iOS 11 is out today, and I already updated the second I saw the notification, which in hindsight was maybe not the smartest move on a Tuesday afternoon with actual work to do. The Files app is nice. The redesigned App Store is nice, if a little busy. But none of that is what I actually want to write about, because the bigger story for anyone whos had an iPhone since the early days is what iOS 11 quietly takes away rather than what it adds.
This is the update that finally kills 32-bit apps. Every app on your phone that hasnt been rebuilt with 64-bit support just stopped working today. Not "runs slower." Not "shows a warning." Gone. Wont open. And the annoying part is a lot of people are going to find this out the hard way, mid-tap, trying to open something they havent thought about updating since 2014.
How to check before you regret it
Apple actually gave us a way to see this coming months ago and I bet almost nobody used it. Since iOS 10.3, therees been a hidden list buried in Settings that tells you exactly which of your apps arent ready. Go to:
Settings > General > About > Applications
If that "Applications" row doesnt show up at all, congrats, everything on your phone is already 64-bit and youre fine. If it does show up, tap it and youll get a list of every app that needs an update or is about to become a fossil. Worth doing this before you install iOS 11, not after youve already lost the thing.
A few categories of app got hit hard by this. Old games are the big one, especially anything that hasnt been touched since the developer moved on to something else, which is most indie games from 2012-2014 honestly. I lost a couple of little puzzle games I liked that clearly nobody's maintaining anymore. Some older utility apps too, flashlight-type stuff, simple converters, the kind of app a solo developer made once and never opened Xcode again for. If youve got a banking app or a work app thats ancient, check it now, not after you need it at the ATM.
I'll admit part of me is annoyed at this even though I get why Apple's doing it. Dropping 32-bit support means smaller app binaries and better performance across the board going forward, and Apple's been warning developers about this since WWDC 2015, so its not like anyone got surprised except regular users who dont read developer changelogs (why would they). Still stings to lose an app you paid for once and cant easily replace.
The bigger picture, briefly
Obviously this update is landing in the shadow of last weeks event, where Apple showed off the iPhone X and Face ID and that whole Steve Jobs Theater production. Im not going to rehash all of that here since basically every tech site on the internet has already done it to death this week. What I think is more useful right now, today, is the practical stuff: if youre one of the millions of people about to hit "Update" on an iPhone thats been in service for three or four years, go check that Applications list first. It takes maybe ninety seconds.
One other small thing while Im in the settings menu talking about this: iOS 11 also finally lets you record your screen natively, no more downloading some sketchy third party app or plugging into a Mac with QuickTime just to make a five second clip for a bug report. Thats been a genuinely annoying gap for years and Im glad its fixed, even if it took this long.
Anyway. Update if you want the new stuff, its solid. Just dont be the person who taps yes on the update prompt while distracted, only to go looking for some app twenty minutes later and find out it just isnt there anymore. Check the list first. Then update.