iOS 8 Adoption Reaches 81% Following Apple Watch Launch - MacRumors
Skip to Content

iOS 8 Adoption Reaches 81% Following Apple Watch Launch

by

iOS 8 Adoption April 27 2015Apple's latest distribution numbers show that 81% of iOS devices are now running iOS 8 or later, less than one week after the release of the Apple Watch. 17% of devices used to access the App Store continue to run iOS 7 and the remaining 2% are running an earlier software version.

iOS 8 adoption rose 2 percentage points since Apple shared its last distribution numbers earlier this month, with the Apple Watch launch last Friday likely contributing to the marginal increase. Apple Watch must be paired with an iPhone 5 or later running iOS 8.2 or newer.

According to mobile analytics firm Mixpanel, approximately 91% of devices were running iOS 7 at this time last year, meaning that iOS 8 adoption continues to be slower, likely due to a wide range of reasons including software bugs and excessive storage space required to install updates.

Related Forum: iOS 8

Top Rated Comments

148 months ago
Cool, I'm the 2%! (without the money ;) )
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Costino1 Avatar
148 months ago
I'm sure the early Apple Watch adopters really pushed iOS installs to their limits...

All 400 of them who received their preorders? *tongue in cheek.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
148 months ago
Why should owners of older - still perfectly working - devices upgrade if the upgrade is in fact a usability downgrade and their devices are much slower than before?

To be honest, iOS 8 hardly runs any better on my iPhone 6 than it does on my work 5C and 4S on iOS 7.

In fact, my 5, 4S, and 3GS on iOS 6 remains faster at navigating around the OS, with the 5 on iOS 6 being the fastest I have currently. I really hope Apple starts bringing back some element of speed, but they don't seem to be bothered one bit.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
allanfries Avatar
148 months ago
Hmmm! Still wonder how many of the 81% are new devices.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
furi0usbee Avatar
148 months ago
I'm sure the early Apple Watch adopters really pushed iOS installs to their limits...
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
SteveW928 Avatar
148 months ago
iOS8.3 will be faster than any version of iOS7 on any supported device.

Not even close. I'm running 8.3 on my iPad 2 and it's a total dog.

And be careful about benchmarks... the stuff I care about is how quickly the keyboard responds, switching between apps, etc. That stuff is all horrible under iOS 8. It has improved a bit, but is still pretty bad in comparison.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iPhone Handoff iOS 27 Feature

T-Mobile to Charge $5 a Month for iOS 27 iPhone Handoff

Thursday September 10, 2026 3:58 pm PDT by
T-Mobile will charge customers $5 per month to use iPhone Handoff, an e-SIM feature that allows the same phone number to be used on two separate iPhones. iPhone Handoff requires carrier support, and at launch, only T-Mobile users in the U.S. and Deutsche Telekom users in Germany will be able to use it. T-Mobile says customers can use their number across two compatible iPhone models and...
iOS 27 Feature Dark

Apple Announces iOS 27 Release Date

Wednesday September 9, 2026 10:46 am PDT by
At its event today unveiling the iPhone 18 Pro, AirPods 5, Apple Watch Series 12, and more, Apple announced that iOS 27 will be released later this month. iOS 27 has already been available as a developer beta since June and as a public beta since July, and Apple today said that the update will be released for all users with a compatible iPhone model on Monday, September 14. iOS 27 is...
iphone duo

IMAX Reacts to iPhone Duo's 1:1.4 Aspect Ratio Displays

Friday September 11, 2026 4:42 am PDT by
Production theater company IMAX has responded in a mixed way to Apple's embrace of a 1:1.4 aspect ratio on the iPhone Duo's inner and outer displays. The boxier ratio happens to be very close to the classic "full-frame" IMAX 1.43:1 aspect ratio, which comes from the geometry of the company's original 15-perforation/70mm film system. In response to an X post from someone wondering if we'll see...