Apple's App Store Usage Numbers Suggest iOS 7 Adoption at 74%

[djgamble]

7 is only at 74% because no one can uninstall it. If we could still roll back to 6 every one I know would immediately.

I do tech work on the side, every client is calling begging me to work tech magic to get 6 back on, I'm breaking hearts left and right.

This is Apple biggest scam. They act like the adoption and love for the new OS is high, when it's really not. It's only high because we cannot get it off.

I dare Apple to start signing iOS 6 again. See how fast everyone bails.

7 blows. Ive can't design software, he sucks.. "It's just, simple... simple and white with tinny lame letters most people cannot read. No details, no eye candy just a waste of a retinal screen, just siiimmmple...."

 

[springsup]

The remainder are likely dyslexic.

Think I'm being funny? A friend of mine just updated to iOS 7 after having some doubts on wether it'd be too hard to deal with, what with her dyslexia being really bad.

She just called me, from a landline, in tears because she can barely use her phone and wanted to know if she could go back to iOS 6. I've just added her to my Dev Portal and gave her instructions for how to update to 7.1 to see if the extra settings present in the Beta will help but from what she has told me it's not looking hopeful.

I like iOS 7 but they've really dropped the disability ball, she's not the only one either, I googled the issue and a lot of people are having trouble.

I hope they improve it. I don't need the assistive features personally, but I know from several friends that they can make an enormous difference. Assistive features have historically been one of Apple's huge strengths, so I really hope they don't drop the ball on this.

The fact that kerning and ligatures are enabled by default could be a factor; kerning leads to letters being spaced more closely-together, and ligatures will go even further and turn particular sequences in to a single glyph (e.g. 'ff', 'ffl'). I'm not intimately familiar with dyslexia, so I'm not sure if that would help/hinder text legibility.

EDIT: A quick Google search turned up this study, where a French-Italian team found dyslexic children reading up to 20% faster with half as many errors with wider letter-spacing. They used to have an iOS app to see the results for yourself, but it's no longer on the store. Unfortunately "dynamic text" doesn't really give you any option for setting the letter-spacing; only the font size.

 

[samiznaetekto]

Confusingly, the pie chart shows 74% when viewed on non-retina screen, and 64% when viewed on a retina.

So which one to trust? 64/36 is very different from 74/26.

https://developer.apple.com/support/images/chart.png

https://developer.apple.com/support/images/chart_2x.png

 

[smartalic34]

No, not just that. The whole layout of every stock app. All the borderless white design. The totally new UI design for all the things in the API like UISwitch that third-party apps use. By the way, just changing the colors can make a huge difference, and the generic icons in the apps (system-wide, even third-party apps) really matter.

Image

The generic icons do not alter usability, as long as they can be differentiated - which they easily can be, despite possibly being boring to look at. The layouts of most of the stock apps didn't change (though the camera app changed quite a bit). Having a white background or white text is not a usability issue for most users and does not constitute a layout change.

And I would argue that adoption rate is a proxy for satisfaction, all other things being equal. I can't think of any variables that have changed from a year ago when iOS 6 was released, though perhaps you can. I forget, did the iOS 6 update automatically appear in software update like iOS 7 did for users? If it didn't, that could partially explain the difference.

 

[proline]

I posted this already, but I think the biggest problems with iOS7 are fixable, but I worry that Ives will be too stubborn to change them. The sea of white (background) is just a horrible UI decision. Related to this, is the poor contrast (gray text on white background, yellow text on white background, etc.). Having buttons that just look like text (no button-like rounded rectangle border) is an awful idea, too. The change in fonts to a 1-pixel-thin font is also a usability/readability concern. Fix these three things (maybe I'm forgetting something else) and I'd bet you that very few people would be complaining.

Ive isn't too stubborn to fix the issues you've mentioned, but he isn't going to because they aren't issues and the vast majority of people like them that way. The white backgrounds are ideal for maximizing the contrast with black text. Indeed, there can be no greater contrast making the text as readable as possible.

