Steps to replicate the issue (include links if applicable):
From our app store reviews.

• Open the iOS app (versions 7.8.5 or 7.8.6).

• Attempt to use the search bar from the home screen or from within an article.

• In some cases, search freezes, jumps to previous searches, or crashes the app.

• On iPad, tapping the search field inside an article does not activate the text field.

• In some cases, search does not display refreshed content even when newer revisions exist on web and Android.

• Some users report the search feature becoming slow or unresponsive over recent updates.

User examples:

Search freezing or locking up.

Search redirecting to previous searches unexpectedly.

Search crashing the app.

Search field not activating on iPad.

Search not returning updated article content.

Search intermittently failing to work at all.

What happens?:
Search becomes unresponsive, freezes, or crashes.

Search field sometimes does not accept input.

Search results may not reflect up-to-date article content.

Search activation fails inside article view, requiring returning to the home screen.

What should have happened instead?:
Search should activate reliably in all contexts, including inside an article.

Search should not freeze, jump, or crash.

Search should fetch and display up-to-date article revisions.

Search should work consistently across iPhone and iPad.

Software version (on Special:Version page; skip for WMF-hosted wikis like Wikipedia):
Affected versions reported: 7.8.5 and 7.8.6

Devices include: iPhone XS, iPads on iPadOS 26.x, and others.

Other information (browser name/version, screenshots, etc.):
Multiple reports from App Store reviews (United States, China mainland, Estonia, Finland).

A few reviews mentioned the issue began after the latest update.

Reproducibility varies; some users experience intermittent failures, others consistent crashes.