iOS 6 Users on Devices Able to Run iOS 7 Must Upgrade to Fix FaceTime

[Señor]

For those that are applauding Apple's campaign to force users onto iOS 7 (and, by extension OS X Mavericks; as they're being relatively more aggressive than usual there too), consider a few things:

(1) Your opinion isn't the only opinion out there: It's awesome that you like iOS 7 and are gung-ho for the change; but there are those that, for whatever reason, prefer the earlier OS. And on literally EVERY OTHER COMPUTING PLATFORM OUT THERE (except for maybe Android), YOU HAVE THE FREEDOM TO NOT UPGRADE. Upgrading should be a choice, not a mandate.

(2) iOS 6 was substantially more stable and refined than iOS 7.

(3) iOS 7 really does look horrible on the two remaining devices that support it but lack a retina display, namely the iPad 2 and the first generation iPad mini. Personally, I'd say it looks ugly on just about anything but the iPad Air on which it somehow looks gorgeous.

(4) There were features from iOS 6 that were cut from iOS 7 and people did like/use them. Posting to Facebook straight from the Notification Center comes to mind.

(5) The Notifications Bar has become total nonsense.

(6) iOS 7, like all new versions of iOS, makes the devices we own that DIDN'T ship with iOS 7 slower. iOS 7.1 works harder than any iOS x.1 update ever has to help fix this, but it still falls short of performance on 6.1.3.

(7) No one is invalidating your love of iOS 7 by sticking with iOS 6. And yes, there are those (myself included) that would love to be able to still use FaceTime on devices intentionally held back at 6.1.3. Luckily, I have devices on 7.1.1 so I can at least still use FaceTime, but the fact that I can't on the devices that have the hardware for it but are on iOS 6 is lame.


That all being said, there is no real good reason for this push to get everyone on the same iOS version now as opposed to during previous years (for iOS 5 users during the reign of iOS 6, for example) other than publicly invalidating Scott Forestall's influence in the name of Jony Ive's brilliance. What a waste. Reward the 7 adopters for doing so; put the 6 users on life support for another year until using iOS 6 NATURALLY becomes like using an iOS 5 device today.

I understand why users are staying with iOS 6 due to overall smoothness issues on older devices that can't hand it well, that part is fine.

What I cannot stand however, are the people who don't upgrade specifically because of the way it looks.

People need to understand iOS 7 is Apples future with their mobile devices. And if they can't upgrade just because of looks, then it's time to find a new device other than any iDevices.

I can't say that those who are having trouble running iOS 7 on older devices should upgrade, that'd be ignorant. All on the exception of the people running age-old iDevices, such as the iPad 1 and iPhone 3GS that expect constant updates for their products.

 

[Yebubbleman]

I understand why users are staying with iOS 6 due to overall smoothness issues on older devices that can't hand it well, that part is fine.

What I cannot stand however, are the people who don't upgrade specifically because of the way it looks.

I have a fifth generation iPod touch and an iPad mini that I'm keeping on iOS 6, partly because they'll run smoother, partly because I like the aesthetics. This being said, I have another fifth generation iPod touch on iOS 7, an iPad 2 on iOS 7, and an iPad Air (which ships with a minimum of iOS 7). My work phone, which isn't technically mine, but is in my possession at all times is also on iOS 7. I feel like I have the right amount of a foot in one door with the right amount of another foot in the other. I will likely upgrade the iPad mini when the third generation is released, and who the hell knows what Apple will do (if anything) to the iPod touch line, both in terms of release and in terms of iOS 8 compatibility with existing models.

People need to understand iOS 7 is Apples future with their mobile devices. And if they can't upgrade just because of looks, then it's time to find a new device other than any iDevices.

Some take that approach. Some just need time to digest it. Really all devices even capable of running iOS 6 will eventually be functionally useless whether they upgrade to 7 or not. I don't think looks is all of it for anyone still staying behind because eventually you get over that and move on. There are functional differences and things that are legitimately annoying about iOS 7. Hopefully they are fixed in 8.