The days of treating users like idiots who need buttons to have a circle drawn around them, a drop shadow, and ugly shade of blue that clashes with just about everything, etc. aren't coming back. People today know that the the stuff at the top and bottom of the screen is tappable, be it text, pictures, etc. The few people who don't get this are dying (like all humans) and will be replaced by new people who do get it. Apple has to be on board with that future.

The text most certainly is not "1-pixel-thin" and can be read easily by anyone with a properly updated prescription. For those who can't read it, there's much improved accessibility options. Apple's only mistake here was not updating the text at the same time the iPhone 4 came out. iOS 7 text on a retina display is far more readable than iOS 6 text on an iPhone 3GS which nobody complained about. So had they upgraded from the 3GS to the iPhone 4 with proper retina text even you would have loved it. The fact that they have people a three year taste of text that was excessively readable, then dialled it back ever so slightly to get a better aesthetic, was a bit of a minor marketing error, nothing more.

 

[KdParker]

22% on iOS 6 can in fact represent a load of people. It might certainly be a smaller number (by a factor of 3) than that representing people on iOS 7, but it doesn't mean the number itself is a small one.

They will move with the new iPhone6.....

 

[spillproof]

Part of the 4%.

Still on 5.1.1

I have zero reason to update.

 

[hipnetic]

The white backgrounds are ideal for maximizing the contrast with black text. Indeed, there can be no greater contrast making the text as readable as possible.

Ive didn't give us black text on a white background. He gave us yellow text on a white background (see the Notes app). And even if he *did* give us a consistent black text on white background, it would still be a usability disaster, because it creates eyestrain. White text on a black background is a better choice if you want to "maximize" contrast while decreasing eyestrain.

The days of treating users like idiots who need buttons to have a circle drawn around them, a drop shadow, and ugly shade of blue that clashes with just about everything, etc. aren't coming back.

It's not about "treating people like idiots". It's about maximizing usability, and making it easy on the brain to very quickly identify what is a tappable button and what is not.

People today know that the the stuff at the top and bottom of the screen is tappable, be it text, pictures, etc. The few people who don't get this are dying (like all humans) and will be replaced by new people who do get it. Apple has to be on board with that future.

Your statement could just as easily/correctly be stated as, "the few people who agree with the iOS7 usability changes are dying (like all humans)." Maybe the future generation will agree with you. Maybe they'll agree with me. Maybe enough people will dislike the iOS7 redesign that some of them will change platforms. Unfortunately, the stats will be skewed because the competition isn't necessarily any/much better.

iOS 7 text on a retina display is far more readable than iOS 6 text on an iPhone 3GS which nobody complained about.

Disagree. What are you basing this claim on? The 3GS was not retina, so the text was not as crisp (i.e., the pixels were more noticeable). That's a very different thing than font weight, though. The standard iOS6 font had a heavier font weight, whereas the iOS7 font is too light/thin.

 

[KALLT]

And I would argue that adoption rate is a proxy for satisfaction, all other things being equal. I can't think of any variables that have changed from a year ago when iOS 6 was released, though perhaps you can. I forget, did the iOS 6 update automatically appear in software update like iOS 7 did for users? If it didn't, that could partially explain the difference.

I think the notifications have been there since iOS 5.

I wouldn't necessarily say that the adoption rate is a proxy for satisfaction. We can see that the adoption rates for major iOS releases have been increasing year by year. Even iOS 6 was quickly adopted by many users and I suspect that iOS 7 would have had a higher adoption rate anyway.

iOS users seem to have a mindset of keeping their devices up to date and Apple has made that tremendously easy with over-the-air updates, iCloud backups and update notifications. Moreover, iOS 7 has been the most radical update yet and has created a lot of interest in the media and among developers. Many apps have been overhauled within weeks and that probably caused people to be more curious about the system too. I was very curious about iOS 7 myself, more so than with iOS 5 or iOS 6. In the end I didn't like it and decided that the new features were not worth losing the familiarity and reliability of iOS 6.

 

[Jeffpb3]

Agree 100%

Indeed. Since there's no way to go back to iOS 6 after you've gone to iOS 7, I'd be very curious to see how many people have it, and also hate it and wish they could downgrade. So far I know of no one not on Macrumors who likes it. If you google iOS 7, the fourth most commonly searched word that follows it is the word "Sucks".

