The Only iPhones Receiving New iOS 15 Updates Are Those That Cannot Run iOS 16.

 

The image is just an illustration from freepik

The last-generation iPod Touch, iPhone 6S, and iPhone 7 all switch to a security-only update approach.

Apple launched new iOS and iPadOS 15.7.2 upgrades earlier today as part of the flurry of operating system updates that brought the majority of the iOS 16.2 security patches to the previous version of the operating system.

Following the release of iOS 16, both 15.7 and 15.7.1 were made available to support both older devices that couldn't run iOS 16 and newer devices whose owners didn't want to upgrade to iOS 16. Less devices are supported by the iOS 15.7.2 upgrade. Our emphasis is from Apple's security updates page:

Owners of iPads running iPadOS 15 can still download the 15.7.2 upgrade rather than iPadOS 16, however owners of more recent iPhone models must install iOS 16.2 to acquire all the most recent security updates. Similar to this year, the business continued to support iOS 14 for a short while after iOS 15 was released before ending that support. (This year, Apple may regard iPhones and iPads differently due to the fact that the first public release of iPadOS 16 occurred one month after the first public release of iOS 16).

Even if older phones are no longer supported by newer iOS versions, they will continue to keep their owners secure for a little longer assuming Apple keeps releasing these iOS 15 upgrades for them. For nearly three years after iOS 13 was released, Apple continued to maintain outdated iPhone 5S and iPhone 6 models that couldn't be upgraded to iOS 13. They did this by frequently issuing security-only updates for iOS 12.

As usual, Apple hasn't specified a specific date for iOS 15 or iPad OS 15's end of service. We've gotten in touch to inquire about the company's future plans for providing iOS 15 security updates for older devices, and we'll update this article if we hear back.