 

[C DM]

And, that is absolutely fair enough! Now we are talking about a botched security flaw, and not about forcing users to upgrade, and those are two completely different things!

Like the last couple of posts and posters I completely agree with you on that point. But at the same time, they don't really have a history of screwing up SSL or other secure connection protocols regularly, and it took a long time for this one to be found by those that search for these sorts of things. It is a whole other discussion.

The fact that they have now, how big it was, how long it was there, and what that has led to (all of this as one effect of it), by itself is enough to say that it warrants to re-examine the process they had in place so far and do something just only slightly different to appropriately deal with all types of users rather than getting users to change what they are happy with because Apple screwed something up.

 

[danny_w]

I understand why users are staying with iOS 6 due to overall smoothness issues on older devices that can't hand it well, that part is fine.

What I cannot stand however, are the people who don't upgrade specifically because of the way it looks.

People need to understand iOS 7 is Apples future with their mobile devices. And if they can't upgrade just because of looks, then it's time to find a new device other than any iDevices.

I can't say that those who are having trouble running iOS 7 on older devices should upgrade, that'd be ignorant. All on the exception of the people running age-old iDevices, such as the iPad 1 and iPhone 3GS that expect constant updates for their products.

I do have an dEvice that does not run iOS7 well and I also have not upgraded because of the looks. I did exactly as you suggest and am typing this from my new LG G2 phone!

 

[sracer]

The only reason this is even being discussed this heatedly is because it is the first major design overhaul of the OS since 1.0. If 7 had kept the same basic design as 6, this thread would probably be only a couple of hundred posts long as opposed to a thousand.

That is a very narrow view of the situation. The design changes introduced in 7 are only one reason why one segment of the user community is frustrated by the forced march to upgrade to 7. There are many of us who didn't want to upgrade to 7 because of the performance and stability issues. Did you not know that or did you conveniently ignore that?

 

[MyopicPaideia]

That is a very narrow view of the situation. The design changes introduced in 7 are only one reason why one segment of the user community is frustrated by the forced march to upgrade to 7. There are many of us who didn't want to upgrade to 7 because of the performance and stability issues. Did you not know that or did you conveniently ignore that?

Yes, I am fully aware if that. I didn't update day one either for exactly those reasons. The first version of 7 the iPad 2's and the iPhone 4S in my household saw was 7.1. For my iPhone 5 it was 7.0.4.

However, I feel that many people are using the fact that you can't use FaceTime on 6.1.5 anymore as a scapegoat, as though Apple suddenly came up with this idea to force everyone to iOS 7, when in fact they have been using this software update method since the very beginning of iOS.

I could of course be wrong, but it is rather enlightening to get to the heart of the matter when the one's crying foul the loudest actually either don't want to lose their jailbreak or don't like the look of the new design. It appears to me that legitimate stability and performance qualms, most of which have gone a very long way towards being resolved with 7.1, are also simply being fronted to distract the real reasons these people don't want to update their devices.

Again, I could be wrong, but it seems a bit off when this happens with every major update. Ask original iPad users how they like iOS 5, or 3GS users how they like 6? 7 actually compares pretty well now on the oldest devices that can run it in that regard, again 7.1 went a long way towards that.

 

[sracer]

Yes, I am fully aware if that. I didn't update day one either for exactly those reasons. The first version of 7 the iPad 2's and the iPhone 4S in my household saw was 7.1. For my iPhone 5 it was 7.0.4.

However, I feel that many people are using the fact that you can't use FaceTime on 6.1.5 anymore as a scapegoat, as though Apple suddenly came up with this idea to force everyone to iOS 7, when in fact they have been using this software update method since the very beginning of iOS.

