Apple’s software support is not a single on-or-off switch. Reading Apple’s own security releases index shows three distinct states a device can occupy at any moment: still receiving the current operating system, still receiving security-only patches on an older branch, or appearing in neither list Apple currently publishes.
The middle state is the one that is easy to miss, and it can last for a long stretch of a device’s life. Apple’s index at support.apple.com/en-us/100100 is the only place any of this is visible. Apple has not published a separate policy page that names or explains the three states.
Three states, read from one Apple page
Apple’s security releases index lists every update by name, the devices it covers, and a date. As of September 8, 2026, that page shows iOS 26.6.2 and iPadOS 26.6.2 available for “iPhone 11 and later, iPad Pro 12.9-inch 3rd generation and later, iPad Pro 11-inch 1st generation and later, iPad Air 3rd generation and later, iPad 8th generation and later, iPad mini 5th generation and later.” A separate row, dated August 17, 2026, lists iOS 18.7.10 and iPadOS 18.7.10 as available only for iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, iPhone XR and iPad 7th generation. Two releases, two device lists, both current in the same week.
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Key facts
| Release | Available for | Date |
|---|---|---|
| iOS 26.6.2 / iPadOS 26.6.2 | iPhone 11 and later, plus the iPad Pro, Air, base and mini generations Apple names | Sep 8, 2026 |
| iOS 18.7.10 / iPadOS 18.7.10 | iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, iPhone XR, iPad 7th generation | Aug 17, 2026 |
| macOS Tahoe 26.6.2 | macOS Tahoe | Aug 17, 2026 |
| macOS Sequoia 15.7.9 / Sonoma 14.8.9 | macOS Sequoia, macOS Sonoma | Aug 6, 2026 |
State one: still current
A device on the current branch gets everything: new features when a major release ships, plus every security fix that follows it. iPhone 11 and later, and the iPad generations named above, are the current-branch floor for iOS and iPadOS this week. The same devices are the ones set to receive iOS 27 on Monday, September 14, and it is the branch every device announced at Apple’s September event, including iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone Duo, will ship on out of the box.
State two: patched, but not current
A device can also sit on a branch that receives security fixes tied to an older major version number, without ever gaining the current OS. iOS 18.7.10 is that branch for iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, iPhone XR and iPad 7th generation: those four devices received a security update in August 2026 without moving to iOS 26 and without any of the features that shipped with it. macOS runs a version of the same idea, with more than one older branch active at once, which is its own story. Devices in this state are not receiving nothing, and they are not receiving the current operating system either. Apple’s index is the only place that distinction shows up; there is no separate page naming this state.
The three states side by side
| Platform | Current branch this week | Separate security-only branch this week |
|---|---|---|
| iOS / iPadOS | iPhone 11 and later; the named iPad Pro, Air, base and mini generations | iPhone XS, XS Max, XR, iPad 7th generation (18.7.x) |
| macOS | Tahoe | Sequoia and Sonoma, at the same time |
| watchOS | Series 6 and later | None listed separately in Apple’s index |
| tvOS / visionOS | All current models, per Apple’s index | None listed separately |
State three: absent from both lists
Apple’s index only shows what is actively receiving an update. A device whose name does not appear in either the current list or a named security-only branch is not shown getting patched under either heading, at least in the current snapshot. That is not the same as Apple declaring a device unsupported. Apple has not published a statement that any specific device has stopped receiving updates, and none is named here. This third state is visible only by absence from a page that changes with each release, not by a notice or a dated cutoff.
Why the middle state can last years
Nothing in Apple’s published material limits how long a device can stay in the security-only state. iPhone XS is an older model than iPhone 11, and it was still appearing in Apple’s index in August 2026, still receiving fixes, still not on the current branch. Apple has never attached a number of years or a number of point releases to how long that continues for any device.
What Apple has not said
Apple has not published a name for any of these three states, has not stated how long a device remains in the middle one, and has not confirmed which specific devices, if any, currently sit in the third. Everything above comes from lining up entries on one Apple page, not from a policy document.
As of Saturday, September 12, 2026, that index is the only public record of any of this, and it updates only when Apple ships something. Anyone tracking a specific older device’s status should check support.apple.com/en-us/100100 directly rather than expect a stated deadline, because Apple has not published one.
