Revision
No

Release notes

What changed

Original editorial synthesis. Linked references appear with the claims they support and in the source ledger.

The September 12 release focused on reliability after the 2.0 launch. Apple’s preserved changelog covered fewer call setup failures and drops, longer battery life for most users, much faster iTunes backups, more reliable POP and Exchange mail fetching, faster third-party app installation, and fewer hangs when many applications were installed.[1][2]

The update also improved texting and contact performance, refined the 3G signal display, added repeated message alerts, offered data erasure after ten failed passcode attempts, and introduced Genius playlist creation. Apple’s security bulletin separately records repaired application-sandbox isolation, font parsing, DNS and TCP protections, passcode enforcement, and WebKit document lifetime handling.[3][4][5]

Source ledger

References

Sources are linked to the claims they support. Publication and access dates are shown when available.

  1. iPhone 2.1 Firmware Now Available

    MacRumors · Arnold Kim · 2008-09-12T13:11:00Z · Apple-listed call, battery, backup, mail, and app changes

    Back to text ↑
  2. Apple security updates (15-Jan-2008 to 03-Dec-2009)

    Apple Support · Apple · 2026-07-30 · iPhone 2.1 — 12 September 2008

    Back to text ↑
  3. iPhone 2.1 Firmware Now Available

    MacRumors · Arnold Kim · 2008-09-12T13:11:00Z · Apple-listed messaging, contacts, signal, passcode, and Genius changes

    Back to text ↑
  4. Apple Introduces New iPod touch

    Apple Newsroom · 2008-09-09T00:00:00Z · Genius playlists and 2.1 software

    Back to text ↑
  5. About the security content of iPhone v2.1

    Apple Support · 2026-07-30 · iPhone v2.1 security content

    Back to text ↑
  6. iPhone 2.1 Firmware Now Available

    MacRumors · Arnold Kim · 2008-09-12T13:11:00Z · 3G signal display item

  7. iPhone 2.1 Firmware Now Available

    MacRumors · Arnold Kim · 2008-09-12T13:11:00Z · Apple-listed iPhone 2.1 changelog

  8. About the security content of iPhone v2.1

    Apple Support · 2026-07-30 · Application Sandbox — CVE-2008-3631

  9. iPhone 2.1 Firmware Now Available

    MacRumors · Arnold Kim · 2008-09-12T13:11:00Z · Battery-life item

  10. iPhone 2.1 Firmware Now Available

    MacRumors · Arnold Kim · 2008-09-12T13:11:00Z · Call setup and call-drop item

  11. iPhone 2.1 Firmware Now Available

    MacRumors · Arnold Kim · 2008-09-12T13:11:00Z · Contacts performance item

  12. About the security content of iPhone v2.1

    Apple Support · 2026-07-30 · CoreGraphics — FreeType CVEs

  13. iPhone 2.1 Firmware Now Available

    MacRumors · Arnold Kim · 2008-09-12T13:11:00Z · Email reliability item

  14. Apple Introduces New iPod touch

    Apple Newsroom · 2008-09-09T00:00:00Z · Genius and 2.1 software

  15. Apple Introduces New iPod touch

    Apple Newsroom · 2008-09-09T00:00:00Z · Genius feature and 2.1 update

  16. iPhone 2.1 Firmware Now Available

    MacRumors · Arnold Kim · 2008-09-12T13:11:00Z · Genius playlist item

  17. iPhone 2.1 Firmware Now Available

    MacRumors · Arnold Kim · 2008-09-12T13:11:00Z · iTunes backup-time item

  18. About the security content of iPhone v2.1

    Apple Support · 2026-07-30 · mDNSResponder — CVE-2008-1447

  19. About the security content of iPhone v2.1

    Apple Support · 2026-07-30 · Networking — CVE-2008-3612

  20. About the security content of iPhone v2.1

    Apple Support · 2026-07-30 · Passcode Lock — CVE-2008-3633

  21. iPhone 2.1 Firmware Now Available

    MacRumors · Arnold Kim · 2008-09-12T13:11:00Z · Ten-attempt data-erasure item

  22. iPhone 2.1 Firmware Now Available

    MacRumors · Arnold Kim · 2008-09-12T13:11:00Z · Text performance and repeat-alert items

