iOS 6 won't run with most features on 2 year old hardware.
Windows Phone 8 - Won't run on < 1 year old hardware.
ICS Can run, but doesn't because of carriers.
They're all shite.
They're all shite.
iPhone 4 will be 2 years old. It will only lack Siri, FaceTime over cellular network and support for 'Made for iPhone' hearing aids.
I wouldn't call that 'most features'.
So I get what with an iPhone 4? Passbook, Facebook, and a maps app that no longer tells me what train I can take?
Im going to have to stick to the most features.
The ability to run apps targeting iOS 6 and above, which is arguably more important than everything else you listed.
Yes yes I know Apple doesn't owe people free upgrades. It still bugs me.
A really big "jump to conclusions".
First of all, all of those are marvels of technology, a state of the art unbelievable even 10 years ago, and would be considered pure Star Trek level technology 20 years ago.
Second,
(a): not being able to run with SOME features (where did you got thay "with most" features from?) on "2 year old hardware" is not the same at all to (b): "not being able to run at all on < 1 year all hardware" or (c): "could run, but will not because of carriers".
You write as though your phone came with some kind of guarantee it would support future software.
Just because you can't upgrade to iosX doesn't make what you have shite.
No, I don't. I'm listing the three competitor OS's and explaining that they all suck.
Yes, it does. Because there is nothing wrong with the device from a technological standpoint, and it most certainly can handle the tasks. There are a few new things in iOS 6 that are going to be rolled into almost every new application, and they aren't in iOS5. So as a developer, I can either use Apples version and reduce my headaches by 1000 fold, or I can support iPad 1. This means that the list of available software is going to diminish significantly.