I could of course be wrong, but it is rather enlightening to get to the heart of the matter when the one's crying foul the loudest actually either don't want to lose their jailbreak or don't like the look of the new design. It appears to me that legitimate stability and performance qualms, most of which have gone a very long way towards being resolved with 7.1, are also simply being fronted to distract the real reasons these people don't want to update their devices.

Again, I could be wrong, but it seems a bit off when this happens with every major update. Ask original iPad users how they like iOS 5, or 3GS users how they like 6? 7 actually compares pretty well now on the oldest devices that can run it in that regard, again 7.1 went a long way towards that.

This is quite different than your previous assertion that "The only reason this is even being discussed this heatedly is because it is the first major design overhaul of the OS since 1.0. If 7 had kept the same basic design as 6, this thread would probably be only a couple of hundred posts long as opposed to a thousand."

Now you're talking about people using the dramatic difference of iOS 7 to hide their real reason for disliking it... that they'll lose their jailbreak.

What I'm left wondering is why do you care? Why are you reaching and grasping for motivations (true or imagined) for why people want to stay with iSO 6?

Why is desiring choice considered a bad thing? Why should someone need to defend their desire/need to stay at an older version of iOS? Why does every question like this receive the standard strawman, "but then people will complain that the older OS is not supported"?

I often get the feeling that one of the motivating factors of why people buy into Apple ecosystem is because it forces conformity. People who don't fall lock-step into everything Apple presents are viewed as a threat to the collective".

 

[MyopicPaideia]

This is quite different than your previous assertion that "The only reason this is even being discussed this heatedly is because it is the first major design overhaul of the OS since 1.0. If 7 had kept the same basic design as 6, this thread would probably be only a couple of hundred posts long as opposed to a thousand."

Now you're talking about people using the dramatic difference of iOS 7 to hide their real reason for disliking it... that they'll lose their jailbreak.

What I'm left wondering is why do you care? Why are you reaching and grasping for motivations (true or imagined) for why people want to stay with iSO 6?

Why is desiring choice considered a bad thing? Why should someone need to defend their desire/need to stay at an older version of iOS? Why does every question like this receive the standard strawman, "but then people will complain that the older OS is not supported"?

I often get the feeling that one of the motivating factors of why people buy into Apple ecosystem is because it forces conformity. People who don't fall lock-step into everything Apple presents are viewed as a threat to the collective".

The reason I take issue with this particular thread is because people are vilifying Apple for not giving them the option, when in fact Apple have done nothing outside of their normal operational ethos. If people want choice and freedom in the context being discussed here, they should know full well that is not Apple's MO. That is not Apple being evil and singling out a tiny subset of its user base, that is Apple being Apple. I take issue with people ridiculously saying and believing that Apple should be taken to task by authorities, should be sued, etc.

If Apple is not satisfactory for you, I fully respect that, and you have every right to take your business and your money elsewhere. Just don't come and claim that Apple is evil and conducting immoral and illegal business practices because you can't be on an older version of the software anymore and retain full functionality.

Listen, I get it. Before I had a wife and two kids and a demanding career, I was a Linux/Windows/Android geek. I had a dual boot eeePC running x86 Android and Eeebuntu, a rooted Android phone running several mods, and enjoyed playing around with Windows registries, etc. I don't have time for that anymore, I need stuff that just works seamlessly together and I don't have to tweak it and maintain it all the time. That's what drew me to Apple's ecosystem.

I also found out that I joined the vast majority of people, for better or for worse, when I made that switch from wanting to tinker with my electronic gadgets to getting fed up with having to in order to make them work properly.

That's why Apple has so many of its customers so satisfied. They don't don't care about anything else - they just want easy, carefree and "magical" functionality without any of that techy hassle crap. Apple delivers on this better than anyone, but the trade off is the sandboxed walled garden, the forced upgrade to the latest version of the software.

So it is ludicrous to say that Apple is evil for doing things the way they are. If an individual is such a "power user" they should be coming into the purchase of an Apple product with eyes wide open, and know exactly what they are getting into.

That's all.

