iOS 17 and iPadOS 17 will drop support for the iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, iPhone X, first-generation 9.7-inch and 12.9-inch iPad Pro, and fifth-generation iPad, according to a source with a proven track record for upcoming software updates. The devices in this list were released between November 2015 and November 2017.
If this rumor is accurate, iOS 17 and iPadOS 17 would be incompatible with most devices powered by the A11 Bionic chip or older. The only exceptions would be the sixth-generation and seventh-generation iPad models with the A10 Fusion chip and the second-generation 10.5-inch and 12.9-inch iPad Pro with the A10X Fusion chip.
iPhones and iPads equipped with the A5 through A11 chip are affected by a bootrom security vulnerability that Apple cannot patch on these devices, as the bootrom operates in a read-only state. The exploit has allowed for these devices to be perpetually jailbroken on a wide range of iOS versions, allowing users to modify the iOS file system.
Last year, iOS 16 and iPadOS 16 dropped support for quite a few devices, including the iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus, original iPhone SE, final iPod touch, second-generation iPad Air, and fourth-generation iPad mini.
Apple is expected to announce iOS 17 during its WWDC keynote on June 5.
