Apple Developers Would be Required to Build with Xcode 13: Latest SDK Version

Urian B., Tech Times 16 March 2022, 02:03 am

Apple updated its requirements for developers in order for them to submit their apps on the App Store. Although the change may not be that big for some, others might find it a bit confusing as Apple is requiring all apps to be built using Xcode 13.

Apple Developers Now Required to Use Xcode 13 for All Apps on the App Store

According to the story by 9to5Mac, Xcode 13 is basically just the latest software development kit (SDK) version available as of press time The change will be implemented by Apple starting April 25 of this year.

The company notes that one reason for this requirement is that the latest Xcode 13 includes SDKs for numerous Apple OS.

The requirement basically means that Apple will only be accepting new apps that are compatible with their latest operating systems.

Here are the List of Compatible Apple Operating Systems for the Xcode 13

iOS 15
iPadOS 15
watchOS 8
macOS Monterey

Due to the new requirement for developers having to build their apps with the Xcode 13, they will be able to take advantage of the newer APIs that were just recently introduced.

Apple launched an array of application programming interface (APIs) including Safari Extensions for iOS, SwiftUI, SharePlay, ShazamKit, and ARKit 5 for both the iOS 15 as well as the macOS Monterey.

Apple Introduces New Features Aimed to Provide 'More Intuitive and Valuable User Experience'

Apple described the new features as "exciting" and said that they will help offer "even more intuitive and valuable user experience." In addition, Apple also notes that Swift's asynchronous functions will allow developers to improve their app's performance through code refactoring.

The company also announced that users will also be able to upgrade their app with new features including better search experiences, improved list views, and even support for control focus areas. This, per Apple, would be possible once users make use of SwiftUI's latest updates.

Latest Xcode Version Can Still Run with iOS 14 and macOS Big Sur

Apple also calrified that although developers would be required to upgrade their apps with the latest Xcode version, they would still be able to support older Apple OS. What this basically means is that the apps, despite using the latest Xcode version, would still be able to run on the iOS 14 and the macOS Big Sur.

Apple also released a list of the different APIs which aim to help developers improve the current state of their applications.

It should be pointed out that developers are not required to use every single API on the list. Instead, they can opt to rather pick out which ones could help their app improve with the help of the latest version of Xcode 13.