Nearly three quarters of all iOS users are running the latest major version of Apple's operating system, less than three months after its debut. A newly updated chart tracking App Store users through the end of last week clocks iOS 7 in at 74 percent of devices, which is up 10 percent from what the company reported in October. One thing that's helped: Apple put out new iPhones in September and new iPads in October, both of which ship with iOS 7. The operating system also saw the fastest adoption of any major Apple software release.
Fastest iOS adoption yet
We still don't quite know how many new iPhones and iPads Apple's sold since iOS 7 arrived in September (the company reports its current quarter next month). The picture's a little clearer on the iPhone side, with Apple reporting sales of 9 million new handsets in the first weekend both the 5C and 5S were on sale, something that likely bolstered iOS 7's share.
iOS 6 continues to survive on about 22 percent of iOS devices, while even earlier versions make up just four percent. None of these numbers break down the more minor releases that come between major iOS versions, or what's iPhones versus iPads and iPods. Apple likes to tout these metrics to pitch developers on integrating new iOS APIs and software features to their apps and games, something that can also break compatibility for users on older versions of the operating system.
The next notable update to iOS is 7.1, which is currently undergoing testing by developers. The update makes some slight adjustments to the built-in software keyboard, adds a new auto mode for toggling high dynamic range photos, and makes various other tweaks. It's unclear when exactly that's headed to users; developers have had it in their hands for the past few weeks.