Is your iPhone 14 Pro Max Dropping Calls? Here’s why and how to fix it

By Dave Johnson - Senior Staff Writer
6 Min Read

If your iPhone 14 Pro Max is dropping calls, walk through these troubleshooting steps to fix the problem.

Note: information in this article apply to iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max.

iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max are shown in gold.

You are trying to make a call over the cellular network on your iPhone 14 Pro Max; you find the number on your iPhone and tap the call button, which brings the calling screen.

Then after a few seconds, the call drop!

Sounds familiar? Well, you are not alone. This is a common issue that a lot of iPhone 14 Pro Max users are facing.

In this article, I’ll explain why your iPhone 14 Pro Max is dropping calls and show you how to fix the problem for good!

Why Does My iPhone 14 Pro Max Drop Calls?

Your iPhone 14 Pro Max may drop calls for several reasons. We’ve explained the most common reasons for a call drop issue below.

Tower handoff issues

Your phone uses a series of cell towers to connect you with somebody. When you ring someone, your phone will automatically connect to the nearest cell tower to carry out the call. If you’re talking to someone while on the move, your connection will be handed off to a new cell tower that’s within range.

Naturally, a call drop can occur during this process. It’s often because of something you can’t control (like a spike in telecom traffic) and shouldn’t be a serious problem.

Entering a dead zone

Going into a dead zone (which has poor cell phone signal) can affect your phone call as well. This might be caused by a lack of towers or poor cell tower alignment. It can also be caused by physical obstacles such as trees, buildings or tunnels.

Hardware Problem

Sometimes dropped calls are caused by hardware damage. If your iPhone 14 Pro Max antenna or sim card has been damaged, this can make dropped calls and other problems more likely.

So now that we have identified the potential culprits, let’s move on to the solutions.

11 Solutions to Fix iPhone 14 Pro Nax Dropped Calls Issue

Solution 1: Check Your Signal Strength

If you’re at a remote outdoor location, or if it’s raining or snowing in your area, you may experience poor cell reception. Check the cell signal icon in your iPhone’s status bar to find out if this is why your iPhone 14 Pro Max is dropping calls.

If you only see one vertical bar filled in, you can try moving to a different location to get a stronger signal in order to make a call. For example, if you’re in your sitting room, simply going to other areas in your house, such as the bedroom or garden, may get you the signal you need.

If there are no bars at all, or if you see No Service in the status bar, visit your network provider’s website and look for a coverage map to find out if you’re supposed to get any signal in your current location.

Solution 2: Toggle Airplane Mode On and Off

Airplane mode effectively disables all wireless sensors and antennas from communicating. When you turn Airplane Mode on, you disable cellular data, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi connections. Toggling Airplane Mode on and off can fix iPhone 14 Pro Max dropping calls issue.

The easiest way to toggle Airplane mode is using Control Center:

  1. Swipe down from the top-right of your iPhone to open Control Center.
  2. Tap the Airplane button.
  3. Wait 30 seconds for your connections to stop.
  4. Tap the Airplane button again to bring all connections back online.

The second method for toggling Airplane Mode requires you to dive (quickly) into the Settings app:

  1. Open the Settings app.
  2. Toggle Airplane Mode on.
  3. Wait 30 seconds.
  4. Toggle Airplane Mode off.

Solution 3: Restart Your iPhone

A simple restart can sometimes do wonders. It clears your phone’s active memory and may solve minor software glitches that could be causing your iPhone 14 Pro Max to drop calls.

  1. Press and hold the side button and either volume button until the power off slider appears.
  2. Drag the slider from left to right to turn off your iPhone.
  3. Wait for 30 seconds and then turn your iPhone on again.

Solution 4: Update iOS

It’s possible your iPhone 14 Pro Max is dropping calls because its running an outdated version of iOS. Apple iOS updates may sometimes include modem updates, which have the potential to fix the problem when your iPhone 14 Pro Max drops calls.

To update your iPhone:

  1. Connect your iPhone to Wi-Fi.
  2. Go to Settings > General > Software Update.
  3. If an update is available, tap Download and Install.

Solution 5: Update Your Carrier Settings

Aside from software updates, which are handled by Apple, your carrier can also push updates to your iPhone. Carriers release these updates to improve network connectivity which could possibly fix the problem if your iPhone 14 Pro Max is dropping calls.

