10.3.x deliberate slow down

[Mlrollin91]

And the other people in this thread who have confirmed the same experience have it turned on, too?

iOS is only as good as its programmers design it to be. Programmers are going to design it on how they see it being used. It is very likely they see it just as I do. Pushing the home button to exit a folder is not 'natural' or intended behavior, so iOS is waiting to see if there will be a second home button click to access the multitasking tray. iOS is waiting to be triggered by the home button. Either 1 or 2 clicks before it proceeds.

 

[JohnnyW2K1]

I guess we need someone with 10.2 to confirm. Although I completely believe this is how Apple slows down iOS, the rest of the experience on my SE hasn't slowed down too much yet, so it's possible I jumped the gun. Need confirmation.

 

[Mlrollin91]

I guess we need someone with 10.2 to confirm. Although I completely believe this is how Apple slows down iOS, the rest of the experience on my SE hasn't slowed down too much yet, so it's possible I jumped the gun. Need confirmation.

There is zero proof of planned obsolescence. It is 100% natural for older hardware to run new software poorly. There are not enough resources to power the new software. Thats just the fact of technology. Its truly not a conspiracy theory. I ran my iPad 2 from iOS 4 to iOS 9. It wasn't until iOS 8 that I developed problems and that was because it was a 4 year old piece of hardware running a very complicated version of software.

 

[Knowlege Bomb]

Weird. I'm not seeing any extra delay on my 5C with the folders on 10.3.1. I do see the like maybe half second delay where it is waiting to see if you are going to double tap. But otherwise it's normal.

On my iPhone 7 it instantly closes from the folder because of how the button is and how it doesn't wait for the second click like the old physical buttons.

In all fairness, when the home screen animation was jacked in the early days of iOS 10, people were saying it was the new solid state home buttons that were causing the issues because they were waiting for additional clicks. That the same issue is being used as an excuse for the physical buttons now is laughable.

 

[imagineadam]

In all fairness, when the home screen animation was jacked in the early days of iOS 10, people were saying it was the new solid state home buttons that were causing the issues because they were waiting for additional clicks. That the same issue is being used as an excuse for the physical buttons now is laughable.

I don't think the iPhone 7 button has ever waited for additional clicks and that's why everyone was annoyed with how it behaved when opening the app switcher when you were in an app. It still happens. The second you hit the home button on the solid state button it imediately starts the animation to close the app but if you hit it a second time it stops the close animation and turns on the open app switcher animation.

On the old physical buttons in iOS 10 at least, there is a definite delay before it starts the close animation because it is waiting (longer than ios9 and before) to see if you are going to second click for the app switcher. Not sure why they did this for all the physical home button iPhones. It was faster response on iOS 9 on my iPhone 6 with the home button and the wife noticed it right away when she accidentally upgraded to iOS 10. Maybe that's a perk of buying the newest iPhone 7's. You get instant response from the home button.

 

[NT1440]

I don't think the iPhone 7 button has ever waited for additional clicks

There was a WWDC session that actually went over UI delay actions when clicking the home button to distinguish if a multiple click is pending. That is how click handling works in iOS. They tweak the delay constantly but at the code level thats how it works. We're talking a few dozen milliseconds here.

 

[zorinlynx]

Not sure if this will help, but...

I've noticed if you have the magnifier enabled in Accessibility settings, there will be a slight delay when you hit the home button before it activates. The magnifier is activated using a triple click; maybe it's waiting for a second and third click and that's what the delay is for.

If you enabled the magnifier, try turning it off and see if that fixes the delay. It's a bit annoying as the magnifier is a useful feature, but I use it seldomly enough that I just manually turn it on when I need it.

 

[C DM]

Not sure if this will help, but...

I've noticed if you have the magnifier enabled in Accessibility settings, there will be a slight delay when you hit the home button before it activates. The magnifier is activated using a triple click; maybe it's waiting for a second and third click and that's what the delay is for.

If you enabled the magnifier, try turning it off and see if that fixes the delay. It's a bit annoying as the magnifier is a useful feature, but I use it seldomly enough that I just manually turn it on when I need it.

That's basically the accessibility shortcut (as that can be set to various different functions) that has been mentioned earlier in the thread.

 

[simonmet]

This thread needs to understand the difference between planned obsolescence and intentional crippling.

The latter is what is being alleged in this thread.

 

[imagineadam]

There was a WWDC session that actually went over UI delay actions when clicking the home button to distinguish if a multiple click is pending. That is how click handling works in iOS. They tweak the delay constantly but at the code level thats how it works. We're talking a few dozen milliseconds here.

Ok yup that's fine.

