iOS 8: 'A mishap of this scale is pretty inexcusable for a company the size of Apple'
On Wednesday afternoon, one week after iOS 8 launched, Apple released its first update – iOS 8.0.1. It immediately became apparent that the update was faulty with numerous reports of broken TouchID and no cellular reception.
Apple swiftly withdrew the update but the bugs still left a bitter taste in the mouth for many users. Whilst not being able to use TouchID isn’t that big a deal for users – save for the inconvenience of reverting to unlocking their phone with a passcode – it is one of Apple’s flagship features and one that Apple Pay will hinge on when released later in the year.
The bigger issue for users is the lack of mobile signal; apparently being able to make phone calls is still a necessary function of a smartphone!
A mishap of this scale is pretty inexcusable for a company the size of Apple, although it is hardly the first software company to release a faulty update – we see it time and time again.
It seems it rushed out the update to fix initial bugs that surfaced within iOS 8 and to enable the much anticipated HealthKit app. Apple is advising users to roll back to the original version of iOS 8, meaning they will again lose this functionality.
Adoption of iOS 8 was already significantly lagging behind that of iOS 7: five days post-launch iOS 8 penetration had only hit 36 per cent compared to the 58 per cent penetration iOS 7 reached during the same period (stats courtesy of Somo’s app tracking technology, Lithient). This flurry of bugs seems set to stem the uptake of the new operating system even more.
However, Apple’s brand is strong enough to withstand issues like this and the bending iPhone 6 Plus. It has many times previously – remember the Maps debacle and antenna-gate?
I guarantee as soon as it rolls out a fix in the next few days everyone will stop talking about the issues and focus on the new opportunities iOS 8 has to offer.
Maani Safa is VP creative and innovation at Somo