After upgrading to 7, I was glad to break my display and get a replacement iPad that still came with iOS 6. I'll check back in at iOS 8, but if they don't sort their visual disaster out, I'm ditching iOS completely.

I agree with you 100%! I'm so glad I didn't jump and down load this crap OS. It looks like a bad Microsoft knockoff. I'm sure Jobs would have never let them do this if he was still here. I'm also not happy with the loss of calendar Monthly view. I can't figure out what apple was thinking by removing this feature.

 

[TMay]

all i can think of when i read these stories is "how many iDevices went in the landfill so people can get the new hot stuff?"

nobody ever counts forced obsolescence when factoring how "green" companies are.

Why would anyone throw out an iPhone that could be repurposed for an iPod Touch? Give 'em to kids or sell them on ebay.

Very few go to landfills; most get recycled.

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i ask the same question to you. what is so hard to grasp about this?

the difference here is your car doesnt stop getting serviced when the new model car comes out. if apple made cars and you drove a 2011 and took it into get serviced for a problem, they'd tell you you're out of luck, but guess what? the new 2014 model fixes that problem.

"forced" means that an artificial limitation is placed on the software or hardware to coax you to buy the new. its a well-documented phenomenon. You can read more about it here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planned_obsolescence

"a policy of planning or designing a product with a limited useful life, so it will become obsolete, that is, unfashionable or no longer functional after a certain period of time"

You aren't "forced" to purchase a new product because an older one doesn't have features of the new. Planned obsolescence has to do with a products lifespan, not its features.

 

[scoobydoo99]

Indeed. Since there's no way to go back to iOS 6 after you've gone to iOS 7, I'd be very curious to see how many people have it, and also hate it and wish they could downgrade. So far I know of no one not on Macrumors who likes it. If you google iOS 7, the fourth most commonly searched word that follows it is the word "Sucks".

After upgrading to 7, I was glad to break my display and get a replacement iPad that still came with iOS 6. I'll check back in at iOS 8, but if they don't sort their visual disaster out, I'm ditching iOS completely.

+1,000,000
Every SINGLE person I know who has iOS7 hates it. Ranging from "I don't like it" to "iOS7 has ruined my life". Personally, I bought a new iPhone 5c and returned it because going back to my iPhone 4 was the only way I could get back to iOS6. This isn't random hate just to be an internet troll - I genuinely can't imagine having to live with iOS7. As an iPhone user since the original launch in 2007, I have to face the fact that, unless iOS8 is a drastic change for the better, I may have to look elsewhere for my next phone (and I don't want to, I like Apple!)

 

[socco]

These are the percentage of people who download things from the app store? I have to imagine there are a decent number of people who don't often download apps, so I'm sure the actual percentage of people on ios7 is lower.

 

[scoobydoo99]

Outside of MacRumors and other message boards, I haven't met anyone who regrets the upgrade. The internet allows people to distort their perceptions by meeting and associating with like-minded people, however rare they may be. iOS 7 haters are a tiny minority and iOS 7 has driven iphone production to an unprecedented rate north of 50 million units a quarter.

The people I "meet" are people from the real world, in every sector - coworkers, business associates, students, friends, family. People from 14 years old to over 50. Tech geeks to casual consumers. Men, women, boys, girls. We don't associate through message boards or anti-Apple groups. Without exception, every person I have encountered dislikes or hates iOS7. While it's not a scientific sample, given such widespread derision for the OS, I find it hard to believe that you have not heard this in the real world, unless you are one of those iOS7 lovers that filters everything through the sacred church of Apple that allows like-minded worshipers to ignore reality.

iPhone production numbers are not so much driven by the OS as by general demand for new Apple iPhones. Upgraders can't go back to iOS6, so adoption rates for iOS7 don't really mean anything either - many of those in that slice of the pie representing iOS7 are miserable!

 

[MartiNZ]

well, the funny thing is, its a FORCED adoption, I have yet to meet someone that love or even likes ios 7. There is 9 iphones 4s/ 5 in my family circle and we would love to get ios6 back, can't. I work at the hospital and between the workers not a single one like ios7, unless they've been introduced to iphone as new user.
I only meet people here that like/ love ios7, personally looking for a way to get back ios6

Pretty much same here, it's not like they give you much of a choice. I was very keen to keep my mother's iPhone on iOS 6 for how many annoying changes in 7 I would need to explain, but the phone managed to convince her to update eventually - how much of that 77% knew what they were doing?

