Apple announced at its 2026 WWDC developer keynote that iOS 27, due later this year, will bring significant performance improvements to older iPhones, with support extending back to the iPhone 11, released in 2019.
The headline figures include app launches up to 30 percent faster (tested on an iPhone 11 Pro Max), AirDrop file transfers up to 80 percent faster (tested on an iPhone 16 Plus), and photo library load times up to 70 percent faster after taking a photo (tested on an iPhone 15). Additional improvements include faster PDF saving, quicker camera launch in Low Power Mode, smarter switching between cellular and Wi-Fi networks, and a rebuilt search engine powering Spotlight, Photos, and Mail.
Several of these gains come from optimizations to the iPhone’s CPU scheduler — the system component that manages how apps and services share processing resources. Apple said it brought algorithm advancements from its latest devices down to the iPhone 11 as part of iOS 27.
Francisco Jeronimo, vice president for Data and Analytics at research firm IDC, said the ability to keep older devices running well is a meaningful distinction for consumers. “This is a big differentiator between iOS and Android,” Jeronimo said. “Because consumers now know that if they buy an iOS device, it will last longer, and it will retain value at the end when they decide to upgrade.” He noted that many Android devices stop receiving updates after two to three years, depending on the manufacturer, while Apple typically supports its devices for six to seven years — a level of longevity matched among Android makers only by select companies like Google and Samsung.
Jeronimo added that extended software support matters particularly now, as consumers are spending more on smartphones than ever and are less inclined to feel pressured into upgrades.
Source: WIRED