6 ms·

To me the answer seemed obvious, and I wanted to reply "it isn't supported anymore in iOS". To my surprise, this 5 year old tablet of yours is still supported i

by Fnoord 7y ago

To me the answer seemed obvious, and I wanted to reply "it isn't supported anymore in iOS". To my surprise, this 5 year old tablet of yours is still supported in iOS 12.4.1 [1], and it will also be supported in iPadOS 13 [2]. That's impressive. Which Android tablet from 2014 or 2015 is still supported nowadays? [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IPad_Air_2 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IPad_Air_2 [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IPadOS https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IPadOS

ocdtrekkie 7y ago
The crazy reality is: major carriers like Verizon still sell iPhone 6S devices today, brand new. So there's an expectation that they have to support a brand new iPhone with iOS upgrades for a significant number of years. And Apple can do it because they only sell a handful of models that have a very common hardware set.
- josephg 7y ago
  The iPhone 6s is still a great phone. I’m using a 6s+ to write this, and with a new battery it still feels new and responsive, especially after the optimizations Apple made in iOS a couple years back. This phone is 5 years old now. With each new iPhone release I look for excuses to spend the money and upgrade, and I still can’t see any reason to do so. I mean, those new cameras and faceid looks great but touchid is fine and I’m not a photographer. I feel torn on the price of new iPhones - on one hand, spending so much makes it harder to justify the incremental upgrades. And on the other hand, after my experience with the 6s+ I’ll expect my next iphone to last at least 5-6 years as well, so forking out that much money for a smartphone doesn’t seem so crazy any more.
  - ocdtrekkie 7y ago
    Yeah, part of me says, hey, buy the newest phone, and keep it five or six years. Though the other part says, if iPhone 7 is are free on contract right now. Get that, and in two years get an iphone XR or whatever for free on contract, etc. Because then I get that fresh new battery every couple years, and spend a lot less money on having that shiny new top-of-the-line-ness that wears off shortly anyways.
  - extra88 7y ago
    > This phone is 5 years old now. The iPhone 6s is not yet four years old, it was released in late September 2015. Still a good phone.
    - josephg 7y ago
      Nice catch - sorry, got confused by the silly numbering system. (What’s with people skipping version 9?)
      - colejohnson66 7y ago
        They skipped 9 because it was the tenth anniversary phone, hence iPhone 10.
  - msh 7y ago
    I went from a 6s plus to a xs. The main improvement is the camera. It is significantly better.
willtim 7y ago
Is there even an Android tablet market anymore? (Excluding Kindle Fire)
- dmix 7y ago
  Samsung and Huawei sell more tablets than Amazon
  - jsjohnst 7y ago
    Source?
    - Nanocurrency 7y ago
      Common sense.
- mcny 7y ago
  To add to what dmix said, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samsung_Galaxy_Tab_series#Samsung_Galaxy_Tab_S6_(2019) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samsung_Galaxy_Tab_series#Sams... The Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 was announced on the 31st July 2019. Display: 10.5-inch 2560x1600 Super AMOLED Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 Storage: 128/256 GB (expandable up to 512 GB) Memory: 6/8 GB Battery: 7,040 mAh Rear Camera: 13 MP wide + 5 MP ultra-wide Front Camera: 8 MP Dimensions: 244.5 × 159.5 × 5.7 mm Weight: 420 grams Price: Starts at $649.99
  - willtim 7y ago
    The question is, are they selling in large enough quantities to justify a market for software.
    - wmf 7y ago
      Yeah, virtually every app in the Play Store "may not be optimized for tablets". That disclaimer has become superfluous.
    - 7y ago
noxToken 7y ago
>That's impressive. Which Android tablet from 2014 or 2015 is still supported nowadays? Nexus 7 owner here. No support, has always needed a better battery, and the sensors need a power cycle occasionally, but I still don't regret the purchase. I mainly use it for videos and reading.
- vetinari 7y ago
  Even if you are stuck with Marshmallow, you are getting new Chrome or Gmail. No support in iOS land means no new Safari, Mail, or other built-in apps.
  - noxToken 7y ago
    I'm going to made a broad assumption. This is the only leverage that device manufacturers have to get people to upgrade. The tablet experience doesn't degrade the same way that phones do.
    - vetinari 7y ago
      > This is the only leverage that device manufacturers have to get people to upgrade. Is that compelling enough, though? Most normal users are bothered by updates. That's why we see better cameras, or other user visible features as a reason to upgrade.

