There have been many “petitions”—ranging from formal community outcries to technical bug reports and forum movements—asking tech giants to maintain 32-bit support. However, for most modern mobile and desktop devices, the “war” for 32-bit support has largely been lost to the push for performance and security.
Here is the current state of 32-bit software and the efforts to save it:
1. The Mobile “Hard Cut” (Android & iOS)
* iOS (Apple): Apple was the most aggressive. With iOS 11 (2017), they completely dropped 32-bit support. Despite significant backlash from users who lost access to old games and “abandonware” apps, Apple never looked back.
* Android (Google): Google followed a slower path. Since 2021, the Play Store has required all apps to be 64-bit. Starting with the Pixel 7 (2022), Google began shipping devices with 64-bit-only hardware/software configurations.
* The Hardware Limitation: Modern ARM-based chips (like the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 or Apple’s A-series) are physically removing the 32-bit execution state from the CPU silicon to save space and power. You cannot “petition” a software fix for a chip that physically cannot read the old code.
2. The Desktop “Grace Period” (Windows & macOS)
* macOS: Like iOS, macOS dropped 32-bit support with Catalina (10.15) in 2019. This sparked huge petitions from professional photographers and musicians whose expensive scanners and MIDI hardware relied on 32-bit drivers. Apple ignored these, suggesting users stay on older OS versions.
* Windows: Windows is the last bastion of 32-bit support. Windows 11 still allows 32-bit applications to run via a subsystem called WOW64 (Windows 32-bit on Windows 64-bit). While there aren’t many “petitions” needed here yet, Microsoft has stopped selling 32-bit versions of the OS itself to OEMs.