Have an Old iPhone or iPad? iCloud Backups & Safari Bookmark Syncing Will Soon Not Work

Apple is dropping support for iCloud backups for iPhone or iPad running iOS 8 or earlier. Additionally, Apple is also dropping support for Safari Bookmark Syncing for devices running iOS 10 or earlier, or macOS Sierra 10.12.5 and earlier.

While this will not impact the vast majority of people, there are many older model iPhone, iPad, and Mac devices still in use out there, many of which continue to run older versions of iOS, iPadOS, and MacOS. Thus, these changes will undoubtedly impact some users and their older devices, and they should be aware of these changes.

iCloud Backups no longer supported for iOS 8 and earlier

iCloud backups will no longer be supported for any iPhone or iPad running any version of iOS 8 or earlier. This includes automatic iCloud backups as well as manual iCloud backups.

For older model iPhone and iPad that are running anything before iOS 9, users will continue to be able to backup their devices manually to a computer (Mac with Finder, or PC with iTunes).

This change was pointed out after a X/Twitter user got an email from Apple about the issue, which was given wider attention by MacRumors.

Apple recommends that users update their devices to newer system software, when possible. Of course it’s not always possible to update a device to newer system software that supports these features, so some users will just have to manually backup their devices instead.

Safari Bookmark Syncing no longer supported by iOS 10 or earlier, and MacOS Sierra 10.12.5 or earlier

Safari Bookmark Syncing is a popular feature that, as the name implies, syncs Safari bookmarks between devices using the same iCloud / Apple account, and this feature will no longer be available on any iPhone or iPad running iOS 10 or earlier, or any Mac running macOS Sierra 10.12.5 or earlier. This also means that Safari bookmarks from those operating systems will not be recoverable or accessible from iCloud.com as well.

Mac users can update to macOS Sierra 10.12.6 or later and keep this feature. If you’re interested in updating MacOS, you can do so through  Apple menu > System Preferences > Software Update, or you can download a MacOS installer for whatever version you’d like as well.

iPhone and iPad users can update to iOS 11 or later to keep the Safari bookmark syncing feature. Updating iOS is done through Settings > General > Software Update.

If you can’t update your iPhone, iPad, or Mac for whatever reason, Apple suggests exporting your bookmarks. They have a support page here dedicated to this issue for those interested.

These are much older iOS and MacOS versions, does this really matter?

Many iPhone, iPad, and Mac devices running older versions of system software are still in use by many users, all around the globe. It’s quite common for some people to simply not care what version of iPhone they have if they only make phone calls with it and send or read the occasional text, particularly with older iPhone users and tech minimalists. It’s also very common to hand down older iPhones, Macs, and iPads when someone gets a new one, and often there’s a chain of hand-me-downs that occurs within families, from parent to older kid to younger kid. Thus, while it’s by no means a majority of people, there are certainly older iPhone, iPad, and Mac hardware still in use by many people, and therefore being able to use iCloud backups or Safari bookmark syncing is quite relevant to them.