However, the process to check for a carrier update is a bit different than your normal software updates:

  1. Make sure your iPhone is connected to the internet.
  2. Go to Settings > General > About. If an update is available, you’ll see an option to update your carrier settings.

Solution 6: Remove and Reinsert the SIM Card

If your iPhone 14 Pro Max is still dropping calls, let’s try and remove, clean, and reinsert the SIM card to see if this fixes the issue.

  1. Turn off your iPhone.
  2. Unwind a paperclip.
  3. Using the pointed end of the paperclip, insert it into a tiny hole on the side of your iPhone. Press gently yet firmly. The SIM card tray should pop out.
  4. Clean the SIM card with a microfiber cloth and then place it back into the tray. Be sure the SIM card is aligned to the shape of the SIM card tray, or it won’t slide into the phone properly.
  5. Once the SIM is inserted, power on your iPhone and wait a moment before attempting to make a call again.

You may also want to tTry your SIM card in another phone and see if the problem persists.

If it does, you should contact your carrier for a SIM card replacement.

If the problem doesn’t continue on the other phone, it means your SIM card is fine and the problem lies with your iPhone.

Solution 7: Reach Out to Your Network Provider

If you’ve worked through the steps above, but your iPhone 14 Pro Max keeps dropping calls, your next port of call should be to reach out to your network provider. They may be able to provide insight into whether there are network issues in your area or assist with potential solutions.

Here are their phone numbers for the major US wireless carriers:

If your iPhone 14 Pro Max has been dropping calls for awhile now, consider switching wireless carriers. There’s a possibility your carrier doesn’t have a strong signal where you live, and your call quality could improve by making a switch.

Solution 8: Reset Network Settings

One great troubleshooting step you’ll want to try if your iPhone 14 Pro Max is still dropping calls is to completely reset the network settings on your phone. This method will reset all your connections, meaning that you will need to sign back into your Wi-Fi network after completing this step.

Keep in mind that you’ll need to reconnect to all saved Wi-Fi networks and reconfigure VPNs after doing this. To reset network settings:

  1. Go to Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone > Reset > Reset Network Settings.
  2. Enter your passcode when asked, and then confirm your decision.

Solution 9: Restore Your iPhone to Factory Settings

Have you tried all the above solutions but your iPhone 14 Pro Max is still dropping calls? The next step you’ll want take is to perform a factory reset on your phone.

This will erase everything, which could strip out any underlying issues that are causing your iPhone 14 Pro Max calls to drop. Keep in mind that doing this reset will permanently erase everything on your phone.

  1. Go to Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone > Reset > Reset All Settings.
  2. Enter your passcode and confirm your decision.

Solution 10: iPhone 14 Pro Max Still Dropping Calls? Try Wi-Fi Calling!

If your iPhone 14 Pro Max is dropping calls, a temporary work around is to use Wi-Fi calling. When Wi-Fi calling is turned on, you’ll be able to make phone calls on your iPhone using your Wi-Fi connection instead of your cellular connection.

To turn on Wi-Fi calling:

  1. Go to Settings.
  2. Tap Cellular.
  3. Tap Wi-Fi Calling.
  4. Turn on the switch next to Wi-Fi Calling on This iPhone.

An iPhone showing the Wi-Fi Calling screen, with Wi-Fi Calling on This Phone turned on.  

You can also turn on Wi-Fi calling by following the steps below:

  1. Go to Settings.
  2. Tap Phone.
  3. Tap Wi-Fi Calling.

Solution 11: If All Else Fails, Reach Out to Apple

If you’ve worked through the steps above, but your iPhone 14 Pro Max keeps dropping calls, it’s probably time to reach out to Apple support. Its customer support team is top-notch and will help walk you through any additional steps necessary to figure out what your problem is.

Plus, if your iPhone 14 Pro Max is dropping calls because of a hardware problem, you’ll be able to send it back to Apple and get a replacement. This may not be the best outcome if you don’t have a spare phone, but it’s better than having a phone that doesn’t work properly.

That’s all!

These are some ways to successfully fix the call dropping issue on iPhone 14 Pro Max. I hope one of the solutions helped you out of this problem.

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By Dave Johnson Senior Staff Writer
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Dave Johnson is a staff writer for GeeksChalk based in New Jersey. He covers news, how-tos, and user guides for iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch.
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