A new feature has been unearthed in the code of iOS 13.4: Internet Recovery that allows you to restore your iPhone via Wi-Fi
One of the smartest features of the macOS operating system for Apple's desktop and laptop PCs is the so-called Internet Recovery: if something goes wrong and your computer stops booting, you can restore the operating system from the Internet.
A very similar feature may soon arrive on iOS, Apple's operating system for mobile devices. The site 9to5Mac, in fact, has found such a feature among the lines of code of iOS 13.4 beta, version of the operating system that Apple is already testing. This feature is still under development and could be removed from the final version of iOS 13.4, but if it remains and becomes final it will be possible to restore the iPhone directly via Wi-Fi network, as well as by connecting the device via USB to another iPhone or iPad, similar to how Apple's migration tool already works to pass our data from one device to another.
Internet Recovery: how it works
If you simultaneously press Option+Command+R keys while starting a Mac or MacBook, the Recovery procedure will start. A spinning globe appears on the screen and we are asked for the password to connect to the Wi-Fi network. Once connected to the Internet, the Recovery tool proceeds to download the necessary files to restore the operating system from Apple's servers and install them to make the computer operational again. It works quite well and has saved more than one user who would have otherwise had to take their Mac in for service. That's why this feature is long overdue on iOS as well.
Internet Recovery on iOS?
Today this feature is not yet available on iOS, which means that if your iPhone or iPad doesn't boot up, you need to connect it via USB to a working computer with iTunes installed and, from iTunes, launch the Recovery procedure. The problem, however, is that the thing only works if we enter iTunes with our Apple ID and, therefore, this procedure is impossible if we do not have our computer available. If we're on vacation and we've only brought our iPhone with us, for example, things get pretty complicated.
When will it arrive?
Internet Recovery for iOS is present in the third beta of iOS 13.4, but that doesn't mean it will actually be released with the final version of this operating system. It's more than likely, in fact, that Apple wants to thoroughly test the feature before making it public and, consequently, wait for iOS 14 to release it. Also because, for some time, there have been rumors about a hypothetical next iPhone 2021 without Lightning or USB port and with only Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connections. Such a device would need Internet Recovery in case of problems and, consequently, it is very likely that Apple will launch the feature along with this device.