When Apple stops supporting older iPhones and iPads with the latest version of iOS or iPadOS, it usually isn’t the end of the line—Apple keeps releasing new security-only patches for those devices for another year or two, keeping them usable while their hardware is still reasonably capable.

If your iPhone is one of the ones listed, you need to make sure you’re on the latest iOS software as soon as you can.

Macworld iOS 26 has been a controversial release, primarily due to the Liquid Glass UI spread across the entire system. While Apple has yet to share official figures, third-party reports suggest adoption is significantly lower than usual.

Apple’s iOS 26.2 and iOS 18.7.3 include security updates intended to protect device hardware, software, and data. The iPhone update to iOS 26.2 is recommended for newer models, while iOS 18.7.3 delivers an Apple security update for earlier devices.

Apple is still supporting at least two iPhones that are more than a decade old with new software updates.

Apple released a new update for the iPhone 5S, iPhone 6, and iPhone 6 Plus, but don't expect any new features.

Apple on Monday released an update to ensure FaceTime and iMessage continue to work on devices that don't support anything beyond iOS 12 and iPadOS 12. Apple usually promises five years of software updates for iPhones from their year of launch.

That’s not as cataclysmic a dropoff as Statcounter’s data suggests, even before considering other mitigating factors—iOS 26 dropped support for 2018’s iPhone XS, XS Max, and XR, for example, while iOS 18 ran on every iPhone that could run iOS 17.

OS 26 adoption now hovers at around 50%, according to StatCounter, but some users are still cautious about updating. New data published by SellCell provides a look at how users have responded to the push to update to iOS 26.