As I explained in my recent post, I think the 2022 WWDC Keynote was great, introducing numerous OS features that were practical, and helpful. I’m eagerly awaiting being able to use them. Apple is obviously listening to what its users need and want, and the features they introduced made this one of my favorite Keynotes in years.
And yet, in the face of so much positive, some Apple commentators seem to have to find something negative to whine about. Perhaps this gives them something to write about when they’ve written about everything else. Or, when everyone is being positive, maybe they think being a negative voice will make them stand out.
Whining About the Backward Compatibility of the Stage Manager Feature
In case you’re not familiar with it, Stage Manager is a feature to help users manage multiple windows being open at the same time. It will be available on both macOS and iPadOS.
However, Stage Manager will work only on devices with an M1 chip or better. Some writers speculated, without any evidence, that Apple restricted the feature to recent devices because they wanted to sell more devices. Or speculated that Apple had just screwed up by not making the feature work on older devices.
The Explanation for the Restriction of Stage Manager to Devices with the M1 Chip Makes Sense
When asked about the reasons for the restriction, Apple (Craig Federighi) explained that in order for the feature to function at an acceptable level, it needed the advanced processor and integrated memory speed of the M1 chip.
I’m not a tech expert, but that explanation made sense to me. I’ve experienced the quantum leap in computing power I experienced moving from a high-end intel iMac to a Mac PowerBook and then a Mac Studio. It was not an incremental improvement, but an entirely new level. It seems obvious to me that features designed to take advantage of the M1 chip will not be backward compatible.
Some writers, however, apparently don’t accept this explanation. They continue to complain that Apple is making 2-year-old devices obsolete. They claim this is a serious blow to customer trust, and that the lack of backward compatibility and support will undermine Apple and lead to dire results for the company.
Sometimes people of good faith see things differently, and that’s OK. But sometimes people make arguments that don’t pass the “straight face” test. I think this is one such argument. It seems to me it’s making a mountain out of a molehill for dramatic press headlines.
Some writers have gone so far as to dub this “the Stage Manager Controversy.” Really? A controversy for whom, them? A great headline for clickbait purposes, but in my opinion far from reality.
Significant Tech Advances Result in Less Backward Compatibility
It’s the nature of technology that things are constantly improving. Occasionally, that improvement is dramatic, as with the introduction of the M1 chip. When software takes advantage of dramatic improvement, backward compatibility will suffer. That’s just the way it is.
When iPads were released with the M1 chip, writers and podcasters criticized Apple for not taking advantage of the power of the chip by producing pro-level software to take full advantage of the new chip. Now that they have taken advantage of that leap in power with Stage Manager, they are criticized for not making that software backward compatible with much less capable pre-M1 chips. They can’t win.