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flembot95

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jan 19, 2016
17
8
UK
I have been somewhat stubborn and remained on iOS 15 - holding off upgrading to iOS 16. Is it time for me to make the upgrade?
Or will I get hit with built in obsolescence / software slowness / faster battery drain etc?
 

turbochgd

macrumors regular
Sep 9, 2022
210
489
I have been somewhat stubborn and remained on iOS 15 - holding off upgrading to iOS 16. Is it time for me to make the upgrade?
Or will I get hit with built in obsolescence / software slowness / faster battery drain etc?

This will definitely vary from person to person who responds :)

Obsolescence? Not sure what you mean.
Slowness? Not seeing that whatsoever.
Battery Drain? Battery has been just great on my iPhone 14 PM.

16.xx has some real nice features that make for a nicer user experience. But there have been a number of people with issues. I think all releases have at least some issues that a percentage of people experience.

And don’t forget about the security updates which are important.

My opinion: definitely go for it!
 

SoYoung

macrumors 65816
Jul 3, 2015
1,457
845
This will definitely vary from person to person who responds :)

Obsolescence? Not sure what you mean.
Slowness? Not seeing that whatsoever.
Battery Drain? Battery has been just great on my iPhone 14 PM.

16.xx has some real nice features that make for a nicer user experience. But there have been a number of people with issues. I think all releases have at least some issues that a percentage of people experience.

And don’t forget about the security updates which are important.

My opinion: definitely go for it!
Of course the battery will be great on the newest flagship phone. The OP question is legitimate because I wait until 2 weeks ago to upgrade one of my iPads and I somehow regret it. On my 13 Pro Max iOS 16 runs well but the battery life is clearly not as god as iOS 15 with occasional battery drain when on standby that can only be fixed with a reboot - A thing that occurred very rarely on iOS 15 but happening at least once or twice a month now on iOS 16.

Anyway at this point you don't have much choice. If I were you I'd give you another month because after that, you'll probably lack some important security patches. Its sad that Apple won't let us chose to stay on the previous versions. iOS 15 was clearly superior to 16 on almost every way on my 13 PM.
 
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canuckRus

macrumors 6502a
May 18, 2014
931
348
I have been somewhat stubborn and remained on iOS 15 - holding off upgrading to iOS 16. Is it time for me to make the upgrade?
Or will I get hit with built in obsolescence / software slowness / faster battery drain etc?
iOS 15 is still constantly being updated security wise despite older phones being discontinued. As of several days ago now up to 15.7.3.
 

sam_dean

Suspended
Sep 9, 2022
1,262
1,091
I'd only upgrade after the final iOS 15 Security Updates. You'll know this when your iOS has not received any updates after 26 weeks.
 

FeliApple

macrumors 68040
Apr 8, 2015
3,546
1,992
Of course the battery will be great on the newest flagship phone. The OP question is legitimate because I wait until 2 weeks ago to upgrade one of my iPads and I somehow regret it. On my 13 Pro Max iOS 16 runs well but the battery life is clearly not as god as iOS 15 with occasional battery drain when on standby that can only be fixed with a reboot - A thing that occurred very rarely on iOS 15 but happening at least once or twice a month now on iOS 16.

Anyway at this point you don't have much choice. If I were you I'd give you another month because after that, you'll probably lack some important security patches. Its sad that Apple won't let us chose to stay on the previous versions. iOS 15 was clearly superior to 16 on almost every way on my 13 PM.
You cannot downgrade, but you can stay on older iOS versions if you like. Barring some issue, Apple doesn't force you out of any iOS version (unless you have an A9 processor on iOS 9, in which case Apple does force you out).
 

Shirasaki

macrumors P6
May 16, 2015
15,697
10,996
If you cannot find a convincing reason to upgrade, then it is not a good move to upgrade, more so when iOS upgrade is always one-way street.
Just keep using iOS 15 and there’s no shame on that. Furthermore, you are automatically immune from any iOS 16 headache you might encounter should you upgrade. So that’s a plus.
 
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MacLappy

macrumors 6502a
Jul 28, 2011
530
393
Singapore
iOS 15 is still constantly being updated security wise despite older phones being discontinued. As of several days ago now up to 15.7.3.

For some reason I am not able to see newer versions of iOS 15. I am on 15.7.1 and the only option that is available is 16.3.
 

MacLappy

macrumors 6502a
Jul 28, 2011
530
393
Singapore
Apple has only made 15.7.3 available for older devices that can't update to 16.

So strange, does the security update not apply to newer iPhones, or perhaps it is unnecessary for newer iPhones?

Also was it always like this for every itinerary of iOS or is this a new initiative from apple to push adoption rate of iOS 16?
 

FeliApple

macrumors 68040
Apr 8, 2015
3,546
1,992
So strange, does the security update not apply to newer iPhones, or perhaps it is unnecessary for newer iPhones?

Also was it always like this for every itinerary of iOS or is this a new initiative from apple to push adoption rate of iOS 16?
The security update was probably included with a newer version of iOS 16. Apple does not allow devices compatible with the newest iOS version to install updates for older iOS versions. This is not a new initiative: Apple has always been interested in pushing people to update, once even going as far as forcing people out of an early iOS version through refusing to fix a bug.
 
Last edited:

MacLappy

macrumors 6502a
Jul 28, 2011
530
393
Singapore
The security update was probably included with a newer version of iOS 16. Apple does not allow devices compatible with the newest iOS version to install updates for older iOS version. This is not a new initiative: Apple has always been interested in pushing people to update, once even going as far as forcing people out of an early iOS version through refusing to fix a bug.

Thank you for explaining.
 
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bondr006

macrumors 68020
Jun 8, 2010
2,488
16,214
Cary, NC - My Name is Rob Bond
My 13PM is actually faster with the best battery life I've seen since I bought it last June. I updated to iOS 16 public beta last July when it was released, and it has just been getting better up to this point. I am no longer on beta, but the full version of 16.3, and I am very happy with my phone battery life and performance.
 
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Splitrail

macrumors 6502a
Dec 26, 2021
898
1,099
I got my first iPhone (a 13 Pro) about 14 months ago.
At the first few updates, I was hesitant and didn't know what to expect.
Several updates later, I can say that I haven't seen any deleterious effects.
I do wait a few days before installing an update.
 
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now i see it

macrumors G4
Jan 2, 2002
10,689
22,401
You can’t stay behind forever/ eventually you’ve got to update or buy a new phone.
Since the first 6 months of a new OS can be most accurately described as hell, I’d wait until August before EVER installing a next version OS.
That’s what I do.
Install once a year in August.
 

guesswho183

macrumors member
Sep 24, 2018
98
51
iPhone 12 Pro? Stay on ios 15 as long as possible if your device works well an battery is fine. IOS 16 is buggy even on iPhone 14 Pro and it will be optimized for new/newer phones.
 
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