iOS 18.7.7 Update Released for iPhone & iPad Holdouts Not Running iOS 26+
Apple has issued an important software for iOS 18 users who are holding out and avoiding iOS 26 for whatever reason. Specifically, iOS 18.7.7 for all iPhone models running iOS 18 (not running iOS 26 or newer), along with iPadOS 18.7.7 for all iPad users with iOS 18 (also not running iPadOS 26 or newer), are both available as security updates. The iOS 18.7.7 update includes important security updates and is therefore recommended for all users to install, because some of the security issues addressed by the update are known to be actively exploited. No new features or changes are included otherwise.
Again, the iOS 18.7.7 update is aimed specifically at iPhone and iPad devices that are still running iOS 18, but are otherwise compatible with but not yet installing the iOS 26 updates. There are a fair amount of people who are strategically avoiding iOS 26 for any number of reasons, and this update is able to provide them with some essential security updates, without having to jump onto the 26+ versions.
Even aside from the release of iOS/iPadOS 18.7.7, Apple has been on an aggressive software update push lately, releasing myriad updates for many devices, including iOS 26.4, iPadOS 26.4, MacOS Tahoe 26.4, MacOS Sequoia 15.7.5, MacOS Sonoma 14.8.5, watchOS 26.4, tvOS 26.4, watchOS 8.8.2, and watchOS 5.3.10, iOS 16.7.15, iOS 15.8.7, amongst various other updates to basically every Apple device that is still supported. Check your devices software update mechanisms for more.
How to Download & Install iOS 18.7.7 / iPadOS 18.7.7 Update
Be sure to backup your iPhone or iPad to iCloud before starting any software update.
- Open “Settings” app on your iPhone or iPad
- Go to “General”, and then go to “Software Update”
- Ignore the aggressively large iOS 26 / iPadOS 26 update promotion, and instead scroll down below and look for the tiny “Also Available” section and tap on “iOS 18.7.7” or iPadOS 18.7.8
- Choose to download and install the iOS 18.7.7 / iPadOS 18.7.7 update
Your iPhone or iPad will restart to complete installation.
iOS 18.7.7 and iPadOS 18.7.7 are available as updates for the following devices, specifically: iPhone XR, iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, iPhone 11 (all models), iPhone SE (2nd generation), iPhone 12 (all models), iPhone 13 (all models), iPhone SE (3rd generation), iPhone 14 (all models), iPhone 15 (all models), iPhone 16 (all models), iPhone 16e, iPad mini (5th generation – A17 Pro), iPad (7th generation – A16), iPad Air (3rd – 5th generation), iPad Air 11-inch (M2 – M3), iPad Air 13-inch (M2 – M3), iPad Pro 11-inch (1st generation – M4), iPad Pro 12.9-inch (3rd – 6th generation), and iPad Pro 13-inch (M4)
Does this mean we can downgrade from iOS 26.4 to iOS 18.7.7 or ipadOS 18.7.7?
If you’re the type of person who sees updates like this and immediately thinks “maybe I can downgrade”, you certainly aren’t alone. But that’s probably not the case, and downgrading from iOS 26.4 back to iOS 18.7.7 is probably not possible.
For whatever reason, Apple is not broadly distributing the iOS 18.7.7 updates as IPSW files for every device, so for those curious users who were imagining using the iOS 18.7.7 IPSW to downgrade from iOS 26, it’s unlikely.
Curiously, there is an iPadOS 18.7.7 IPSW for one older iPad 9 model though, so it’s possible that could be used for downgrading that specific device, but that has yet to be confirmed.
iOS 18.7.7 IPSW Firmware Download Links
Apple is providing limited IPSW for the updates:
- iOS 18.7.7 for iPhone XS
- iOS 18.7.7 for iPhone XS Max
- iOS 18.7.7 for iPhone XR
- ipadOS 18.7.7 for iPad 9
iOS 18.7.7 Release Notes
Release notes for iOS 18.7.7 and iPadOS 18.7.7 updates are short:
This update provides important security fixes and is recommended for all users.
For information on the security content of Apple software updates, please visit this website:
https://support.apple.com/100100
As mentioned earlier, don’t forget to update all of your other Apple devices as well, since just about everything has received an update over the last few weeks.