 

[LordVic]

So it is ludicrous to say that Apple is evil for doing things the way they are. If an individual is such a "power user" they should be coming into the purchase of an Apple product with eyes wide open, and know exactly what they are getting into.

That's all.

you and I know this.

The masses don't.

They're getting their first real awakening to the fact. For years Apple is telling everyone "everything just works". your average person who doesn't follow tech blogs and the like don't know this.

To many, the iOS ethos wasn't a "closed system" but would actually believe it to be open.

"look at all the apps, thereare millions of them, Apple must be a great launcher if everyone wants to program for them!"

they don't tend to realize the strict limitations unless they get to see the outside world.

Now that the outside world is louder than ever, and bigger than ever, A lot of these old apple fans are starting to realize that hey, the grass is just as green outside.. and hey, I also have the choice of purple, orange and blue grass too!

The startling thing, as a member of MR for a bit (and lurker for long before) is that there are even old school fanboys who in the last recent months have started actually saying a long different tune. it's quite remarkable.

 

[Tech198]

I knew it, I knew it

Now, if your device can't run iOS 7, then you must upgrade phone anyway, so you get it regardless.

Don't you like Apple

If only Apple did the same thing as the desktop : "Mavericks running on older Mac's"

 

[MyopicPaideia]

Now that the outside world is louder than ever, and bigger than ever, A lot of these old apple fans are starting to realize that hey, the grass is just as green outside.. and hey, I also have the choice of purple, orange and blue grass too!

The startling thing, as a member of MR for a bit (and lurker for long before) is that there are even old school fanboys who in the last recent months have started actually saying a long different tune. it's quite remarkable.

This is an excellent point. With success comes more scrutiny. There are many hues of grass to choose from these days, and people are absolutely free to change their minds. Hey, I did. When I was in my 20's I disregarded Apple completely as an option because I wanted an open system I could manipulate. Now in my 30's there is nothing I appreciate more in my tech life than Apple's closed, vertical integrated system.

Having such awesome, high quality hardware offerings helps a lot, too, but the ease of use and maintenance is the clincher.

Heck, if I was 23 again, I would probably have jumped on Sony's new X2 smartphone and tablet combination and got me some Cyanomodgen on there.

On a related note, I would also like to know what constitutes a power user of a smartphone. If you know what shsh blobs are or have ever rooted or jailbroken your phone, do you automatically qualify? Is it if you develop apps for a smartphone platform (or do you have to be developing apps on a smartphone?) Or does it mean if you install and use proprietary apps on your phone, especially if you use those to earn a living?

 

[sualpine]

I do have an dEvice that does not run iOS7 well and I also have not upgraded because of the looks. I did exactly as you suggest and am typing this from my new LG G2 phone!

Lulz, the G3 announcement was just.... announced.

 

[danny_w]

Lulz, the G3 announcement was just.... announced.

Yes but I don't want the first of the new hires screens.

 

[sracer]

So it is ludicrous to say that Apple is evil for doing things the way they are. If an individual is such a "power user" they should be coming into the purchase of an Apple product with eyes wide open, and know exactly what they are getting into.

That's all.

Who's saying that Apple is evil? Again you are shifting talking points.

Apple has the right to do what they do and risk the consequences (if any) for their actions. Customers have the right to express dissatisfaction.

You then go on to make the assumption that people who are not currently satisfied with how Apple is doing business are somehow ignorant and unaware. How do you come to that conclusion? It's that "like it all or say nothing and leave" mentality that is not found anywhere else... not even religion.

As I mentioned before, and you have gone on to prove, the "collective" is threatened by anyone who does not fall into lock-step with the Apple way.

 

[MyopicPaideia]

Who's saying that Apple is evil? Again you are shifting talking points.

Apple has the right to do what they do and risk the consequences (if any) for their actions. Customers have the right to express dissatisfaction.

