Spoiler alert: it all comes down to a simple setting

Mar 28, 2016 06:22 GMT  ·  By

As we've already told you, the iOS 9.3 update is causing an unexpected freezing bug on iPhone 6s and 6s Plus whenever the user taps a link in absolutely any application running on the device, and Apple is yet to publicly acknowledge the issue at this point.

The bug exists only on the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, but it’s worth knowing that not everyone seems to be having this problem, so it’s probably just a matter of luck for the moment.

Without an official statement from Apple - although some users have indicated that the company’s support staff has confirmed the issue and said that a fix is under development - iPhone customers who need to use Safari to view links on their devices have just one workaround available: disable JavaScript.

It appears that disabling JavaScript in Safari does the job and lets you browse the web smoothly, but keep in mind that this trick only works in the browser, and not in other apps on the phone.

This means that you should be able to browse the web with Safari and open links, but Mail, Notes, and other apps on the iPhone are very likely to continue freezing despite the trick.

How to disable JavaScript

While this is clearly just a temporary workaround until Apple comes up with a fix, disabling JavaScript is one way to continue using your iPhone to browse the web.

To disable JavaScript, go to Settings > Safari > Advanced and tap the JavaScript toggle. Make sure you enable it back when Apple releases a fix for the freezing bug.

Downgrading to iOS 9.2.1 also fixes the bug, but this clearly involves more work on the user side. Plus, we’re receiving reports that, after downgrading to 9.2.1, users are no longer able to pair with an Apple Watch running WatchOS 2.2, so sticking to iOS 9.3 might be the better choice if you’re a Watch owner.