Skip to main content

Apple might drop support for the iPhone SE and iPhone 6S with arrival of iOS 16

Apple may finally be dropping some of its oldest supported iPhones with the next iOS release. This report comes from the French publication iPhoneSoft, which accurately predicted the iOS 13 and iOS 14 road maps.

Apple has been praised for supporting its iPhones for an exceedingly long period of time with full updates, and that has led to impressive scenarios like the iPhone 6S and iPhone 7 being updated to iOS 15 last year. Granted, they couldn’t take advantage of several hardware-enabled features, but they weren’t rapidly outdated either.

Recommended Videos

The iPhone 6S, 6S Plus, and SE were released in 2016. If this report pans out, they would have been supported for more than half a decade. This is longer than any Android phone — even the recently released Google Pixel 6 only goes as far as three operating system updates, while the 2018 Pixel 3 has gotten its last Android update with Android 12. Would it be possible for Apple to hypothetically squeeze one more year from these devices? Probably. Would it be worth it? Unlikely. With slow processors, batteries that would be well past their prime, and legacy hardware like 3D Touch, it’s more trouble than it’s worth.

Please enable Javascript to view this content

Aside from the iPhones, Apple is also said to be dropping the iPad 5, iPad Air 2, iPad mini 4, and the 2015 iPad Pro with the arrival of iPad OS 16. These are also relatively old devices that have been supported for many years. Much like with the iPhones, the old hardware likely has reached the limit of its capabilities.

Other than hardware, there’s no other news on what’s coming with iOS 16. While iOS 15 was a refining update, adding in things like focus modes and improving the notification center, iOS 16 could be bigger and more bombastic, with the iPhone 14 rumored to have a dramatic visual overhaul. But we’ll have to wait until spring 2022 to know more.

Michael Allison
Former Digital Trends Contributor
A UK-based tech journalist for Digital Trends, helping keep track and make sense of the fast-paced world of tech with a…
Apple iPhone 16e pre-orders have begun, so grab yours now
Side view of the iPhone 16e camera lens

Apple has started taking pre-orders for its latest smartphone, the iPhone 16e, in the U.S. and elsewhere. The rather divisive budget-focused smartphone from Apple is a major evolution over the now-defunct iPhone SE and sits underneath the mainline iPhones with a bunch of similarities and some serious feature-trimmings, as well.

It starts at $599 in the U.S. for the 128GB storage variant, while the 256GB and 512GB variants will have you parting ways with $699 and $899, respectively.

Read more
It’s time for Apple, Samsung and Google to solve the eSIM problem
Nano SIM card in SIM card tray from iPhone 14 Pro Max.

When Apple launched the new iPhone 16e on Wednesday, the Apple Store in every region displayed one thing under connectivity: eSIM. There was no mention of a physical SIM, and I had a waking nightmare that Apple had quietly pulled the plug, and every iPhone 16e globally would be sold as an eSIM-only model.

A quick search — and a look at the photos — confirmed that this hadn’t happened, but my reaction kickstarted a thought about eSIMs, their promise (and what we were promised), and the current state of eSIMs globally. I’ve been traveling for the past month, and eSIMs are an absolute mess. The potential was immense, but it goes against carriers’ interests to make it any easier, but there is a solution.

Read more
Own an Android? It looks like you may buy an iPhone next
The iPhone 16 Pro and the Galaxy S25 Plus held in the hand together

In a recent survey of iPhone owners, 48% of those now wielding Apple’s smartphone had previously owned an Android phone. The data comes from an extensive report using information gathered from 4,000 individuals by analysts at Counterpoint Research, and shows despite the challenges those who switch from Android to iOS (or vice versa) often face, it didn’t put almost half of current iPhone owners off.

The research then states it’s Samsung and Google suffering the most when someone decides it’s time to buy an iPhone, to the point the paper warns Samsung may see a marked fall in S-series ownership over the next two years if the trend continues. It’s added that Samsung, along with brands like OnePlus and China’s market leader Vivo, are using AI and flagship specifications to differentiate devices, in an effort to entice and retain buyers.

Read more