Apple might put an end to almost 200,000 oldschool apps with iOS 11

Thousands of mobile developers might be in for a nasty surprise as Apple could be planning to obliterate a massive chunk of apps with the launch of its new and improved iOS 11, according to app analytics firm Sensor Tower.

While the Big A has long been nudging developers to update older apps to be compatible with the new 64-bit processors that kicked off with the iPhone 5S, it seems the electronics giant is finally taking firmer steps to make this happen.

Sensor Tower claims the move towards ending support for 32-bit software would render about 187,000 apps useless overnight.

While the firm says the number makes for eight percent of all titles available on the App Store, the real magnitude could be even higher as the research only takes into account apps that were submitted prior to the introduction of the iPhone 5S and haven’t been updated since.

Apple first began warning developers that 32-bit apps will become obsolete earlier in Janury when it began notifying users that certain apps “will not work with future versions of iOS.”

Now it seems all signs are pointing iOS 11 will be the definitive cut-off point for all 32-bit apps.

RIP 32-bit emulation mode in iOS 11? pic.twitter.com/byMFuJPuVN

— Peter Steinberger (@steipete) January 31, 2017

The news barely comes as a surprise at this stage. As Sensor Tower pointed out in one of its previous entries, a few months back Apple wiped out almost 50,000 apps that appeared to have been abandoned by users.

So in case you spot some of your favorite oldschool mobile software no longer exists on the App Store over the next few months, now you know what the reason might be.