A recent report has indicated that the next generation of iOS won't be dropping any models, but iPad users won't be so lucky.
Owning a phone is generally unavoidable these days, and part of that is making sure your device's software is up to date. However, phone makers can only support a device for so long, and with each subsequent new release, another phone or tablet is left by the wayside. In light of this, a recent report has given us a hint of what to expect from the next generation of Apple's software updates, including what will and won't be supported.
The news comes from French website iPhonesoft, who claim an undisclosed source revealed which Apple devices will be in line for the next set of updates. Firstly, the good news: it appears that iOS 19 will be available for the majority of devices, from the iPhone XS to the iPhone 17 Pro Max. However, older phones likely won't have access to the majority of new features, with most of those likely being saved for at least the iPhone 15 Pro Max.
However, it appears that the iPad won't be so lucky with the release of iPadOS 19. According to the report, the future update will supposedly require an A12 chip to function. As such, the iPad 7 and the iPad Pro 2017 (both of which use the A10 chip) will not be able to download the update. The update will only be available to the iPad mini 5, iPad 8th gen, third-gen iPad Airs, the 2018 iPad Pros and later.
There's still a lot we don't know about the next generation of iOS and iPadOS updates. However, they'll likely include more Apple Intelligence upgrades — hopefully, at a faster rate than the initial launch. However, with the release of iOS 18.2, Apple has made a big step with features like Visual intelligence and Genmoji. Apple Intelligence is also able to create summaries for the user, but that has recently come under fire as being inaccurate.
It should be noted that this news is from an unknown source, but it wouldn't be surprising to see some iPad models dropped. While your device will work without the latest updates, we would always recommend trying to keep up to date to make sure you have all the relevant security updates.
