Apple Releases Updates for Current and Previous Versions of iOS and iPadOS

Apple released yesterday the 26.2.1 versions of iOS, iPadOS, and watchOS, and the new bits add support for the just-announced second-gen AirTag. For Apple Watch users, watchOS 26.2.1 also brings AirTag Precision Finding to the Apple Watch Series 9 or newer and the Apple Watch Ultra 2 or newer.

Apple’s second-generation AirTag comes with a louder speaker and a second-generation Ultra Wideband chip, which allows it to be found up to 50% farther away than the previous generation. Until now, Precision Finding was only available on iPhones.

Yesterday, Apple also released the versions 18.7.4, 16.7.13, 15.8.6, and 12.5.8 of iOS and iPadOS. These updates extend the certificate required by features such as iMessage, FaceTime, and device activation to continue working after January 2027.

iOS 12 and iPadOS 12 were released no less than 7 years ago, and these versions support very old devices such as the iPhone 5s, iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, iPad Air, iPad mini 2 and 3, and 6th gen iPod touch. If you own one of these devices, you’ll likely be glad to know that Apple is making sure that its core services remain available, even though many third-party apps may have already dropped support for these older versions of iOS and iPadOS.