developer relations have hit another sour note. At the company’s hardware event on Tuesday, where it announced new Apple Watch devices and iPads, Apple surprised developers with the news that it would be releasing the updated versions of its major software platforms, iOS 14, iPad OS 14, watchOS 7 and tvOS 14 on September 16, giving them less than a day to prepare.
The unexpected and accelerated timeline left many developers scrambling to ready their apps for App Review and has complicated developers’ plans for the iOS 14 launch day.
Some, like popular podcast player, Overcast, simply informed its users that its planned iOS 14 features won’t be ready.
Others are less forgiving, noting that Apple’s decision to release iOS 14 without looping in the developer community has added, as developer Steve Troughton-Smith put it, “a whole lot of unnecessary stress on developers in an otherwise stressful year.”
In addition, Apple’s decision impacts those developers who choose to wait to support iOS 14.
Typically, developers will often leverage an iOS launch day to promote their apps’ new features via press releases, blog posts and social media. News coverage from app review sites may even include roundups of notable updates to favorite apps, or highlight those apps that have taken advantage of new iOS features in interesting ways.
This year, instead, the developer community can’t worry about chasing press and accolades, as they now have to get their app ready for the iOS 14 update ahead of schedule.
Source: Apple burns developer goodwill with surprise release of iOS 14 | TechCrunch
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