Bloomberg‘s Mark Gurman says Apple is overhauling the way it develops and tests software, following the buggy release this fall of iOS 13 and iPadOS 13.
Gurman says the new strategy is already being applied to the development of iOS 14, which won’t be released until next fall. iOS 13 has already seen a higher than normal eight updates to fix bugs and add promised, but delayed features over the two months since its initial release.
The new process will see Apple implement “flags,” which will allow the Cupertino firm’s software engineers to selectively enable or disable buggy or unfinished features in a way to ensure that the software’s overall stability is not put in peril. This process is already in place at other tech companies, including Google and Microsoft.
Gurman claims that Apple has considered delaying some iOS 14 features until 2021’s iOS 15, as part of its efforts to ensure the upcoming software is more stable. Apple reportedly took a similar approach with iOS 12, delaying some feature until iOS 13. iOS 12 was known as a reasonably stable update.
Apple software engineering chief Craig Federighi reportedly announced the new policy at a recent meeting with employees.
The third major update of iOS 13 (iOS 13.3) is currently in beta testing.