Why is it that the iPhone 7 button reacts faster though than any iPhone with a physical button now though? I'm not complaining I love it but it's weird the phones with the physical button are now held back. More so on iOS 10 too. My iPhone 6 on iOS 9 responded almost as fast as my 7 but iOS 10 took it down another notch.

Put an iPhone 7 side by side with a 6 or 6S have an app opened and then hit the home button. The iPhone 7 responds and closes the app instantly every time whereas the one with the physical button responds a half second later every time.

 

[NT1440]

Ok yup that's fine.

Why is it that the iPhone 7 button reacts faster though than any iPhone with a physical button now though? I'm not complaining I love it but it's weird the phones with the physical button are now held back. More so on iOS 10 too. My iPhone 6 on iOS 9 responded almost as fast as my 7 but iOS 10 took it down another notch.

Put an iPhone 7 side by side with a 6 or 6S have an app opened and then hit the home button. The iPhone 7 responds and closes the app instantly every time whereas the one with the physical button responds a half second later every time.

Because there is a different in response time from an analog button and a solid state button (iP7) that falls within that few dozen millisecond window. That's something electrical engineering isn't going to solve, and the solid state button WILL be the standard soon enough so why bother to setup a software compensation (introducing another layer that could cause a problem) when the issue will address itself over time as the physical button devices slowly fade from usage?

 

[Bbafett]

Because there is a different in response time from an analog button and a solid state button (iP7) that falls within that few dozen millisecond window. That's something electrical engineering isn't going to solve, and the solid state button WILL be the standard soon enough so why bother to setup a software compensation (introducing another layer that could cause a problem) when the issue will address itself over time as the physical button devices slowly fade from usage?

I have a iphone 6s on 9.3.1 side by side with a iphone 6 on 10.0.1 and I can definitely tell the difference by having a folder open, hit the home button, and then tap into another folder. Every single time as soon as I hit the home button on the 6s I can immediately open another folder. Whereas the 6 it does not register the hit til a half second later.

Not at all critical. However, I would be interested to see if the same problem exists after upgrading to ios 10.3.1 on the iphone 6s since they are both physical home buttons. If I have the same lag then I would have to agree with it being the possibility of it being the software not being quite configured correctly for the older phones. Probably will not test this out b/c I have no need to upgrade the 6s(work phone) ios.

Interesting though.

 

[Howl's Castle]

It slows down because that's not the OS the phone was originally shipped/manufactured with.

 

[ipooed]

I guess we need someone with 10.2 to confirm. Although I completely believe this is how Apple slows down iOS, the rest of the experience on my SE hasn't slowed down too much yet, so it's possible I jumped the gun. Need confirmation.

It's there on 10.2.1 6s 32gb. I do believe in how apple slows down older devices on purpose. But this is very minor, is it the start of it? Possibly...

 

[Zerog46]

Has nothing to do with it. I actually believe that Apple builds planned absolecense into their products, as does any company that has new models that come out each year. However, your "proof" is laughable. I still think you have the accessibility shortcut turned on and that's the delay you are experiencing.

That was my issue. With that on my reachability wouldn't even work. Lightning fast now. iPhone 7 plus.

 

[CTHarrryH]

My iPhone and iPad has gotten faster and faster with each IOS10 release.

Maybe you need to adjust the helmet you wear to keep the aliens from communicating with you.
Yes with your conspiracy theory you deserve comments like the helmet comment.

 

[alex.houston]

You are fully aware this is intentional and not in the way you are thinking. When you click the screen to exit a folder, you are telling iOS to return to the previous page. When you click the button, iOS is then waiting to see if you are going to click it again to launch the multitasking tray. I have the delay on my Air 2, but its not even a split second. Its so little that you are trying to jump to conclusions about something that is so inaccurate. This has always been the case with my Air 2, going back to iOS 8 in which it shipped with.

There is no such thing as planned obsolescence in the Apple ecosystem. Its all conspiracy.

Exactly. When you are closing a folder using a tap on the screen (outside an open folder), there is no ambiguity what you are trying to do and the folder closes fast. When you are trying to do the same using the home button, there might be a chance you will do a double click to invoke app switcher. The speed at which the folder closes in this case depends on your setting for double click speed under settings > general > accessibility > home button. So, keep click speed to "default" for fastest response.

 

[Kalloud]

Anandtech discussed how the home button on the iPhone 7 doesn't behave the same way it does on all older iPhone models.
See "ui performance" part here: http://www.anandtech.com/show/10685/the-iphone-7-and-iphone-7-plus-review/9
Basically, on the iPhone 7, as soon as you press the home button, the app starts closing. In case you click a second time, the app closing animation is interrupted and you get to recent apps screen instead.
On earlier iPhone models, when you click the home button, the phone waits about half a second for another click to take you to the app switcher. If it doesn't detect a second click it just closes the app.
So the delay you are seeing after you click the home button is indeed intentional, but it has been like that as long as I used iPhones, that's i4s and newer, not to slow down older models.
Did I answer your question?