I just keep meeting people that wish they had stayed on 6 or have acquired old generation devices just so they don't get 7. For myself, I got a Nokia 925 instead and haven't looked back.

 

[9000]

The generic icons do not alter usability, as long as they can be differentiated - which they easily can be, despite possibly being boring to look at. The layouts of most of the stock apps didn't change (though the camera app changed quite a bit). Having a white background or white text is not a usability issue for most users and does not constitute a layout change.

And I would argue that adoption rate is a proxy for satisfaction, all other things being equal. I can't think of any variables that have changed from a year ago when iOS 6 was released, though perhaps you can. I forget, did the iOS 6 update automatically appear in software update like iOS 7 did for users? If it didn't, that could partially explain the difference.

When I see the generic icons ("generic" meaning that they're for things like "send" or "share", not that they're boring) in iOS 6, I know exactly what they mean. They're less intuitive in iOS 7 or at least different. They're part of the UI.

What makes the UI hard to read is the lack of borders, sections, and shadows. The thin text doesn't help either. White text is certainly a difference but not a problem. And the background of almost every stock app has changed. Some of the stock apps even look like inverted versions of the iOS 6 ones.

What makes me mad: Why?? What does changing so many parts of the UI accomplish? Nothing but getting people excited that iOS "changed" so much. I'll bet it won't work if they try that again.

 

[scoobydoo99]

7 is only at 74% because no one can uninstall it. If we could still roll back to 6 every one I know would immediately.

I do tech work on the side, every client is calling begging me to work tech magic to get 6 back on, I'm breaking hearts left and right.

This is Apple biggest scam. They act like the adoption and love for the new OS is high, when it's really not. It's only high because we cannot get it off.

I dare Apple to start signing iOS 6 again. See how fast everyone bails.

7 blows. Ive can't design software, he sucks.. "It's just, simple... simple and white with tinny lame letters most people cannot read. No details, no eye candy just a waste of a retinal screen, just siiimmmple...."

agreed. iOS7 is a disaster.

 

[yourtoys7]

That's an interesting circle you're hanging with. Are they older folks that are having issues adjusting? What's the problem? Everything about iOS 7 trumps iOS 6----including the laundry list of incredibly nice additions they gave us. I've not upgraded my wife's iPad 2 and it feels 'old' when I use it now. Antiquated. Out of date.

Again, I don't get it

Well, here we go just for you, my wife 29, sister 31, sister in law, 38, two girls on my unit 25, myself 39. etc...
Its not that I don't like the change, but look what they did with calendar!!! reading on white most of stock app. is horrible.
1st. they FORCE ios7 you,
2nd. they won't let you change back,
3rd.they tell you, our customers love it....
Steve is probably yelling at them from the grave...

 

[proline]

Ive didn't give us black text on a white background. He gave us yellow text on a white background (see the Notes app). And even if he *did* give us a consistent black text on white background, it would still be a usability disaster, because it creates eyestrain. White text on a black background is a better choice if you want to "maximize" contrast while decreasing eyestrain.

The notes app is black text on a white background, much more readable than the black on yellow used previously. The only place yellow text is used is for navigation at the top, where it is a heavy font that is quite readable, not that you need to read it since the navigation is very simple in that app. In any case, rare exceptions aside the vast majority of iOS 7 text is just plain black on white. Just like the printed word. Just like a Kindle. Just like pretty much every web page including MacRumors. This is not a big deal. Get over it.

It's not about "treating people like idiots". It's about maximizing usability, and making it easy on the brain to very quickly identify what is a tappable button and what is not.

Your statement could just as easily/correctly be stated as, "the few people who agree with the iOS7 usability changes are dying (like all humans)." Maybe the future generation will agree with you. Maybe they'll agree with me. Maybe enough people will dislike the iOS7 redesign that some of them will change platforms. Unfortunately, the stats will be skewed because the competition isn't necessarily any/much better.