  23. iPhone 2.1 Firmware Now Available

    MacRumors · Arnold Kim · 2008-09-12T13:11:00Z · Third-party installation and stability items

  24. About the security content of iPhone v2.1

    Apple Support · 2026-07-30 · WebKit — CVE-2008-3632

Release changes

Changed in this release

Features, fixes, removals, and regressions first observed in this release record.

security · fixed

DNS cache-poisoning resilience

documentedconfirmed

The change reduced the ability of a remote attacker to poison cached name-resolution information.

  1. [1] About the security content of iPhone v2.1 · mDNSResponder — CVE-2008-1447

security · fixed

FreeType font parsing

documentedconfirmed

Apple identified arbitrary code execution as the most serious possible result and updated from FreeType 2.3.5 with the 2.3.6 fixes.

  1. [1] About the security content of iPhone v2.1 · CoreGraphics — FreeType CVEs

enhancement · changed

Contact loading and search performance

documentedreported

Apple’s changelog covers both initial contact loading and subsequent search responsiveness.

  1. [1] iPhone 2.1 Firmware Now Available · Contacts performance item

bugFix · fixed

3G signal display accuracy

documentedreported

This entry concerns the on-screen indicator and does not infer a change in radio coverage or network capacity.

  1. [1] iPhone 2.1 Firmware Now Available · 3G signal display item

bugFix · fixed

Mail fetching reliability

documentedreported

Apple singled out POP and Exchange retrieval while describing a broader reliability improvement.

  1. [1] iPhone 2.1 Firmware Now Available · Email reliability item

enhancement · changed

Faster iTunes backups

documentedreported

This is limited to backup duration; the source does not claim changes to backup contents or restore behavior.

  1. [1] iPhone 2.1 Firmware Now Available · iTunes backup-time item

security · fixed

WebKit CSS document lifetime

documentedconfirmed

A crafted site could previously terminate the application or execute code; Apple improved document-reference handling.

  1. [1] About the security content of iPhone v2.1 · WebKit — CVE-2008-3632

enhancement · changed

Battery life

documentedreported

The claim retains Apple’s qualification that the improvement applied to most users rather than promising a universal result.

  1. [1] iPhone 2.1 Firmware Now Available · Battery-life item

bugFix · fixed

Call setup and retention

documentedreported

Apple’s consumer changelog identifies both connection setup and in-call reliability as improvement areas.

  1. [1] iPhone 2.1 Firmware Now Available · Call setup and call-drop item

security · fixed

Emergency-call passcode enforcement

documentedconfirmed

Apple scoped the bypass to a person with physical access and noted that it did not affect versions before 2.0.

  1. [1] About the security content of iPhone v2.1 · Passcode Lock — CVE-2008-3633

security · introduced

Erase after failed passcode attempts

documentedreported

The consumer changelog documents the option as a new local data-protection control.

  1. [1] iPhone 2.1 Firmware Now Available · Ten-attempt data-erasure item

enhancement · changed

Messaging performance and repeat alerts

documentedreported

The update joined a performance correction with an optional reminder behavior for incoming text messages.

  1. [1] iPhone 2.1 Firmware Now Available · Text performance and repeat-alert items

security · fixed

Third-party application sandbox isolation

documentedconfirmed

The earlier behavior could let one third-party application read files from another app’s sandbox and expose sensitive data.

  1. [1] About the security content of iPhone v2.1 · Application Sandbox — CVE-2008-3631

security · fixed

TCP sequence randomization

documentedconfirmed

Predictable sequence values could otherwise assist spoofed connections or insertion of data into an existing connection.

  1. [1] About the security content of iPhone v2.1 · Networking — CVE-2008-3612

bugFix · fixed

Third-party app installation and stability

documentedreported

The entry combines two adjacent application-management items from the preserved Apple changelog.

  1. [1] iPhone 2.1 Firmware Now Available · Third-party installation and stability items