Apple has stopped signing iOS 13.4 following the release of iOS 13.4.1 last week. This means that, if you’ve upgraded to the latest version of iOS, it’s no longer possible to downgrade again.
iOS 13.4.1 most significant improvement was patching a problem with FaceTime that broke compatibility with older iPhones and iPads. News of the bug came to light shortly after the release of iOS and iPadOS 13.4 on March 24. Thanks to the upgrade, that is no longer a problem.
The update also fixed a bug whereby selecting Bluetooth from the quick actions menu on the Home screen would fail.
Apple routinely stops signing older versions of iOS such as iOS 13.4 soon after the new version has been released. This is intended to prompt as many people as possible to use the latest version of the mobile operating system.
While Apple doesn’t reveal how many users are running each build of the latest iOS, the strategy does seem to work. The last time Apple released its developer figures about iOS 13 usage (in January), 77% of iPhone users were running iOS 13. MixPanel figures suggest that number is now likely to be well over 80%. Stopping signing older iOS build versions is just one way Apple ensures the greatest number of people are using its latest version. It means as many people as possible have access to the latest features, bugs get fixed, and important security vulnerabilities get patched.
On Wednesday, Apple issued its second developer beta versions of the forthcoming iOS 13.4.5. The first beta version arrived in late March. Hopefully it won’t be too long before a finished version finds its way to users everywhere.
