That Apple updates its equipment should not be news, since it is something that happens regularly. But the fact that phones that are more than 10 years old continue to be officially updated is newsworthy. In this post we tell you what this update is about and what other devices, apart from the iPhone 5S, will benefit from it (because the iPhone 5S is not the only lucky one).
Apple does not believe in obsolescence, neither planned nor spontaneous
There was a time when the trend of companies of all kinds was planned obsolescence. When a product relatively. Nuevo stopped working, for no apparent reason, but in reality it was the will of the company. And this, sadly, we have seen too many times in the technology sector, even in Apple itself on some past occasions.
This malpractice is falling behind, and it is that Apple has given (another) blow on the table, in terms of the duration of its devices. And if not, we pose the following question: Do you know of any device with the Android system, released in 2012, that continues to receive updates officially, in the middle of 2023? Very few are these cases. But Apple thinks differently.
On January 23, 2023, Apple quietly released iOS 12.5.7 for older devices. But didn’t Apple stop signing old systems? Although this is true and applies to devices that support more recent versions of iOS, if we have an iPhone or an iPad that has already reached its maximum number of updates, the latest compatible system, however old it may be, will be signed. for that device.
iOS 12.5.7 is a security update . And in the words of Apple itself: “Processing web content for malicious purposes can lead to the execution of arbitrary code. Apple is aware of a report that this issue may have been actively exploited against versions prior to iOS 15.1.” In other words, it is a security update, to cover iOS vulnerabilities and execute codes that can hack or put our devices at risk. This update is available for these devices:
- iphone 5s
- iphone 6
- iPhone 6Plus
- iPad Air
- iPad mini 2
- iPad mini 3
- iPod touch 6th generation
Yes, the iPod Touch , although it is already a discontinued product, also has iOS and is compatible with this version of the system. And although they are not updates that add content and functions, they guarantee minimum security standards for those older terminals that, today, are still perfectly functional in many aspects. But the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad are not all the devices that receive updates in their older versions.
Macs from 10 years ago are still alive too
The 2013 MacBook Air, MacBook Pro and Mac Pro are in luck. On the same January 23, 2023, Apple has released version 11.7.3 of macOS Big Sur. According to Apple, “an app could access sensitive user data. This issue has been fixed by enabling hardened runtime.” But it not only affects users’ sensitive data, it also fixes more vulnerabilities in other macOS features.
For its part, the oldest iMacs that receive this update date back to 2014. We are talking about, in an industry where two years mark a huge generation gap, Apple continues to support (officially) computers that have 9, 10 and even 11 years of life . And this, only talking about the updates that it has released in 2023. Because if we look back, the list only keeps increasing.