You then go on to make the assumption that people who are not currently satisfied with how Apple is doing business are somehow ignorant and unaware. How do you come to that conclusion? It's that "like it all or say nothing and leave" mentality that is not found anywhere else... not even religion.

As I mentioned before, and you have gone on to prove, the "collective" is threatened by anyone who does not fall into lock-step with the Apple way.

Ha ha ha, not everything is so dramatic and dogmatic, sir. This thread is full of people calling Apple evil and unfair for not providing a choice, encouraging a class action process because they don't like the solution that Apple has offered, etc.

Religion's basic premise is based on an us vs them mentality - so I don't know where you were going with that one.

I don't feel threatened that the "collective" is under threat, I'm not a "resistance is futile, you will be assimilated" advocate. I advocate choice, and nobody is being forced to remain an Apple customer.

I'm simply saying that Apple's basic philosophy of building closed, integrated vertical systems is not going to change unless the company has a hostile takeover situation, and at the rate Apple is buying back its own stock, that's not going to happen any time soon.

Yes, express your dissatisfaction! You're welcome and have every right - but Apple has done everything necessary to do right by their customers, all of their devices that they still officially support have received the necessary security patch in order to maintain full functionality safely and securely. To claim otherwise is just false, and I do take issue with that. To express that you are not satisfied with the solution provided is fine, and I have no issue with that. It's two very different complaints.

The reason I keep shifting around within the boundries of this discussion is because there are a lot of different angles to cover.

I feel that there is a handful-sized tiny minority that this update has really irked because they can't fix the security issue now without losing their jailbreak, or some other similar personal issue not officially supported or endorsed by Apple in the first place. For them it isn't even about FaceTime working, but the argument they present is still fronted by the fallible premise that Apple has somehow failed on the "Apple must maintain the functionality of my device exactly how I bought it in the first place" litmus test, and that is dishonest.

It was no secret that once Apple released iOS 7 and announced which devices would be supported by it, that those devices would no longer receive iOS 6 support. This was no surprise to anyone. It was only a matter if time until a necessary update forced those devices into iOS 7. When it did happen with this security fix, then you got the illegitimate cries of foul play by Apple.

I reiterate, I have no problem with the, "That sucks, I didn't want to update yet," commentary, or even the, "crap, I hate the way 7 looks and wanted to be able to wait to see if 8 refined the look a bit more," opinions.

I do have a problem with the, "I have the god-given right to receive an update of an old version of software that Apple announced would no longer be supported on my device 9 months ago, and if Apple doesn't give it to me they should be sued, what an evil and shady practice, what horrible customer and software support, I can't believe they would cheat their customers this way, and take away built in functionality, blah blah blah."

If I have expressed otherwise in this thread, I humbly admit to double-speak and expressing opposing views.

 

[manitoulinguy]

I joined this forum and thread for one reason.. ..to express my displeasure with what Apple did to Facetime. They simply disconnected my family who run multiple various devices, on various ios, and versions, in order to stay connected with one another. Everything worked fine, until April 16th, and it was a service I explicitly paid for and used in the cost of hardware and software purchase.

I will always feel that a forced upgrade of an entire ios is an inappropriate method to deal with an expired certificate of one app, that could have been fixed, if they wanted to, in order to allow hardware to continue to function as was sold. Upgrading is a deal breaker on an ipod touch 4 that has little memory but functions well and fast on ios 5. The same goes for those phones on ios 6 etc.

However...there are solutions ..and alternatives..if you want to keep your existing ios. This has taken me at least a week of testing various video chats and I have some conclusions..

Facetime on ios worked well with high quality video. Nothing could match it until I found WeChat. This app is equal in quality to my previous FT calls.

Other apps tried did not match FT. The next closest was Tango.. its quality is close but not the same.

Other apps tested..did not fare well... Skype..blocky especially with lack of fluid movement, uncompressed..Google hangouts..less quality, slow, delayed....Fring...so so, delayed voice to video..ZOOM video conferencing...not bad not great..but better than Skype. Other apps were not worth mentioning.

