With iOS 11, Apple not only introduces a huge list of new features and improvements, there is a major underlying change to the iOS 11 as well. The company has completely dropped support for the 32-bit iOS devices and the apps/games available in the App Store.
It means that users can only install iOS 11 on a 64-bit iPhone, iPad, or the iPod Touch. To set 64-bit as a standard, Apple has also stopped supporting 32-bit apps from its App Store as well. This means that iOS developers won’t be able to upload 32-bit apps and games on the App Store. Additionally, for the existing 32-bit apps available in the App Store, the iOS 11 prompt a message saying “The developer of this app needs to update it to work with iOS 11.” You can tap OK to dismiss the message or tap learn more to view the complete list of 32-bit apps currently installed on your device.
Apple is encouraging its developers to update their apps to make them 64-bit ready. With the introduction of 64-bit, the overall performance of iOS 11 on 64-bit devices is going to be much improved due to stuff being lighter in terms of size and resource usage.
The 32-bit devices that have been dropped from iOS 11 compatible devices list include the iPhone 5, iPhone 5c, iPad 3 and iPad 4. All other newer devices are compatible with iOS 11. Users can view 32-bit apps via a App Compatibility section in Settings >General > About > Applications.
Furthermore, Apple has removed 32-bit applications from the App Store’ Purchase tab, which means they are no longer available for re-download. Apple has also stopped showing 32-bit apps in the App Store search results.
It is highly likely that Apple will drop support for its 32-bit instruction set based A-Series chipset later this year. This will allow the company to make use of the free die space on the chipset for a bigger GPU. This will help in improved performance.
If you’re one of those iOS developers who still have a legacy app on the App Store, it’s high time to make it iOS 11 compatible before it is released to the masses.