iOS 11 Now Installed on 76% of iOS Devices, While Android 8 is Installed on 4.6% of Android Devices

[newellj]

I'm starting to think that having old versions of an OS running is not a bad thing. Going to iOS 11, I see a huge decline in performance on my iPhone 6. I assume that it's pretty difficult to create an OS meant for new hardware but still able to support old hardware efficiently. JMO If i could go back to iOS 10 I would.

I have four daily-use iOS devices. The iPhone 7 is on 11.3, but my Air 2, Mini 4 and iPod Touch gen 6 are all on 10.3.x. I can see the difference between 11.3 and 10.3.3 on the Air 2 because my wife has an identical Air 2 running 11.3. My personal adoption rate is only 25%.

With respect to the iPhone 6, after eliminating (by replacement) possible battery issues, my wife's iPhone 6 was so slow in so many ways that she gave up and replaced it with an 8. (But the iPhone 6 was the last iPhone with only 1GB of RAM.)

 

[cmwade77]

Here is the thing to remember, Apple releases iOS directly.

Android takes longer because Google first has to test, then releases it to the manufacturer, who then adds their stuff and tests it, then they sent it to the carriers who add their stuff and test it.

Now, this means that Android will be slower to get adopted, but it has gone through at least three different levels of testing before being released. While Apple controls everything from start to finish, so it is faster to release, but as we have seen recently that can result in more bugs making it into the released update.

There is obviously a trade off here and neither approach is anywhere near perfect, but they are fundamental differences that when added to the fact that not all manufacturers support their phones as long as Apple supports thiers with updates make the numbers make sense.

 

[TonnyM]

Not mentioning that Android flagships often loose support after 2 years like Galaxy S6 for example.

 

[Zwhaler]

Haha, typical Android! My phone runs 7.0. The funny thing is though that I much prefer this 2.5 year old phone to the iPhone X with the latest software. It comes down to personal preference.

 

[Gorms]

I really don’t understand what all these bugs in iOS11 are that people keep referring to. It’s few and far between I run into anything and mostly it’s an AirPods issue trying to connect to Watch or Phone. Beyond that, I struggle to think of anything.

Although, saying that, life was incredibly slow when I was still on my 6, so if you’re in that camp still and Apple haven’t been bothered to fix that I can kinda get it.

 

[ViewRoyal]

Woohoo I'm the 4.6%!

Hey, you're just making the other 95.4% jealous!

 

[Zwhaler]

I'm starting to think that having old versions of an OS running is not a bad thing. Going to iOS 11, I see a huge decline in performance on my iPhone 6. I assume that it's pretty difficult to create an OS meant for new hardware but still able to support old hardware efficiently. JMO If i could go back to iOS 10 I would.

How is your battery health? You might want to consider a battery replacement under Apple's repair program, which will help with performance as well.

 

[AlphaGuitarist]

The fact that more Android phones are running a nearly 5 year old OS version than the latest version is exactly what's wrong with Android and its update process.

 

[redheeler]

Apple force me to update my iPhone 5s to IOS 11, which is the main reason I'm selling the phone now. IOS 11 is just fine, but it's slow as molasses on an iPhone 5s. IOS 10 was just swift, clean, & neat. This is an Apple policy that bugs me to no end. It needs to change, this refusing to sign old IOS installs. It's MY ***** phone!

You were nagged to update, but not forced. There is a difference.

That being said, Apple should give iOS users the ability to downgrade. Apple can easily afford to support a couple prior iOS releases, it's just not profitable for them to do so.

 

[TC_GoldRush]

Hey, you're just making the other 95.4% jealous!

Haha, you're right. I'll be nice and won't update to Android 'P' right away.

 

[ignatius345]

As of April 16, just 0.5 percent of Android devices are running the newest version of Android Oreo, and only 4.6 percent of devices total have Oreo installed. The majority of Android users continue to run Android Lollipop, Marshmallow, and Nougat, operating systems that came out in 2014, 2015, and 2016, respectively.

Maybe people would upgrade more often if their releases didn't have such cutesy, stupid names. Nobody needs the name of a big software release to be "funny".

 

[macpanzer]

Yeah, too bad iOS11 isn't less buggy. I long for the stability and speed of 9.

That, and the Music app.

 

[LordVic]

Not mentioning that Android flagships often loose support after 2 years like Galaxy S6 for example.

I received lats months security update on my S6. Not sure where you're getting this stat

Samsung is bad at rolling out major versions after 2 years. But still supports security patches past the year 2 mark.

