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iOS 26 Adoption Hits 50%, But Some Users Are Still Reluctant to Update
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Stat counters data is wrong, it’s been proven wrong.
Even John Gruber, who is absolutely no fan of the 26 operating systems, admits that stat counter has it wrong.
daringfireball.net
Actual adoption rate is around 60%, very similar to previous years around this time.
Not sure why people forget this, but like, your average consumer doesn’t even know about the update. They just let it happen, and then move on with their day.
Even John Gruber, who is absolutely no fan of the 26 operating systems, admits that stat counter has it wrong.
The iOS 26 Adoption Rate Is Not Bizarrely Low Compared to Previous Years
A change to how Safari reports the OS it is running on led many in the media to lose their minds.
daringfireball.net
Not sure why people forget this, but like, your average consumer doesn’t even know about the update. They just let it happen, and then move on with their day.
Here's the actual thing, from a set of SDKs handling billions of requests…
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Octavius8
macrumors 65816
That would be nice!
Reminders still after soooooo many years is basically a grocery list. Its core function is extremely poor.
sw1tcher
macrumors 604
repoman016
macrumors 6502
off topic but, what are peoples thoughts on Watch OS? Is it as hated as the iOS update? I personally dont like it. They ruined how to start workouts. It used to be pretty quick and simple. I also started a workout at 52% battery and it was dead before I could finish it (just over an hour) Maybe my watch is getting old now...planned obsolescence by software I guess
Curious to see how Apple promotes Siri 2.0 in April and what that does to these adoption numbers. If the update is decent — and that’s the biggest question mark here — you could see a lot of people resistance to Liquid Glass saying “screw it” and giving the upgrade a shot.
Starting workouts is now a tremendous downgrade. Worst aspect of the new WatchOS by a country mile, which now takes more effort to measure because you can’t super easily start a running workout.
zach-coleman
macrumors 65816
I’m going to be honest, I think this is entirely down to how Apple is pushing the automatic update waves vs any kind of mass user choice. We’re a lot more niche than we think. (And this is assuming the numbers are correctly recorded given the version number adjustments in the user agent.)
carswell
macrumors regular
Turn off the animations too. They literally make me queasy.
hybrid_x
macrumors 6502a
Some workplaces (such as mine) are discouraging updating until the OS has been tested on all systems. But the bottom line is that there aren't really any compelling functional reasons to update.
I don't consider Liquid Glass to be a "feature" worth updating for.
I don't consider Liquid Glass to be a "feature" worth updating for.
211
macrumors 6502
This is the reason. iOS shows updates for your current iOS. You have to go to Software Update and actively select iOS26 to update it, it doesn't "force" people to, unlike what some people here want to say.
Everyone complaining about Liquid Glass is not the reason why people haven't updated; they haven't used it yet. Also, most people I have seen don't care, it's mainly people on MacRumors who do
DocMultimedia
macrumors 68030
I regret updating. Miserable GUI and endless little annoyances. Even the MR images associated with this iOS are difficult to deal with.
DocMultimedia
macrumors 68030
I7guy
macrumors Westmere
It’s “not as fun” to say iOS 26 is pretty good as to criticize it wildly.
Bazza1
macrumors 65816
And here's me, thinking I'd be happy to go back to 17.
Agent007
macrumors 6502
Anecdotally, let's say the reports of buggy iOS 26 are all made up (they aren't). I still see no reason to stop using iOS 18 - it's a classic case of "if it ain't broke, don't fix it."
the issue is that they stopped releasing CVE updates to things that are marked as high for newer phones that are forcing the upgrade.
AusMness
macrumors regular
It hit 50% back in December as per https://telemetrydeck.com/survey/apple/iOS/majorSystemVersions/, which has accounted for the Safari user agent issue since Day 1.
Ursadorable
macrumors 65816
Or in the case of Microslop, "If it's broken, shove more AI into it until it's hopelessly f'd"
I7guy
macrumors Westmere
Well it’s true there are bugs in all software and not all users experience every bug. But yeah the classic case of if you want to live with old functionality and vulnerabilities then stay on IOS 18.
sw1tcher
macrumors 604
But if you don't upgrade to iOS 26, you're going to miss out on all those new App Store ads
Apple to Show More Ads in App Store Starting in March
In an email to developers this week, Apple indicated that it will begin showing additional ads in App Store search results starting Tuesday, March 3. The extra ads will first appear in the App Store in the U.K. and Japan, followed by other markets like the U.S. by the end of March, according to...
www.macrumors.com
The extra ad slots will be visible on iPhone and iPad devices running iOS 26.2 or iPadOS 26.2 and later. Apps with paid placement have an "Ad" label.
Fire the entire software department at Apple, including the managers, heads, etc. Get all new TALENT in there because the current teams/department is just downright embarrassing. Imagine getting paid on average $200,000+ a year…and this is your best work? Pathetic and shameful
