“Here’s an interesting fact: Every iPad that Apple had sold, with the exception of the iPad 1 (which first went on sale in April 2010 and was discontinued a year later, and over that time some 15 million units were sold), can run the latest iOS release,” Adrian Kingsley-Hughes reports for ZDNet.
“At yesterday’s WWDC 2016 keynote speech, that all changed,” Kingsley-Hughes reports. “Apple announced that it was dropping support for three aging iPads: the iPad 2, the iPad 3, and the first-generation iPad mini.”
“That means that come fall when iOS 10 is released, million of iPads will become obsolete,” Kingsley-Hughes reports. “How many? Well, according to data compiled back in March 2016 by mobile engagement platform Localytics, it could mean that some 40 percent of all iPads currently in use will become obsolete because they will no longer receive security updates and patches.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Those iPad will still continue to work just the same as they do today (and better than when they were first purchased thanks to myriad iOS updates). As always, if you want the latest features, services, and updates, you have to upgrade your hardware sometime.
SEE ALSO:
Which Apple devices can run iOS 10? – June 13, 2016
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Fred Mertz” for the heads up.]
And 95% of all Android devices can’t run their current OS.
Heh.
Now now, you don’t want to be accused of dispensing some cruel hard realities to the Droidtard clueless now do you? Well, uh, HELL YEAH!
This should lift iPad sales some. I mean it’s about time.
It is. My iPad 3 is sorely in need of replacement, but not as much as when I replaced my original iPad with the iPad 3.
You’ll love the A9X 9.7″ iPad Pro. The quad speaker system is awesome.
Apple continues security updates for past OS versions years after their replacements arrive. There’s no reason to think they won’t do so for iOS.
Yes, at some point, all hardware becomes obsolete. However, 40% all at once is a huge number.
I wonder if it’s just because iPad sales have slowed because people were like, “Yeah, there’s a new iPad, but mine works just fine – why bother buying a new one?”
Full Definition of obsolete
a : no longer in use or no longer useful
The most overused and misused word in tech. Millions of iPad 1s, 2s, 3s and Minis will be useful and in use for years to come after iOS10/11/12… is released.
It will pretty much depend on how many apps remain compatible with iOS 9 and below. Once the apps all require iOS 10, then those iPads will become obsolete, as per your definition.
Right, by that measure some devices will become obsolete for users sooner than others, based on what apps they used. My only point is that people toss the word around to describe one generation old tech.
Thanks! Was gonna say the exact same thing.
Unlike Microsoft who support for eons Apple says ok look we have supported this for X number of years its time to move forward.
Its the logical thing to do and its how all things go. I dont expect Toyota to support my Prius for free forever. that goes for my TV as well i dont expect them to support it for ever. But some reason people think Apple should support forever.
Adrian Kingsley-Hughes, the primary definition of obsolete is “no longer produced or used” and a secondary definition is “out of date.” Using that definition, you could argue that most Apple products are obsolete on the basis that they are no longer produced. But let’s get real. Tech products are not generally obsolete until they can no longer be productively utilized. The release of iOS 10 will not suddenly render iPad 3 and iPad 4 products obsolete. It just pushes them further along the path towards that inevitable end.
To be honest, my iPad 3 is beginning to show its age. Its performance lags sometimes and its battery, (while still amazingly strong after four years of being charged more than once per day) is not brand spanking new. It is the last iPad model to use the 30-pin dock connector and it is also very nearly as heavy as the much larger 12.9″ iPad Pro! But it is not yet obsolete. And the iPad 4 is even farther from needing to be recycled than the iPad 3. So save your hyperbole for other audiences. This is just a natural part of the tech cycle, and Apple stretches it farther than most.
Comparisons with Windows PCs and the decade of Windows XP are ridiculous. The design of Windows computers was stagnant for that decade – more storage, faster processors, and faster graphics were the sum total of Windows PC progress in the 2000s. Windows did not evolve, and that held back the development of the associated hardware. In contrast, Apple evolves both the hardware and the software and, eventually, there breakpoints appear when new software functions require hardware capabilities that cannot be satisfied by older hardware.
I picked up an iPad 1 to serve as an iPod and hold all my music. I was surprised to find that it worked well with older versions of programs. Now it is never going to replace my iPad Air or the 12 inch iPad Pro that I have coming in. But I know that my mini iPad will continue to be of use to me until it drops dead. And iOS 9.32 is still pretty good for my needs.
Sweet. That means my iPad 2 is one update away from never bugging me to update the OS again. Final form achieved.
“That means that come fall when iOS 10 is released, million of iPads will become obsolete”……..
That statement; every time I’m subjected to it, makes me cringe.
My old Pentax MX didn’t stop functioning when autofocus cameras arrived. My Canon Elan IIE didn’t stop working when digital cameras arrived. My Apple Newton Message Pad 120 didn’t stop working when the iPhone arrived.
Please stop saying product XX is become obsolete when product OO arrives. It is rather simple-minded and out of touch.
edit: ” is become ” should read “will become”
I kinda liked “Is become”. Sounds biblical (messianic).
Thanks for your self-correction though, it’s appreciated.