iOS 5 doesn't auto update apps?

[Gene S]

I thought iOS 5 was supposed to automatically updated installed apps? I know I remember reading something about it a few month ago.

I've got iCloud, and wireless itunes sync all set up and working. But I still have a red "2" in the corner of the AppStore icon indicating updates are available. Is there some switch somewhere I need to turn on?

(on a side note, every iOS release is making it more difficult to configure and maintain these devices. Things aren't intuitive anymore, I'm spending too much time trying to figure out how to make it do something.)

 

[Ashwood11]

I was never under the impression that we would not have to download app updates from the App Store.

Did a little checking. A app purchased on one device can be automatically downloaded to all devices if you go to the Setting app and set the option, but once downloaded updates are downloaded manually.

 

[MichXP]

Although I think that would be a very convenient feature for a lot of people, Gene, I personally wouldn't want to use it due to the fact I like to read the release notes for each app before I update; just to see which bug fixes are made or what new features are available for that app.

 

[J@ffa]

I don't believe it is meant to do this. However, the 'iTunes in the cloud' information might have led you to believe it could. If you enable that, new purchases of apps, music and books (possibly others, but those for sure) get pushed to the device(s) with that feature enabled, so if you buy an app or song/album on your phone it gets pushed to your iPad and Mac, or any combination thereof.

Personally, I think auto-updating apps wouldn't be entirely seamless, which is what Apple are going for. Imagine if an app update started automatically downloading to your phone, but then you got onto the tube/subway and wanted to use it — you'd have a broken app. The battery drain too would be significant, especially when you consider a lot of households share apple IDs. If your spouse and/or kids were downloading and updating lots of stuff on an iPad your phone would be pretty much continuously pulling down data. There are ways around these issues, but they just add further layers of complexity to deal with a fairly niche feature.

I do think that iTunes should push people to update their apps though. The number of people I know who have a red '38' badge on their App Store logo is considerable, and it must be a bit worrying for developers — most people are roughly up to date with iOS because iTunes prompts you regularly for that kind of thing, but app updates are quite neglected in comparison.

 

[Gene S]

I did some 'googling'.

Back in June, in one of the iTunes builds there was a reference that automatic app updates could happen if enabled on the device. That line was later removed.

https://www.macrumors.com/2011/06/03/itunes-leaks-automatic-download-over-the-air-updates-in-ios-5/

At the very least, I wish iTunes could download app updates automatically. Then when I get home, or am ready, I could just install them.

 

[biver]

It's now possible for jailbreakers to auto update apps

Check out "Auto App Updater" on the ModMyI.com repo.

It does exactly that! I just installed it and it's perfect. For those of you that are worried that it's a bad idea to update apps without making sure they don't have "major bugs" should turn off auto updates for your mission critical apps in the settings. Problem solved.

http://modmyi.com/content/10439-auto...C+Homepage+All)

 

[C DM]

Even iOS 6 doesn't auto-update apps.

 

[TheMTtakeover]

This isn't a feature of iOS.