Quick summary
Netflix has dropped support for iOS 16 with its latest app update.
That means phones that can't run iOS 17 or later aren't supported anymore.
Netflix has just cut off a few older iPhone and iPad models by updating its app to a version that can only run on iOS 17 or 18.
Opening the old version of that app on a phone running iOS 16 will now display a message: "We’ve updated the Netflix app! To use the latest version, install iOS 17 or later". That doesn't leave a huge amount of wriggle room.
This means that you either need to update your phone to iOS 17 or later, or face the prospect of an upgrade if you want to keep using Netflix, and it cuts off a few older Apple devices that actually don't have compatibility with the newer operating system software.
These include:
- iPhone 8
- iPhone 8 Plus
- iPhone X
- iPad 5th-gen (2017)
- iPad Pro 1st-generation
So, it's obviously quite old hardware that's affected, given that Apple typically allows phones to update to new iOS versions for around five years after they come out, if not slightly longer.
However, this will still be bad news for anyone running those older devices – especially in the case of the iPad models that can't update. After all, while a super-old phone can be a bit obstructive in many cases, plenty of us keep older tablets around until they're basically non-functional, so long as they can still stream movies and TV shows.
It would probably have been nice to get some warning from Netflix, admittedly, but this sort of software support ending can't come as a huge surprise on phones that might have been released all the way back in 2017 at the earliest.
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Max is a freelance writer with years of experience in tech and entertainment. He's also a gaming expert, both with the games themselves and in testing accessories and consoles, having flexed that expertise at Pocket-lint as a features editor. He has tested all manner of tech too, from headphones and speakers to apps and software.
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