 

[Paddle1]

I don't know why this doesn't get covered more. Apple inserts a deliberate slow down into every update, but I never see them taken to task for it (maybe I miss it?).

I'm a programmer and I recognize what they're doing (inserting pauses into the UI transitions). By doing this they make the phone feel a tiny bit slower without affecting any benchmarks that reviewers run (benchmarks don't interact with the UI). It's pretty clever in its simplicity, but also very obvious once you notice it, and it annoys me when it happens. This last one (10.3.x) is especially blatant on my SE because they didn't patch it through for screen taps like they usually do (presumably an oversight).

PROOF:

1. Just open a Folder and then press the Home button. Notice the tiny delay that's been inserted between you pressing Home button and the Folder closing animation beginning. That wasn't there before.

2. To see what it was like before the 10.3.x patch, just open the same Folder and tap anywhere on the homescreen instead of pressing Home. You'll see there's no delay at all.

Tested on: iPhone SE, 2 x iPhone 6. Both 10.3 and 10.3.1.

Confirmed by readers below on 6S.

The delay when you press the Home button isn't a limitation of the hardware, it's purely artificial, programmed into the software. I've noticed it many times over the years. Why don't reviewers talk about this?

This definitely isn't true. The folder closing has always been instant only when tapping the screen. As explained already there is a reason the home button has a delay for the majority of the actions it does (unless you're using an iPhone 7).

 

[Apple_Robert]

People keep repeating a conspiracy lie long enough, they start believing it to be true. I believe that this is the case here.

Apple makes a point to tell consumers what is happening, and many still refuse to believe.

Stop and think a moment (conspirators). If what you suggest where true, it would be easy to prove. And once proven, class action lawsuits would rightfully be filled. That hasn't happened because Apple does not purposefully cripple the software it releases.

And if the former logical scenario isn't enough for you, ask yourself this question; why do I continue to buy products from a company that supposedly cripples the software in products that I keep buying?

 

[Kalloud]

People keep repeating a conspiracy lie long enough, they start believing it to be true. I believe that this is the case here.

Apple makes a point to tell consumers what is happening, and many still refuse to believe.

Stop and think a moment (conspirators). If what you suggest where true, it would be easy to prove. And once proven, class action lawsuits would rightfully be filled. That hasn't happened because Apple does not purposefully cripple the software it releases.

And if the former logical scenario isn't enough for you, ask yourself this question; why do I continue to buy products from a company that supposedly cripples the software in products that I keep buying?

Check this out:
https://www.google.com/amp/www.cult...asks-did-ios-9-cripple-iphone-4s-devices/amp/

 

[Apple_Robert]

Check this out:
https://www.google.com/amp/www.cult...asks-did-ios-9-cripple-iphone-4s-devices/amp/

Basically a nothing story. No actual code proof of his alleged claim. He was looking for a fast buck.

 

[C DM]

Check this out:
https://www.google.com/amp/www.cult...asks-did-ios-9-cripple-iphone-4s-devices/amp/

And what happened with that?

 

[Kalloud]

Regarding planned obsolescence, here's my opinion:
Apple used to optimize iOS to the point that it runs so fast and smooth even on weak hardware (I.e: ios 6 on the iPhone 5 is the smoothest os on a smartphone ever, smoother than i6s on iOS 9 and i7 on iOS 10). That was the case until iOS 6.
When developing iOS 7, Apple introduced many new features and design changes and didn't have "time" to optimize it properly, since time and engineering effort is finite, that's why it slowed down older iPhone especially the i4.
But Apple got a little lazy over time.
It is not really "laziness" but they thought: why spend so much money on optimizing the software for such capable devices. So Apple is investing less and less in optimization. But thankfully hardware is evolving faster than the lack of software optimization, if you understand what I want to say, so ios 10 is running much faster on a 5-year-old iPhone 5 than iOS 7 was on a 4-year-old iPhone 4.
This is explained better in the same article under "ui performance" here:
http://www.anandtech.com/show/10685/the-iphone-7-and-iphone-7-plus-review/9
[doublepost=1491864125][/doublepost]

And what happened with that?

I really don't know
I just remembered that I heard about something similar so I googled it.

 

[bodonnell202]

With my 6s I found there was a slight animation delay when opening apps with iOS 9 (which for the record is the version of iOS that first shipped with the iPhone 6s). From my perspective it felt like apps opened faster when I installed iOS 10 on my 6s and I think 10.3 feels even a touch faster thanks to sped up animations. If Apple's plan is to make my phone feel slower with each release they are going the wrong direction...