Credit: Robert Triggs / Android Authority
TL;DR
- Apple just updated 10+ year-old devices to extend a digital certificate that keeps iMessage, FaceTime, and device setup working past 2027.
- Without this fix, these devices would slowly break. Once the certificate expired, they’d lose access to Apple’s servers and core features.
- The update is about functional life support, not new features; devices remain on old iOS 12 and many modern apps won’t work.
Supporting a smartphone for more than a decade sounds almost impossible with how quickly new models come out these days, as in the case of Android models. But this week, Apple did just that by releasing a software update for iPhones that were first released more than 10 years ago.
Apple has quietly released iOS 12.5.8, a surprise update for legacy hardware that can’t run modern versions of iOS, as spotted by a Reddit user. This includes the iPhone 5s, iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, the original iPad Air, the iPad mini 2 and 3, and even the sixth-generation iPod touch.
