Apple Urges Users Of iPhone 5 To Update The Software If They Want To Go Online

If you are still using an older model of iPhone, like an iPhone 5, for example, you had better make sure that it runs the latest version of iOS; otherwise, the consequences can be serious.

Apple has started to display a warning on full screen for owners of iPhone 5 that they will lose essential online features if they do not update their devices’ software. The affected functions include web browsing, iCloud, email, and App Store. The deadline is 12 A.M UTC, the 3^rd of November, and the required version is iOS 10.3.4. According to Apple, the problem with the GPS time rollover that showed up in April will start impacting apps that require time and date.

Even if you miss the November 3^rd deadline, the situation is not exactly desperate. However, if for some reason you cannot update to iOS 10.3.4 before the said time, you had better back up your data on a computer if you intend to use a newer version of the software. Apart from iPhone 5, the iPad 4 is also expected to be affected, but their owners will only lose access to GPS only.

The issue sounds serious, but the number of people getting trouble because of this is small. Apple said that by the 15^th of October, iOS devices having software older than iOS 12 was only 9% of its total number of users. Among these people lingering to an outdated version of iOS, many of them are using newer devices. So the number of users who are actually using an iPhone 5 with old software is even smaller than 7%.

However, it is still unusual for a company to tell its users to update the software of a device after it has been on the market for seven years.