Future generations most certainly will not agree with you. I highly doubt someone born in 2013 who grows up using future variants of iOS 7 is going to have any trouble making it work, nor are they going to say "gee, I have no idea what a computer-mabob is. My monkey brain can only comprehend things if they are filled with subliminal clues and skeuomorphic references. Can you show me where to press?". They also won't be clamouring for their podcast app to look like a 1980s reel-to-reel tape player, or for their Pages icon to have a picture of an ink well on it. Making machines useable to people who were born before the computer age is no longer a priority and never will be again. Ease of use still matters, but its ease of use to people who are familiar with technology. UI design simply isn't about making a machine so easy your Mom can figure it out.

Disagree. What are you basing this claim on? The 3GS was not retina, so the text was not as crisp (i.e., the pixels were more noticeable). That's a very different thing than font weight, though. The standard iOS6 font had a heavier font weight, whereas the iOS7 font is too light/thin.

The 3GS text is fuzzy and unreadable next to iOS 7 on a retina display. Now since you liked 3GS text, there's no reason not to like the far superior iOS 7 retina display text. The fact that there was briefly something that you personally enjoyed even more in between the two is what's causing your dissatisfaction. Again, get over it.

 

[9000]

Part of the 4%.

Still on 5.1.1

I have zero reason to update.

The funny thing is that some people here would hate you for doing that. It's so un-Apple. "Haterz gonna hate".

One of my monitors is resting on a GameCube, the other on an 8-track box, both driven by an EVGA GPU. And a WIRED mouse and keyboard. Doing things the non-Apple way

----------

a) low adoption of iOS 7 - "hey you see!? I've said that everybody hates iOS 7"
b) high adoption of iOS 7 - "hey all these users were forced to upgrade. No one likes it. Everyone I know hates it."


Haters always win.

Well if they just allowed downgrades, haters wouldn't always win.

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1st. they FORCE ios7 you

Who forced you to update?

 

[hansonjohn590]

Well yeah, it's going to be high considering you can't go back.

 

[9000]

Yes, this is a pet peeve of mine. 10 people complain about X and ask for Y. Next year, company changes X to Y and 10 *DIFFERENT* people complain and say they preferred X. Then some schlub posts, "Hey, everyone complained about X last year and now you're complaining that you don't have X anymore." Derp.

Yeah, I wish everyone would take set theory in math. It would also teach them that A implying B does not mean that B implies A. Something that too many people don't understand.

 

[wiz329]

Outside of MacRumors and other message boards, I haven't met anyone who regrets the upgrade. The internet allows people to distort their perceptions by meeting and associating with like-minded people, however rare they may be. iOS 7 haters are a tiny minority and iOS 7 has driven iphone production to an unprecedented rate north of 50 million units a quarter.

Evidence that they are a tiny minority?

At least the previous poster pointed to the fact that the forth most common search is "iOS 7 sucks". You on the other hand have done nothing other than conjecture.

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Last year people were bashing Apple for no visible changes in iOS 6.
This year people are bashing Apple for visible changes in iOS 7.
Classic.

Come on, you know that's BS.

That's like saying someone who complains if the food is too bland can't complain about food that is too spicy.

Both are possible.

Change was needed in iOS 7. I'm just not sure all of the change that occurred was the the change that was really needed.

 

[AppleScruff1]

well, the funny thing is, its a FORCED adoption, I have yet to meet someone that love or even likes ios 7. There is 9 iphones 4s/ 5 in my family circle and we would love to get ios6 back, can't. I work at the hospital and between the workers not a single one like ios7, unless they've been introduced to iphone as new user.
I only meet people here that like/ love ios7, personally looking for a way to get back ios6

There are still bugs to be worked out in iOS. It is far from perfect as some would have you believe.

 

[chleuasme]

So about 2 months for iOS 7 to reach 75% of the measurable iOS user base.

Meanwhile in the Android world (*) :
Around 5% of measured devices are running on an OS less than 12 months old,
around 75% of measured devices are running on 4.0.3 released 24 months ago, or a newer version.

(*) it excludes the hundred of millions Android devices, for example in China, not running the Play Store and not measured.