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Is there a point you shouldn’t update?

Z

zowenso

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Oct 2, 2011
276
16
MA
hello. I have a 6s and I was wondering, is there a point I should stop iOS updates because the phone is just too old? I ask because i was told to stop updating my 2010 Mac mini because I could run into issues.
I did update to iOS 14 on my 6s and I see another update is available. Thanks.
 
zowenso said:
hello. I have a 6s and I was wondering, is there a point I should stop iOS updates because the phone is just too old? I ask because i was told to stop updating my 2010 Mac mini because I could run into issues.
I did update to iOS 14 on my 6s and I see another update is available. Thanks.
Click to expand...
Considering iOS 15 is rumored to drop support for the 6S I'd upgrade until you can't anymore..
 
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If I was to order an iPhone online from att, is that a headache? Do you have to put the old SIM card from my 6s into the 12?
 
zowenso said:
If I was to order an iPhone online from att, is that a headache? Do you have to put the old SIM card from my 6s into the 12?
Click to expand...
you shouldn't have to swap the card, but you will want to remove the one in the 6s if you trade it in, or sell it... it's easy.
 
zowenso said:
My daughter also has a 6s but can’t update for some reason or she didn’t get all the features with the update that I got with ios14. Could that be because she has Boost mobile? I’m on AT&T.
Click to expand...
Could be due to low storage - the 6S was still sold with the infamous 16GB storage.
 
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14.2 is the first time I regret updating on day one - the forced volume check has ruined the iPhone for music playback for me. Not really sure what I am going to do - if Apple does not change its mind on this, I will give up on the iPhone. :(
 
Grey Area said:
14.2 is the first time I regret updating on day one - the forced volume check has ruined the iPhone for music playback for me. Not really sure what I am going to do - if Apple does not change its mind on this, I will give up on the iPhone. :(
Click to expand...
where is this? am on 14.3 beta, perhaps it's gone? i am listening on my BT earbuds, and the volume (spotify, music) seems same as always. where is the setting for this? i can check on my phone...
 
fisherking said:
where is this? am on 14.3 beta, perhaps it's gone? i am listening on my BT earbuds, and the volume (spotify, music) seems same as always. where is the setting for this? i can check on my phone...
Click to expand...
Settings > Sounds > Headphone Safety > Headphone Notifications

On 14.1 the latter was an option that you could turn on and off, now in 14.2 it is permanently on. For some it still seems to be optional in 14.2, and there was initially speculation that it might be yet another EU only thing, but it has since turned up in US iPhones as well and it seems more like it only becomes permanent after a reset.
 
Grey Area said:
Settings > Sounds > Headphone Safety > Headphone Notifications

On 14.1 the latter was an option that you could turn on and off, now in 14.2 it is permanently on. For some it still seems to be optional in 14.2, and there was initially speculation that it might be yet another EU only thing, but it has since turned up in US iPhones as well and it seems more like it only becomes permanent after a reset.
Click to expand...
That is off on my phone and stays off even after restart.. My phone is a U.S. version on 14.2
 
zowenso said:
If I was to order an iPhone online from att, is that a headache? Do you have to put the old SIM card from my 6s into the 12?
Click to expand...
Not sure where you're going with this. I just bought the new Mini 12 and it came with a sim card for my present number. I too am keeping my old phone (SE) and even though I haven't removed the sim card that is tied to the same number as my new phone, the old sim card doesn't work anymore.

IF you goal is to keep you old phone is working order so that you can call out, you will need to pay ATT for access to both phones. My old SE is able to receive wifi, but that's about it.
 
Well, a few years ago I would say yeah stop updating because new versions were getting too demanding in ressources. The iPad Mini 3 I gave to my dad is actually on iOS 12.x and I don't feel it snappy anymore, but that machine isn't properly a beast anyway.

But in the last couple of years Apple has made efforts in optimising the OS for the oldest models, specially with iOS and iPhones, so in theory they can keep up longer.

My advice would be to not install day one when a new version is out. Wait for a while and check for youtube videos demonstrating performance of a particular version in your particular device, and then judge if it feels fluid and fast enough for you. Because ultimately that's the point to consider: fluidity and speed of the interface. For everything else, updating is always a good thing (specially on security issues).
 
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BugeyeSTI said:
That is off on my phone and stays off even after restart.. My phone is a U.S. version on 14.2
Click to expand...
Sorry, I meant a factory reset. Either way, as far as I understand the situation is a bit inconclusive so far. Here is a thread about it on Apple's support forum. Maybe Apple is just floating this in a subset of iPhones to see how people react?
 
Grey Area said:
Sorry, I meant a factory reset. Either way, as far as I understand the situation is a bit inconclusive so far. Here is a thread about it on Apple's support forum. Maybe Apple is just floating this in a subset of iPhones to see how people react?
Click to expand...
it's off here, so perhaps a glitch in 14.2 (and resolved in 14.3)...
 
zowenso said:
hello. I have a 6s and I was wondering, is there a point I should stop iOS updates because the phone is just too old? I ask because i was told to stop updating my 2010 Mac mini because I could run into issues.
I did update to iOS 14 on my 6s and I see another update is available. Thanks.
Click to expand...
You should always update from a security standpoint. The updates almost always contain security fixes. It's rare that updates cause new issues these days. Honestly I wouldn't listen to the people that say to stop updating.
 
zowenso said:
My daughter also has a 6s but can’t update for some reason or she didn’t get all the features with the update that I got with ios14. Could that be because she has Boost mobile? I’m on AT&T.
Click to expand...
Boost might be a source of trouble. I used Virgin Mobile for years but when they shut down their service and switched all their customers to Boost, I started having all sorts of problems with my iPhone 6.
 
Squillace said:
Well, a few years ago I would say yeah stop updating because new versions were getting too demanding in ressources. The iPad Mini 3 I gave to my dad is actually on iOS 12.x and I don't feel it snappy anymore, but that machine isn't properly a beast anyway.

But in the last couple of years Apple has made efforts in optimising the OS for the oldest models, specially with iOS and iPhones, so in theory they can keep up longer.

My advice would be to not install day one when a new version is out. Wait for a while and check for youtube videos demonstrating performance of a particular version in your particular device, and then judge if it feels fluid and fast enough for you. Because ultimately that's the point to consider: fluidity and speed of the interface. For everything else, updating is always a good thing (specially on security issues).
Click to expand...
It's not just optimizations but also raw performance as well. Personally, I wish I'd stuck to iOS 12 on the Air 2. iOS 13 and 14 are noticeably laggier on that. The A9-based devices have kept up better speed-wise, albeit prone to more frequent reloads and crashes.

The Apple A9 (iPhone 6s/+, SE1, iPad 5th gen) has 2x the performance of the A7 (iPhone 5s, iPad Air, mini 2/3) and it wasn't RAM-starved. We've also reached the point where processors such as A12 and newer are overkill for typical usage (web, social media, video streaming). Heck, the M1 Macs are running circles around the low power Intel CPUs they replaced.
 
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Some considerations not update:
- new features are not critical / not applicable for the phone’s usage
- the apps has been quite stable, no further need to update (which require newer iOS version)
- preference, speed/performance/functionality over non-critical features

I have 6s which stay on 12.1.4, which is still snappy, usable as daily driver and compatible with critical apps that I used. My iPad Air 3 is also stay at 14.1 since no significant new features / bug fixing applicable for this iPad in 14.2++. But my SE2 keep updating to the latest 14.3.
 
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