[wavephorm]

  v8 is not actually much faster

I'm not concerned about raw performance. I'm concerned with Apple forceably making iPad 1 (along with all older devices) unnecessarily obsolete by restricting the web browser on the device.

A really good example is the iPad 1 is still using an obsolete version of the WebSocket protocol. That means web servers that want to support iPad 1, must run libraries that support an outdated version of the protocol (one that contains security vaulnerabilities). The protocol can never be updated because Apple won't allow new web browsers on the device. It's a two-pronged approach which both forces obsolescense, and forces developers to needlessly add backwards compatibility layers to cover all the bases.

This is many times worse than the nightmare web developers have been facing with IE6, IE7, and IE8 support requirements because in those cases there was always the option of installing another browser, or something like Chrome-frame.

[jdboyd]

So, an iPad 1 running the latest iOS still is stuck with an old WebSocket implementation?

If correct, that is just astoundingly crappy!

[wavephorm]

Even iOS5 uses the the hixie-76 draft protocol from 2010.