Fix iPhone Autocorrect Bug: Stop 'i' Changing to 'A [?]' on iPhone & iPad

Have you been trying to type “i” but it’s replacing itself with “A [?]” constantly on your iPhone or iPad? This is because iOS 11.1 introduced a curious bug for many iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch users that causes the letter “i” to autocorrect to the letter “A” usually followed by a square symbol with a question mark in it, looking something like this: “A [?]”

Apple is aware of this curious bug and will apparently offer a bug fix software update to resolve the problem. But in the meantime, Apple also offers a workaround solution using the text replacement feature of iOS.

Update: Apple has released iOS 11.1.1 as a bug fix for this issue, Go to Settings > General > Software Update to download iOS 11.1.1 and fix the problem.

Why am I seeing question mark boxes on iPhone or iPad??

The reason many people are seeing question mark boxes in iOS either when typing or when reading other peoples emails, texts, tweets, social media posts, or otherwise, is because of a bug in iOS.

Apple is aware of the question mark box bug and is said to be issuing a bug fix update in the future to address the problem. In the meantime, the instructions below detail how you can work around the autocorrect question mark boxes bug.

How to Stop the “i” Autocorrect “A [?]” Bug in iOS

1. Open the “Settings” app and go to “General” then to “Keyboard”
2. Choose “Text Replacement”
3. Tap the “+” Plus button in the corner
4. Under “Phrase” type an upper-case “I”
5. For “Shortcut” type a lower case “i”
6. Choose “Save” and exit out of Settings

Now when you type “i” it should actually type “i” rather than the A box character curiosity.

This solution, which is very much a workaround, is what Apple suggests as a fix for the problem until a future software update resolves the bug.

This is a strange bug and it does not impact every iPhone or iPad user with the iOS 11.1 release. Nonetheless we can expect a software update to fix the problem fairly shortly, perhaps as a small update like iOS 11.1.1 or similar.

If you’re impacted by this bug, use the text replacement workaround for the time being, and be sure to update your iOS version when a new release comes out.