We’re fast approaching WWDC 2018, where Apple will take the wraps off its next major software releases. That of course includes iOS 12, which will power all 2018 iPhones and iPads and a slew of older iOS devices. A brand new iOS 12 leaks reveal what may turn out to be an exciting feature for many iPhone owners — and it also puts Android to shame. Again.
Apple has been testing iOS 12 and its updated Safari browser on the iPhone 5s, which is a strong indication that the 2013 flagship phone, which brought us the first 64-bit chip and introduced the Touch ID fingerprint sensor, may receive iOS 12 later this year. French-language blog MacGeneration spotted comments in the open source WebKit mailing list that reference iOS 12 running on the iPhone 5s.
Nothing is official just yet, and it’s unsurprising to see Apple test its newest mobile OS on its oldest iOS device just to see if the upgrade is worth it. It’s no guarantee that the iPhone 5s will be upgraded to iOS 12 — and you’d probably be better off buying a newer iPhone model than hoping the iPhone 5s makes the jump to iOS 12.
But what’s amazing here is that Apple is toying with the idea of upgrading a five-year-old phone to iOS 12. That never happens on the other side. Some phones stop getting major updates after three or even just two years. Also, after eight months, Android Oreo is still only running on less than 5% of Android devices.
Apple’s WWDC 2018 keynote is scheduled for June 4th, which is when we’re going to find out more details about iOS 12.