 

[MKevin3]

My Android app which is USA only has 33% on 8.0/8.1 (Oreo) and 55% on 7.1/7.0 (Nougat). So 88% of the folks are on a pretty darn new version. I support all the way back to 4.4.4 (KitKat) so it is not like my app is only supporting new phones.

That chart everyone loves to show is Global and there are tons of old devices out there for folks who can't afford new phones.

 

[technole]

You were nagged to update, but not forced. There is a difference.

That being said, Apple should give iOS users the ability to downgrade. Apple can easily afford to support a couple prior iOS releases, it's just not profitable for them to do so.

Nope, this isn't MacOS where they do actively support two previous releases with security updates.

More like there is no reason to justify supporting iOS 10. You can do everything in iOS 11. Plus you have a new battery meter in 11.3 for those iPhone 6/7 users to tell if yours is jacked or to force the phone not to go into it's lower-power mode. That's a great feature to have.

It also doesn't support the narrative that iOS platform has the most people on the latest version.

 

[LordVic]

You were nagged to update, but not forced. There is a difference.

That being said, Apple should give iOS users the ability to downgrade. Apple can easily afford to support a couple prior iOS releases, it's just not profitable for them to do so.

Apple likely doesn't want to go down this route. Their OS has a lot of ancilliary applications bundled into it at the core. Such as Safari, iMessage, Maps, Etc. if they allowed users to continue to run older versions, this would meant hat Apple development would have to maintain those versions and continue to update patches and security updates for those older versions as well. By doing this method, Apple ensures that most of their users are on the latest of All their apps, and they only really have to maintain a single path of development.

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

Maybe people would upgrade more often if their releases didn't have such cutesy, stupid names. Nobody needs the name of a big software release to be "funny".

Soooooo right. They should choose names of things like big rocks, mountains, national parks after a decade+ of using up just about every possible name of cats bigger than house cats. So much better. Clearly 1 company knows what it's doing with naming and the other is just moronic.

 

[rpe33]

Wow, just look at that Android fragmentation. That's why I'll never switch to Android.

 

[Radon87000]

19% master race checking in. I am never EVER upgrading the iOS on my iPad Pro after what iOS 11 did to my iPhone

 

[dlanor15]

I'm starting to think that having old versions of an OS running is not a bad thing. Going to iOS 11, I see a huge decline in performance on my iPhone 6. I assume that it's pretty difficult to create an OS meant for new hardware but still able to support old hardware efficiently. JMO If i could go back to iOS 10 I would.

I did, i tried ios 11 and it drained my iPhone 7 by mid day. Fortunately they were still signing 10.3.3 at the time and I switched back and never looked back.

 

[ignatius345]

Soooooo right. They should choose names of things like big rocks, mountains, national parks after a decade+ of using up just about every possible name of cats bigger than house cats. So much better. Clearly 1 company knows what it's doing with naming and the other is just moronic.

At least they're not trying to sound like they all get developed in the software wing of Willy Wonka's chocolate factory. But whatever, to each their own.

 

[technole]

Soooooo right. They should choose names of things like big rocks, mountains, national parks after a decade+ of using up just about every possible name of cats bigger than house cats. So much better. Clearly 1 company knows what it's doing with naming and the other is just moronic.

Of course. It's not sexy to say MacOS 10.13. After all we've been on OS X for over a decade and change now.

 

[arkitect]

The fact that you are at the mercy of individual phone makers if and when they choose to roll out updates for Android is the main (probably only obstacle) for me moving away from iOS.

If I were to buy an Android it would have to be a Google branded phone.
Yet, even then you're stuck with a measly 3 years (max I think) upgrade path…

So, yeah, Apple has my loyalty. For now.

 

[Radon87000]

I did, i tried ios 11 and it drained my iPhone 7 by mid day. Fortunately they were still signing 10.3.3 at the time and I switched back and never looked back.

Likewise here. They destroyed my 7 Plus on iOS 11. Doesn't last a full day on iOS 11

 

[Infinite Vortex]

The story goes both ways. While yes, the Android uptake is slow. However you really need to ask at this point… does it matter? What is it that Android 8 does that Android 7 doesn't especially when you consider the fact of hardware changes? Upgrading a mobile device's OS is meaningless unless it delivers solid features.

My primary phone is iOS before you ask.

The flip side… what part of that 76% that are running iOS 11 probably shouldn't be running iOS 11 when you look at it from a hardware perspective. How many of that 76% were bludgeoned into upgrading from the incessant downloading of the update and constant hassling to do it?

My primary devices, iPhone SE and iPad mini 3, are both running iOS 10. Exactly what does iOS 11 bring to those devices other than a slower UX and the ability to disable the intentional slowing of the CPU when the battery isn't so special?

Its a silly metric both ways!