Why you should not update your iPhone more than twice

Apple supports with system updates their devices for a long time; but at what price? We analyzed how they affect the new versions of iOS former terminals and checked if it’s worth doing the update or not.

The technology world is primarily one of the most changing areas of reality. Brands and manufacturers are almost “forced” to improve so often the products launched every year. It thus enters into a vortex, the vortex of the update. Users, such as customers wait expectantly each new operating system that can be installed at their terminal, many times without question what their devices future performance would be. In this sense, the market is polarized. An Apple will usually is praised for the long support it provides to its iOS devices, while Android all often criticize for deadlines that manufacturers are given to update, if it do, although that seems to be changing this year.

As I say, we often praise when Apple supports terminal for more than two years, and even get to upgrade three versions, as it did in the case of the iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, and this year with the iPad 2. However, how are those updates? What subtract they provide and what their devices are?

To analyze it, we must go back to 2010. That year they introduced iOS 4, the operating system that unified the iPhone range with the iPad range. Beyond the initial controversy with the Antennagate, iOS 4 was the last system that was installed on an iPhone 3G. That case was severe for two things. The first was that, given the limitations of hardware iPhone 3G (128MB RAM), could not enjoy the star feature of that year, multitasking. The second, and aggravated due to the limitation of the first, was the extreme slowness with which the device worked. Do you remember the experience of last year with iOS 7 on the iPhone 4? Well, it would be a joke if compared to this.

In fact, that update was so paradigmatic in terms of underperformance, which was even being parodied. It is true that occurred four years ago too long, and much has happened since then. Last year, for instance, it was recommended not to update iPhone 4 to iOS 7.

Later it keeps getting better with iOS 7.1, but still not enough. This year it is the turn to the successor of iPhone 4, iPhone 4S. Also mate A5 SoC, the iPad 2. Many users have complained, which showed that more than occasional errors it’s a trend within the company updates. And as in the previous case, it happens again in the third year after the launch. After developing iOS 8 Apple promised to improve performance in a future version, which has complied with iOS 8.1.1. In ArsTechnica have developed a performance comparison between 8 and iOS iOS 8.1.1 on iPad 2 and iPhone 4S. However, we can also draw some conclusions:

As much as iOS 8.1.1 upgrade, as it did iOS 7.1 on iPhone 4, the new system never achieved and keeps up earlier from its third year, which is frustrating in Apple does not allow the downgrade. At this point, you cannot say it’s something extraordinary. It has gone through several generations, given a small RAM that traditionally comes to the new iPhone, the new models probably will not have a remarkable longevity. If we do analyze it with the Nexus 4, Android 5.0 Lollipop flies (and also its third update); its contemporary companion, the iPhone 5, however, is beginning to show some slowdown in iOS 8.