Germany Urges EU to Require 7 Years of Updates and Repairs for iOS Devices

[bradman83]

Is anyone in the EU smart enough to realize that older, less capable devices with little memory cannot run the newer OS?
Why should newer, more capable OS be required to be dumbed down to run on outdated hardware?

OS updates and security updates are two different things. In this hypothetical situation Apple would simply have to keep publishing security updates to iOS 13 as that’s the most recent OS that the seven year old iPhone 6 can run. It does not mean they have to make iOS 15 run on the iPhone 6.

 

[Abazigal]

How are they gonna enforce the updates? Do the updates have to come every X months? Or do they have to be Y size?

Exactly. What’s to stop a company from pushing out a minor software patch after 6 years just to get the EU off their backs? What’s the difference between “completely abandoned” and “we simply have no plans to update the device yet”?

 

[beanbaguk]

No, this is of interest to people that hold on to things longer than they should. This will have a negative effect on those that enjoy new things, and progression of new things since they will be hindered by 7 year old tech that has to be taken into consideration.

Sorry, but this is absolute nonsense.

 

[rme]

I really dislike the EU dictating to American companies.

They dislike Washington dictating what their companies should do ;-)

 

[Robert.Walter]

Security, yes. Repair parts, maybe not so much. Apple could probably do it, but android makers don’t build in the same quantity that Apple does.

I really dislike the EU dictating to American companies.

The EU is not dictating to American companies, it’s dictating to companies who want to sell into the common market.

it’s no different than US DOT “dictating” via FMVSS to European carmakers (and everyone else) to put lousy headlights on cars destined for sale in the US market.

 

[hcherry]

Nonsense.

We’ll…

At some point, each company has to decide how to allocate their resources. It’s not hard to imagine a company wrestling with the trade off between continuing to support software for older models vs. furthering the development of new software.

If a company is currently set up to provide 3 years of support, this proposal would force them to reallocate their resources, which have to come from somewhere.

 

[ruka.snow]

How are they gonna enforce the updates? Do the updates have to come every X months? Or do they have to be Y size?

Security update timelines are already well defined. This doesn't need discussed.

 

[Armada2]

I bet the majority of German government are iOS users and expect their Apple products to work a lifetime 🤣

 

[polyphenol]

Some products ( like electronics and vehicles ) are deemed luxury items and get hit with 20-25% luxury tax.

In the UK, pretty much everything is either exempt/zero rated or at standard 20% rate. There are a few exceptions and some oddities. (Breakdown club membership is assessed partly as insurance and partly as some degree of joining fee and a composite VAT rate is applied.)

The luxury status disappeared many years ago.

 

[klunernet]

Is anyone in the EU smart enough to realize that older, less capable devices with little memory cannot run the newer OS?
Why should newer, more capable OS be required to be dumbed down to run on outdated hardware?

Hence security updates. My S2 apple watch did not get WatchOS 7, it's still on 6.x. But it receives security updates. The proposal does not say they need to supply every new major version of the OS. they simply need to support the device in OS OR security updates for 7 years. That's not very far from what Apple is already doing.

As soon as the security updates go away, I'll be buying the then current model.

 

[beanbaguk]

We’ll…

At some point, each company has to decide how to allocate their resources. It’s not hard to imagine a company wrestling with the trade off between continuing to support software for older models vs. furthering the development of new software.

If a company is currently set up to provide 3 years of support, this proposal would force them to reallocate their resources, which have to come from somewhere.

If you have read my previous posts, you will note Apple already supports support for devices for 6 years (as per UK law).

Increasing the warranty period will not affect manufacturers. In fact the opposite.

People will still want the latest devices, but it means that resale values remain high, and it's also possible to pass down devices to children or those who cannot afford a top-of-the-line Apple device.

Either way, it has zero impact and only serves to protect consumers.

 

[Robert.Walter]

As for me, my iPhone 6S is running great on iOS 15, I see no reason why it couldn’t support 10 years of s/w security updates. (It’s obviously too slow for some of the newer AR/VR features, so Apple not releasing them for this device is ok, but it runs fine otherwise.)

I am a bit sour that my top end 2012 Mac mini didn’t get Monterey or Big Sur as it has the memory and processor able to handle these. I’d like to see 10 years on both h/w and s/w for laptop and desktop devices.

 

[BvizioN]

Old EU bureaucrats snapping their fingers and wondering with what sorts of new BS they could come up.

