Apple Begins Offering 'Last Compatible' Version of Apps for Users Running Legacy Versions of iOS

Nice move on Apple's part.

Now just to allow trials and paid upgrade paths.

Double job for developers, but great for end users.

Yes! This is huge!

Something I've been wanting them to do for so long.

So... for any app?

What if services are not supported anymore... Or code has changed and certain request are not valid anymore? (on the server side of the app)

Like... if spotify always used code like "search" and it has changed to "find" .... Your app will send a request "search:artist/song" ... but the server cant decode "search" anymore....

This will mean I can stop stockpiling all the outdated versions of apps for use on the kids' iPad 1. I like it. Just wish it was a little easier to manage older versions for multi iPod/ipad families.

Good choice. A bit overdue but nice to see. Now if they can let us dynamically strip unwanted things from the bundle. For example, get a universal app and only install the iPhone part on an iPhone and the iPad part on the iPad. Great and easy space saving option.

Unbelievable!! I was only just complaining to an Apple Store genius about this very issue last week (not why I was there). IMO this was the most genuine case of planned obsolescence in all of Apple's behaviours. So glad to see them finally fix this!!

Going off to see if this actually works on my old 3G now…

I wonder if Apple kept copies of all prior app versions on their servers, or if the developers have to resubmit backwards compatible versions of their apps.

It's about time.

I know a fair number of people with no longer supported iOS devices, who have not been able to find apps for a while, and/or they have done a reset and lost their old versions.

World Citizen said:

So... for any app?

What if services are not supported anymore... Or code has changed and certain request are not valid anymore? (on the server side of the app)

Like... if spotify always used code like "search" and it changed to "find" .... Your app will send a request "search:artist/song" ... but the server cant decode "search" anymore....

Click to expand...

I'm sure a lot of apps won't be able to support this feature. Apps are updated to add/change features or to fix bugs/security issues. I doubt a dev wants their bug/security flawed app accessing their servers.

I'm guessing this will be more in line with offline games and productivity apps.

Thierry ba said:

Double job for developers, but great for end users.

Click to expand...

Double job, not really right? If you have a working version, you can just leave it like that in stead of twisting your arm to make it work for iOS 4, 5, 6 and 7.

Seems like a nice step in the right direction, but I find It odd that they would allow this. I would assume that since iPhone is all about the apps incompatible apps would push people to buy newer hardware.

I guess this was a customer oriented move instead of a profit oriented move.

So does this mean the iOS 7 haters can stay on iOS 6 now?

It's about time.

At WWDC '11, when I was an iOS noob, I asked an App Store labs person if this was the current behavior and they said it was. Imagine my surprise when I found out it wasn't.

Very thoughtful of Apple. Kudos!

kdarling said:

… or they have done a reset and lost their old versions.

Click to expand...

That was exactly my situation.

Good move on Apple's part.

This is one of the biggest things to happen to iOS. Ever.

Original iOS model:

New versions pushed, no way to download old versions. Each download is DRM-tied to your account.

End result?
Scenario 1: User buys old iOS device, cannot download popular apps.
Scenario 2: User already had old iOS device, but needed to be wiped or sent into Apple for repair/replacement. User cannot re-download apps. Even apps they purchased. Paid $60 for iWork? Too bad. Paid $100+ for GPS app? Too bad.

This was a BAD thing. It required users to maintain their own app archive. Saving old versions would take up an insane amount of disk space, and referring to changelogs and release notes to try and figure out which version worked on your device & iOS combination was time-consuming.
Even if you did manage to back up and save EVERY download, it wouldn't help the user in Scenario 1, as they never had a chance to download and backup the app.

This basically forces older, but still perfectly capable devices to become useless. Whereas you once had a hundred apps that worked fine, you would be reduced to using only the built-in apps. No more Twitter, Facebook, Angry Birds, Around Me, Instagram, etc.

Compare this to Android:

Any user can install any app, at any time. Was the 2.0 version of the app the last one that ran on your device? Just get a copy from someone else. Done. No DRM. Piracy is a huge problem, but it makes it easy to install any version of apps, which means even your old/unsupported device will ALWAYS be able to download your favorite app again.

World Citizen said:

So... for any app?

What if services are not supported anymore... Or code has changed and certain request are not valid anymore? (on the server side of the app)

Like... if spotify always used code like "search" and it has changed to "find" .... Your app will send a request "search:artist/song" ... but the server cant decode "search" anymore....

Click to expand...

I guess it's still the developers who need to approve this.

What's a legacy version? Just...older versions of iOS? I'm not harshly judging, but I don't understand why someone wouldn't just update. I can see if someone hates iOS 7 or something......idk.

So anyone had success on the 3G?

With MILLIONS of devices "forever" stuck on iOS 3, iOS 4, iOS 5, and now iOS 6, being able to still download apps is a VERY good thing.

This is a really unique way to admit to a fragmentation issue.