The overall winner Wechat .. by QQ tencent.. matches FT in all respects. If you like your ios device download wechat.."it just works" to quote someone we all know.

I am not affiliated with this app in any way, just a normal user who wants to get back a quality video calling app that matched FT without subjecting my hardware to a useless upgrade that would slow my devices down. I welcome any comments and good luck!

 

[mikelan]

I paid for a device with a set of features (like facetime) and an iOS.
I know that with time the device may not be able to run the newer iOS or apps, and I will have to deal with it, (upgrading, new hardware..).
But at the same time I believe that I have the right to keep the device as I bought it, with the features and iOS I paid for, no more no less.
I am not talking about new apps, or improvements, I am talking about a native application that is sold as part of the device.
Nobody told me that those features will have an expiry date.

For what reason should I upgrade to an iOS that I don't like?

I understand that if I don't upgrade I dont get more.
I can't understand that my device looses features if I don't upgrade.

To my impression, it's blackmailing.

 

[MacbookSwitcher]

Ugh! Just ran into this. Can no longer FaceTime with my Mom.

I just upgraded to 7.1.1 and still NO GO. No idea what version of iOS my Mom is on...

Well, will be using Skype for the time being...

 

[richwoodrocket]

I paid for a device that I would use with all of Apple services and know it would get the latest software updates and continue to update it until it no longer recieves them to ensure the best possible user experience.

 

[GizmoDVD]

I paid for a device with a set of features (like facetime) and an iOS.
I know that with time the device may not be able to run the newer iOS or apps, and I will have to deal with it, (upgrading, new hardware..).
But at the same time I believe that I have the right to keep the device as I bought it, with the features and iOS I paid for, no more no less.
I am not talking about new apps, or improvements, I am talking about a native application that is sold as part of the device.
Nobody told me that those features will have an expiry date.

For what reason should I upgrade to an iOS that I don't like?

I understand that if I don't upgrade I dont get more.
I can't understand that my device looses features if I don't upgrade.

To my impression, it's blackmailing.

Go buy a VCR if you want something that doesn't connect to the internet or transmit any data. Its 2014.

 

[Tech198]

Weather this is intentional of Apple, i dunno, but maybe the fix (if there could be one) can't/wouldn't work on older iOS's ? *shrugs*

 

[mikelan]

I paid for a device that I would use with all of Apple services and know it would get the latest software updates and continue to update it until it no longer recieves them to ensure the best possible user experience.

Seems that you presuppose that Apple is always to upgrade their devices in a way that always suits you (because probably Apple knows better than you what you need). What if you don't like how they modify the device with the upgrades?.

 

[richwoodrocket]

Seems that you presuppose that Apple is always to upgrade their devices in a way that always suits you (because probably Apple knows better than you what you need). What if you don't like how they modify the device with the upgrades?.

I am welcome to change. I loved the look of iOS 7 when I installed it in beta on my iPad but still had iOS 6 on my iPhone. I can get used to change and I prefer form over function. I will update to iOS 8 regardless.

 

[mikelan]

I am welcome to change. I loved the look of iOS 7 when I installed it in beta on my iPad but still had iOS 6 on my iPhone. I can get used to change and I prefer form over function. I will update to iOS 8 regardless.

That's a fair choice that I respect. I loved the changes and upgrades since the first iOS. All were really an improvement over the previous. I don't feel the same with iOS7.

 

[C DM]

Weather this is intentional of Apple, i dunno, but maybe the fix (if there could be one) can't/wouldn't work on older iOS's ? *shrugs*

They already not only have the fix for iOS 6 but released it a while ago--iOS 6.1.6. The issue is that that update wasn't made available to those running iOS 6 on devices that Apple believes can/should support (and run) iOS 7. That's essentially the main and really the only thing at the heart of all of this: simply making an already existing fix/update available to all of those who are running iOS 6.