 

[fiatlux]

Is anyone in the EU smart enough to realize that older, less capable devices with little memory cannot run the newer OS?
Why should newer, more capable OS be required to be dumbed down to run on outdated hardware?

Apple has been pretty good at supporting older devices with newer OS. Android phone manufacturers much less so. However this is an area where I would agree mandating newer OS support for older systems might hamper evolution. Requiring security updates for a number of years would make more sense (for a given OS rather than a given machine).

 

[Saebah]

I really dislike the EU dictating to American companies.

It is true that US never dictates to EU companies what to do. And, US laws never extend beyond US territory. Never.

 

[beanbaguk]

Old EU bureaucrats snapping their fingers and wondering with what sorts of new BS they could come up.

Educate yourself and you will find the UK demands 6 years of warranty.

The EU is merely aligning itself with UK legislation and doing a one-up on you

 

[Robert.Walter]

Hence security updates. My S2 apple watch did not get WatchOS 7, it's still on 6.x. But it receives security updates. The proposal does not say they need to supply every new major version of the OS. they simply need to support the device in OS OR security updates for 7 years. That's not very far from what Apple is already doing.

As soon as the security updates go away, I'll be buying the then current model.

Agreed.

I replaced my AW0 only last year because I wanted the blood ox and advanced heart monitoring features, then I gifted it to a senior friend so he could have fun with it.

 

[hcherry]

If you have read my previous posts, you will note Apple already supports support for devices for 6 years (as per UK law).

Increasing the warranty period will not affect manufacturers. In fact the opposite.

People will still want the latest devices, but it means that resale values remain high, and it's also possible to pass down devices to children or those who cannot afford a top-of-the-line Apple device.

Either way, it has zero impact and only serves to protect consumers.

So since Apple already does this, why the need for the law?

“Zero impact” seems a bit unrealistic. Again, if you’re a company that doesn’t currently operate this way, the law would require you to reallocate where/how you spend your resources — which seems like an impact to me.

 

[Nozuka]

The iPhone 6S is getting iOS 15. Which means it will get Updates at least from September 2015 to September 2022. (When iOS 16 launches)

Which happens to be 7 years already

 

[Robert.Walter]

If you have read my previous posts, you will note Apple already supports support for devices for 6 years (as per UK law).

Increasing the warranty period will not affect manufacturers. In fact the opposite.

People will still want the latest devices, but it means that resale values remain high, and it's also possible to pass down devices to children or those who cannot afford a top-of-the-line Apple device.

Either way, it has zero impact and only serves to protect consumers.

I support the initiative but it has darf to zero impact. If you were ever near the operations side of a business you know that.

 

[dogslobber]

Security, yes. Repair parts, maybe not so much. Apple could probably do it, but android makers don’t build in the same quantity that Apple does.

I really dislike the EU dictating to American companies.

If I buy a product in the EU then it better follow the rules and regulations of the EU. I dislike American companies thinking the fact they scam Americans is acceptable to the EU.

 

[Martin75]

Security, yes. Repair parts, maybe not so much. Apple could probably do it, but android makers don’t build in the same quantity that Apple does.

I really dislike the EU dictating to American companies.

Luckily the US never dictates anything to anyone outside their borders...
/s

 

[dogslobber]

Apple are the only phone manufacturer I know of that provide software updates for 5 years.

I hope they ask the same of smart TVs. They are even worse than Android phones for updates.

Soon to be seven. You gotta love Germany.

 

[ruka.snow]

The iPhone 6S is getting iOS 15. Which means it will get Updates at least from September 2015 to September 2022. (When iOS 16 launches)

Which happens to be 7 years already

Yep, and android users are lucky to get even a single update. Now Androids would not longer just become disposable versions of iPhones, they would have to push out security updates which may even mean those poor souls get OS updates.

 

[Robert.Walter]

The iPhone 6S is getting iOS 15. Which means it will get Updates at least from September 2015 to September 2022. (When iOS 16 launches)

Which happens to be 7 years already

Writing this response from my iOS 15 equipped 6S (could just as easily be from my iPad Air 2) with silky smooth performance.

Aside from any hardware limitations which preclude it (thinking of things like non-Secure Enclave phones that were security obsolete within a year) Apple could meet a 10 year s/w security requirement now. (Maybe apple could also provide a list after upgrade noting the security limitations of an aging phone. Put it in passwords and when updates are authorized. Whorls be both fair to inform customers and work as a psychological lever for upgrading.)