Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Apple Says That All New Apps Must Support the iPhone X Screen (9to5mac.com)

Posted by BeauHD on from the heads-up dept.

Today, Apple emailed developers to inform them that all new apps that are submitted to the App Store must support the iPhone X's Super Retina display, starting this April. What this means is that developers of new applications must ensure they accommodate the notch and go edge-to-edge on the 5.8-inch OLED screen. 9to5Mac reports: Apple has not set a deadline for when updates to existing apps must support iPhone X natively. From April, all new apps must also be built against the iOS 11 SDK. In recent years, Apple has enforced rules more aggressively when it comes to supporting the latest devices. Apple informed the news in an email today encouraging adoption of the latest iOS 11 features like Core ML, SiriKit and ARKit. Requiring compilation with the iOS 11 SDK does not necessarily mean the apps must support new features. It ensures that new app developers are using the latest Apple development tools, which helps prevent the App Store as a whole from going stale, and may encourage adoption of cutting edge features. The rules don't mean that much until Apple requires updates to also support iPhone X and the iOS 11 SDK, as updates represent the majority of the App Store. Most developers making new apps already target iPhone X as a top priority.

3 of 80 comments (clear)

  1. It's not strange at all by SuperKendall · · Score: 5, Informative

    Hi, actual IOS developer here?

    What Apple is asking people to do is stuff they have been asking people to do since forever - to build using auto layout, or at least respecting margins the system asks for.

    There are a few technical nuances there, but not many. They are just asking developers to build in a. way that respects system margins so that stuff will look OK across many devices.

    In practice all the iPhone X is, is a larger bottom and top margin.

    It's not a lot of work to adapt for this, unless you've been hard-coding a lot of stuff and in that case - Coding Karma has come to bite your dull metal ass.

    --
    "There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
  2. Flog that dead horse by SuperKendall · · Score: 3, Informative

    Actually iPhone X sales turned out to be Xceedingly good.

    So what was that you were saying again? Oh that's right, just like most Apple Haters you are about three years out of date with reality and are just posting to make yourself look like an idiot.

    --
    "There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
  3. Re: If you can't sell it... by jtara · · Score: 3, Informative

    so Apps on non X-screens will effectively have a black notch at the top of the screen?

    No. That's exactly what they want to avoid.

    There are "safe zones" on each edge. You aren't supposed to put content in the safe zones. You can obtain the size of the safe zones using an SDK call. Or I presume if you use auto-layout, it's just taken care of for you.

    I write hybrid apps that use a WKWebview for UI. UI/WKWebview provides CSS constants for the safe zones:

    safe-area-inset-top
    safe-area-inset-bottom
    safe-area-inset-left
    safe-area-inset-right

    The values will be appropriate for the device the app is running on.

    Presumably this is usable by web sites so that they look nice on iPhone X as well.