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This may be why Apple's Weather app doesn't show 69-degree temperatures

Apple's Weather app could be avoiding a socially significant number

Reports indicate that Apple's Weather app may avoid the number 69 in its user interface, but while some have suggested that it's censorship, it's more likely a conversion issue.

Apple is renovating its Weather app for iOS 15, and it seems some versions of the app purposely avoid displaying 69 degrees Fahrenheit temperatures. But while it may seem like Apple is censoring the oft-joked-about number, its absence may actually be a result of converting from Celsius to Fahrenheit.

The Verge, for example, suggests that it may be some kind of attempt to cut down on 69-related humor. However, 69-degree temperatures are only absent on some versions of the iOS Weather app, making censorship an unlikely scenario.

One former Apple developer shared a hypothesis behind the absence. Specifically, the Weather app may be using Celsius temperatures internally, then converting them in whole numbers to Fahrenheit for displaying on the user interface.

That means Apple's Weather app would never be able to show 69 degrees as a result. This "bug" doesn't affect everyone, however, as 69 degrees can be seen in the iOS 15 beta.

Pavao's theory seems the most reasonable, as it is highly unlikely that Apple would avoid showing a temperature just to keep social snickering to a minimum.

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43 Comments

CheeseFreeze 1339 comments · 7 Years

By now Apple should accompany an exact 69 degrees with a little video containing “the action” in the Weather app.

mike1 3437 comments · 10 Years

Somewhat related, though not as funny, is why on earth there is no Weather App for the iPad. Boggles the mind.

sflocal 6138 comments · 16 Years

What a sad state of the human condition when people complain about some temperature numbers not displaying.  Seriously.  Is this part of the new "woke" fad?

mknelson 1148 comments · 9 Years

sflocal said:
What a sad state of the human condition when people complain about some temperature numbers not displaying.  Seriously.  Is this part of the new "woke" fad?

It's more anti-woke: "They're censoring mah lies! waaaa!"  ;)

Funny how people would notice that pattern. Was it just seeing 68, then 70?

dewme 5775 comments · 10 Years

mike1 said:
Somewhat related, though not as funny, is why on earth there is no Weather App for the iPad. Boggles the mind.

Full boggle indeed. I use Dark Sky on all of my iOS and iPad devices and its been put on the cut list. Not sure what I'll do when Dark Sky is no longer available. Hopefully Apple's next gen weather app will be present on iPadOS. I used to use Weather Underground, but it went completely off the rails and straight into the crapper when it was acquired by a larger weather agency.