If they went with something more aggressive (like 24 hours) it might annoy more users, especially those who keep their phones locked for a while but don't use them constantly

I'm one of those people. I charge my phone once a week. Most of my interaction with it is notifications on the lock screen.

Your usage style highlights why a one-size-fits-all approach to device behavior doesn’t always work

I imagine the number of people who don't unlock their iPhones in ≥24 hours is a vanishingly small percentage of the userbase. Especially since with new iPhones, just looking at the lockscreen with your face unobscured is enough to unlock it.

I imagine a vanishingly small percentage of the user base is still a very large number of people, that as an absolute number, would make up a significant percentage of the users of any other product.

Apple’s scale is so large, it’s easy to forget even tiny percentages are still actually really significant in absolute terms.

Your phone knows how often you normally use it. It could do something intelligent based on a usage pattern to restart when there’s an unusually long gap.

I can see this being too hard to explain compared to “reboots after 72 hours.”

That would be a good solution! A concept that merges predictive behavior with user convenience

Users that have an iPhone just for work would be affected with a 24h check. Even with 72h they might be affected, but it would be fewer (if you assume they work Fridays and Mondays)