No. No, I don't buy the "time" excuse. They redesigned the whole iOS in a matter of months, they clearly have the resources, time, and skill to create SwipeSelection. Compared to redesigning iOS 7, completely redesigning the Safari app, implementing Control Center... yes, adding SwipeSelection is a simple feature and a simple change.
They redesigned the entire iOS, and you're telling me to imagine the amount of effort required by Apple to implement SwipeSelection? They redesigned the entire operating system. That's what I call effort. Not adding one feature. And guess what? Even after the beta testing period, there were still issues that affected 10,000,000 iOS users; the world didn't collapse.
Since you're not satisfied with the answers, here's a new one:
There are 2 main factors into the decision of adding something into an OS or hardware. The first is user-friendliness, and the second is practicality.
Now, generally android manufacturers tend to focus in on one and completely ignore the other. For example, take Samsung's little SmartScroll and SmartPause. They're not very practical because it's inefficient and wastes resources, but it's very user-friendly.
Or for example, take the original Galaxy Note and LG Vu thing. They weren't very user friendly to begin with, but they were pretty practical.
Apple is never one to compromise on these categories however. If Apple is going to implement a feature, they're going to stay strict to the user-friendliness and practicality. Apple also takes in to account the "demand" factor. If they can focus in on creating features and products that weld together user-friendliness and practicality that are in high request, like quick toggles or a notification center, they're going to spend more energy on that, and then go back on creating their original products, like TouchID or Activation Lock.
The most likely reason why Apple hasn't ever implemented a system like SwipeSelection is because they haven't found a way to factor in that user-friendliness. SwipeSelection isn't a very user-friendly product. It's basic, but it's a feature that most people are going to end up turning off. Combine that with a very little request, and it's not worth Apple's time to look into it. Sure, they could easily just throw it in there with a toggle, but that's not the Apple method. If they're going to do something, they want to do it to where everyone is going to want to end up using it, and that it integrates with the system fluidly. SwipeSelection sticks out from the system, and that's not how Apple rolls.
It's not because Apple's lazy, it's because they can't find a way to fit into the system that preserves the iOS name. Since the demand for such integration is so low right now, it's not as big as a concern, say, when people were begging for QuickToggles by iOS 6 or new notifications by iOS 5. Apple is more concerned with features that flow with the system and match the iPhone. SS doesn't.
So there you go.
