iOS is pretty good. The onus for dealing with rejected permissions (in many cases) is put onto the app developer.
For example, if you make a photo editing app, you need to request access to the user's photo gallery at runtime of the app.
If they refuse, it's fully expected that your app will continue to work with reduced functionality. IIRC you will have trouble getting approved for the app store if your app breaks after permissions are refused.
Yes, "was broken" seems like a better description. Still, it's pretty bad it lasted as long as it did - Symbian S60 already had that model before Android was even a thing.
For example, if you make a photo editing app, you need to request access to the user's photo gallery at runtime of the app.
If they refuse, it's fully expected that your app will continue to work with reduced functionality. IIRC you will have trouble getting approved for the app store if your app breaks after permissions are refused.