Apple: 68% of 101% of devices visiting App Store run iOS 8

According to Apple, iOS 8 adoption is now at 68%. The last iteration of their mobile operating system, iOS 7, is at 29%. As for 'older' variants of iOS, 4% of people are still using a dates OS, according to Apple. The numbers detail a strong Christmas showing, too, with iOS 8 growing form 64% of December 22 — likely due to new activations. There's more to the story, of course, but Apple is still wrong. We're sure they know their distribution numbers, but they're still wrong.

We'll go back to iOS 8 for a minute, though. On November 12, 56% of iOS devices were using iOS 8, compared to 47% on October 5. That's a strong upward trend, and shows iOS 8 has become widely accepted.

You can also look to these numbers as indication that the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus are selling well as users with older devices and those from other platforms snatch the new-look iPhone up.

Still, something is terribly, terribly wrong, here.

The adoption rate for iOS 8 sounds right, when compared to analytics from other sources. As CNET points out, two other sources peg iOS 8 right around Apple's 68% mark, with a few degrees variation in either direction. Apple bases their numbers on App Store metrics, which should be the most accurate indicator of iOS adoption rates.

Instead, Apple is telling us that there are more than 100% of iOS devices running a version of iOS. Their numbers (68, 29, 4) add up to 101%, which could be some sort of rounding error — but come on, Apple.

Source: Apple