dempson

AppleInsider said:

Apple has also confirmed macOS Mojave will be the last version of the operating system to support 32-bit apps "without compromises." 

No they didn't. The slide at 20:20 into Platforms State of the Union said "High Sierra will be the last macOS release to support 32-bit apps without compromises".

The next slide said "Mojave is the last macOS release to support 32-bit apps".

"Without compromises" is in reference to High Sierra, exactly what Apple was saying last year. Mojave will run 32-bit applications, but with compromises. Apple has not said exactly what those compromises are.

The version after Mojave (presumably 10.15, due to be released in late 2019) will not run 32-bit applications at all.

AppleInsider said:

The Bank of New Zealand on Tuesday local time activated Apple Pay integration for customers living in New Zealand, making it the second major financial institution to provide support for Apple's service in the region. 

"region"? I think you will find that New Zealand is a country.

Interestingly, BNZ is offering Apple Pay even though it is owned by National Australia Bank, which is one of the three big banks in Australia which are doing everything they can not to support Apple Pay and promote their own system instead.

AppleInsider said:

The next update, 10.3.2, is already in its second beta and appears to cut off support for 32-bit apps and hardware, meaning that 10.3.1 could be the last version of iOS for devices like the 5c.

The second beta of 10.3.2 can be installed on 32-bit devices. This has been mentioned on other sites such as 9to5mac, and at least one Youtube clip. 10.3.1 and 10.3.2 beta 2 fixed whatever the problem was which resulted in Apple choosing to limit distribution of 10.3 and avoid distribution of 10.3.2 beta 1 to 32-bit devices. I expect 32-bit devices will get iOS 10.3.2 and subsequent 10.x updates.

I haven't seen anyone other than AppleInsider claim that 10.3.2 would be dropping support for 32-bit apps on 64-bit devices. That claim is illogical: Apple does not do that sort of large scale support cutoff in minor updates, only in major new versions.

The evidence is pointing to iOS 11 being the version that will drop support for 32-bit apps and devices. A 32-bit app cutoff at iOS 11 gives developers about six months to get their act together and update apps they and their users care enough about.

A 32-bit device cutoff at iOS 11 gives the iPhone 5 a maximum support window of about five years of being able to run the latest iOS version, which is the same as the iPhone 4s. (The iPad 4 gets one month less. The iPhone 5c gets one year less, due to being released a year later with an older processor, similar to the iPad mini's timing relative to the iPhone 4s.)

teaearlegreyhot said:

So am I correct in understanding that this 10.3.1 will be the final iOS for the iPhone 5?  
Is there any reason to update from 10.2.1 for those of use still happily using a new-ish iPhone 5?

10.3.1 will not be the final iOS for the iPhone 5. AppleInsider is jumping to the wrong conclusion (or continuing to beat a dead horse on their earlier wrong conclusion).

In my opinion, the only reason the iPhone 5, iPhone 5c and iPad 4 were missing in the first 10.3.2 beta is that it had the same bug that Apple discovered shortly after 10.3 was released, which resulted in Apple pulling 10.3 from being distributed via Software Update to the iPhone 5, iPhone 5c and iPad 4 (all the models with 32-bit processors). The 10.3.2 beta came out the same day as 10.3, and Apple didn't include images for models with a known bug.

When the second 10.3.2 beta is released (early next week or sooner), it will include the fixes from 10.3.1, therefore I expect it will include images for the iPhone 5, iPhone 5c and iPad 4.

As for reasons for updating from 10.2.1 to 10.3.1 on an iPhone 5: have a look at the big list of security fixes in 10.3 and another in 10.3.1. Apart from security, there are a fair number of new/improved features and bug fixes in 10.3, as well as other bug fixes Apple hasn't specified. One new feature I find particularly useful (for any model) is "New Settings unified view for your Apple ID account information, settings and devices".

The iOS 10.3 updates for 32-bit devices (iPhone 5, iPhone 5c, iPad 4) have also been pulled from distribution via Software Update, but when I checked a few hours ago those devices were still able to install iOS 10.3 via iTunes.

This looks like a temporary withdrawal of iOS 10.3 for a bug fix specific to 32-bit devices, rather than discontinuing support for those devices. The 10.3.2 developer beta is missing those images because the bug was discovered before the beta was released, the bug also affects that build, and Apple chose to exclude 32-bit devices from the first beta to avoid wasting everyone's time with pointless bug reports.

I expect the notably skipped iOS 10.3.1 will be released soon as a bug fix, will be available via Software Update for 32-bit devices, and the next 10.3.2 developer beta will include images for 32-bit devices.

Edit: Apple could also release an updated 10.3 for the affected devices, holding back 10.3.1 for something else, such as an as-yet-unannounced product.