Think Tap Blog

Requiring iOS 5

Marco Arment, the creator of Instapaper, recently published a breakdown of devices and OS versions for everyone who uses his app. He reveals that only 45.1% of his users are using iOS 5.

Many developers have been asking what is the minimum OS version they should target. This is particularly relevant to Think Tap Work since we just released Cricket Words and we decided to enforce iOS 5 as a minimum version. We utilize Game Kit’s turn-based gaming features that were just introduced so this seemed like a simple decision. Now that Cricket Words has been in the wild for 2 weeks it feels pertinent to ask: was this the right decision?

As of right now the answer is no, this was not a good decision. What have we seen? Some days our download numbers will be double the number of user’s who begin playing the game in that same time period.

Why is this relevant? Apple does not give you numbers on where users are downloading your app from (iPhone App Store, iPad App Store, or the desktop version of iTunes) so it’s impossible to make definitive statements. To me, it seems likely that many users are downloading the game from iTunes on their desktop computer but having trouble when they go to sync with a non-iOS 5 device.

There are edge factors to consider as well. For instance, if a user were to experience what I just described would they be likely to leave a negative review or rating? Quite possibly.

What’s the answer? Progressive enhancement, if at all possible. Web designers and developers are well-familiar with this method. Provide the basics for everyone. Provide the cutting-edge for those who are cutting-edge.

Supporting older OS versions can be a pain. No doubt about it. We’ve been there. At the same time if you’re trying to launch something and have it spread you want to cast your net as wide as possible. We failed to do that with the first release of Cricket Words. We’ll be correcting this in version 1.2, which will include a new one-player mode that will be available to iOS 4.x devices.

It’s too soon for iOS 5-only. Lesson learned.