These iPhone Models May Not Make the Cut for iOS 19
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Although Apple has a pretty good track record for supporting older iPhones in its latest iOS releases, there inevitably comes a time when the company has to make the call to drop a few off the list. That’s not planned obsolesce — it’s just technology marching ever onward.
While iOS 18 supported all the same iPhone models as iOS 17, going back to the 2018 iPhone XR, iPhone XS, and iPhone XS Max, a new rumor shared by 9to5Mac suggests that these could be dropping off the list for iOS 19.
This wouldn’t be a huge surprise, considering that some of these models are now considered “vintage” by Apple, which means you can’t even get hardware support for them anymore. However, it’s also essential to keep in mind that this is merely a rumor at this point, and it contradicts one we heard in December. Both the leakers involved have reasonably accurate track records, so this one could still go either way.
Contrary to some cynical takes, history has shown that Apple tries to support older iPhones for as long as possible. While it was common in the early days of iOS to see older models dropped with each new iOS release, that changed in 2015, when iOS 9 left no iPhone behind, supporting all the same models as iOS 8, including the 2011-era iPhone 4s.
From then on, iOS 10 and iOS 11 seemed to draw the line at around five major updates, dropping the 2011 and 2012 models, respectively. However, iOS 12 then came along and once again continued to support everything iOS 11 did, raising the bar to six updates for the iPhone 5s.
That became the longest-supported iPhone in Apple’s history until 2021, when the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus matched it with the release of iOS 15. Apple had a three-year run from 2019–2022, during which iOS 13, iOS 14, and iOS 15 supported every model from 2015 onward. Here’s the rundown:
- 2010 — iOS 4 drops the original iPhone
- 2012 — iOS 6 drops the 2008 iPhone 3G
- 2013 — iOS 7 drops the 2009 iPhone 3GS
- 2014 — iOS 8 drops the 2010 iPhone 4
- 2015 — iOS 9 continues to support the same models as iOS 8
- 2016 — iOS 10 drops the 2011 iPhone 4s
- 2017 — iOS 11 drops the 2012 iPhone 5 and 2013 iPhone 5c
- 2018 — iOS 12 continues to support the same models as iOS 11
- 2019 — iOS 13 drops the iPhone 5s, iPhone 6, and iPhone 6 Plus
- 2020 — iOS 14 continues to support the same models as iOS 13
- 2021 — iOS 15 continues to support the same models as iOS 14
- 2022 — iOS 16 drops the iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, iPhone 7, and iPhone 7 Plus
- 2023 — iOS 17 drops the iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and iPhone X
- 2024 — iOS 18 continues to support the same models as iOS 17
If the 2018 iPhone XR, iPhone XS, and iPhone XS Max get iOS 19 this year, that will set a new record for Apple devices, making these the first iPhones to receive seven iOS updates, as they shipped with iOS 12. However, this would also merely match the number of Android updates that Google and Samsung are now promising for their flagships.
While Android fans once envied Apple devices for their update longevity — even three years of updates was once unheard of for a Samsung Galaxy phone — Apple’s rivals have set a new standard that Apple may find itself pressured to match. That could make the company reluctant to put its 2018 iPhones out to pasture just yet.
Nevertheless, Apple still beats Android makers when it comes to security updates. Even if the iPhone XR and iPhone XS models don’t get iOS 19, it’s a safe bet that iOS 18 security releases will be available for them for years to come. Apple continued delivering iOS 12 security updates until early 2023, ending with iOS 12.5.7 — nearly nine years after the last iPhones that could only run iOS 12 were released, and it’s still delivering iOS 15 patches for the iPhone 6s and iPhone 7 lineups from 2015 and 2016, with iOS 15.8.4 released only two days ago alongside iOS 18.4.
[The information provided in this article has NOT been confirmed by Apple and may be speculation. Provided details may not be factual. Take all rumors, tech or otherwise, with a grain of salt.]