by Fnoord 7y ago

ocdtrekkie 7y ago

The crazy reality is: major carriers like Verizon still sell iPhone 6S devices today, brand new. So there's an expectation that they have to support a brand new iPhone with iOS upgrades for a significant number of years. And Apple can do it because they only sell a handful of models that have a very common hardware set.

josephg 7y ago
The iPhone 6s is still a great phone. I’m using a 6s+ to write this, and with a new battery it still feels new and responsive, especially after the optimizations Apple made in iOS a couple years back. This phone is 5 years old now. With each new iPhone release I look for excuses to spend the money and upgrade, and I still can’t see any reason to do so. I mean, those new cameras and faceid looks great but touchid is fine and I’m not a photographer. I feel torn on the price of new iPhones - on one hand, spending so much makes it harder to justify the incremental upgrades. And on the other hand, after my experience with the 6s+ I’ll expect my next iphone to last at least 5-6 years as well, so forking out that much money for a smartphone doesn’t seem so crazy any more.
- ocdtrekkie 7y ago
  Yeah, part of me says, hey, buy the newest phone, and keep it five or six years. Though the other part says, if iPhone 7 is are free on contract right now. Get that, and in two years get an iphone XR or whatever for free on contract, etc. Because then I get that fresh new battery every couple years, and spend a lot less money on having that shiny new top-of-the-line-ness that wears off shortly anyways.
- extra88 7y ago
  > This phone is 5 years old now. The iPhone 6s is not yet four years old, it was released in late September 2015. Still a good phone.
  - josephg 7y ago
    Nice catch - sorry, got confused by the silly numbering system. (What’s with people skipping version 9?)
    - colejohnson66 7y ago
      They skipped 9 because it was the tenth anniversary phone, hence iPhone 10.
- msh 7y ago
  I went from a 6s plus to a xs. The main improvement is the camera. It is significantly better.

willtim 7y ago

Is there even an Android tablet market anymore? (Excluding Kindle Fire)

dmix 7y ago
Samsung and Huawei sell more tablets than Amazon
- jsjohnst 7y ago
  Source?
  - Nanocurrency 7y ago
    Common sense.
mcny 7y ago
To add to what dmix said, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samsung_Galaxy_Tab_series#Samsung_Galaxy_Tab_S6_(2019) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samsung_Galaxy_Tab_series#Sams... The Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 was announced on the 31st July 2019. Display: 10.5-inch 2560x1600 Super AMOLED Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 Storage: 128/256 GB (expandable up to 512 GB) Memory: 6/8 GB Battery: 7,040 mAh Rear Camera: 13 MP wide + 5 MP ultra-wide Front Camera: 8 MP Dimensions: 244.5 × 159.5 × 5.7 mm Weight: 420 grams Price: Starts at $649.99
- willtim 7y ago
  The question is, are they selling in large enough quantities to justify a market for software.
  - wmf 7y ago
    Yeah, virtually every app in the Play Store "may not be optimized for tablets". That disclaimer has become superfluous.
  - 7y ago

noxToken 7y ago

>That's impressive. Which Android tablet from 2014 or 2015 is still supported nowadays? Nexus 7 owner here. No support, has always needed a better battery, and the sensors need a power cycle occasionally, but I still don't regret the purchase. I mainly use it for videos and reading.

vetinari 7y ago
Even if you are stuck with Marshmallow, you are getting new Chrome or Gmail. No support in iOS land means no new Safari, Mail, or other built-in apps.
- noxToken 7y ago
  I'm going to made a broad assumption. This is the only leverage that device manufacturers have to get people to upgrade. The tablet experience doesn't degrade the same way that phones do.
  - vetinari 7y ago
    > This is the only leverage that device manufacturers have to get people to upgrade. Is that compelling enough, though? Most normal users are bothered by updates. That's why we see better cameras, or other user visible features as a reason to upgrade.