iOS 9 is official. But the OS we saw unveiled at this years World Wide Developers Conference was more than just an update to Apple’s venerable Mobile OS. Its got a lot more features, a lot less junk, and more interestingly, might offer a solid glimpse into the future of Apple’s OS as it slowly becomes unified across all devices. This is everything you need to know about iOS9.
Siri is Proactive.
One of the highlights of iOS9 is how smart it has become. Siri is much smarter – she can even set up reminders for you now – and now a new feature called Proactive makes it much more aware. Proactive allows Siri to learn how you use her services and predict what you might be doing with your phone.
Craig Federighi took us on a tour of his day-to-day life to explain for Proactive works across iOs 9 and multiple Apps.
A great example was music: If you plug in your headphones after, say, 5:15 pm every day and listen to a certain type of music as you hit the gym, Proactive will learn this behaviour and start suggesting it to you.
Proactive can even suggest who an unknown caller might be. It can suggest apps you use based on what time of day it is, and can even suggest locations that you are close to. Best yet, Proactive comes with its own API. It feel like Google Now, but its a major update for iOS users.
News
iOS 9 saw the introduction of a brand-new app, News. Set to replace the (still young in the tooth) Newstand app, News looks, and is, a lot like Flipboard. It’s a simple, clean, streamlined way to read content from Bon appetite, The NYT, The Atlantic, and a lot more.
Maps
We saw a huge update to the bug-plagued Maps app. Finally, iOS users will get public transportation routes and some contextual upgrades. Users now have the option of getting routes for buses, subways and more. Beyond that, the Maps app will even have the ability to tell you WHERE to enter the subway to get on the right train. It also comes with better search functionality, and, of course, Apple Pay.
Security
Apple talked up its security at WWDC, and is, finally, enabling two-factor authentication. As Apple freely admitted, with iOS being more intelligent and predictive, privacy on your phone will be an even bigger issue. Federighi didn’t spend that much time on showing off iOS 9, but a lot of that time WAS spend on reassuring people who Apple won’t be collecting and selling your data and information – You and your usage information will be anonymous, and use a random ID number
MultiTasking
Maybe users of the surface enjoy using two apps at once, an inability on iPad that has really bothered some people. Well, today Apple introduced Mutitasking.
Most models of iPad will be able to use Slide Over, letting you swipe a second app onto your screen while still using the Main app. Picture-in-Picture is exactly what it sounds like, letting you keep a video playing in the bottom left of your screen while you work on something else. Then there is SplitView, letting you split the screen size between two apps and use them both. This feature only comes to the iPad Air 2, however, and you can choose from a 50/50 or 60/40 view.
Download size.
iOS 8 cost users 4.6 Gigabytes(!) and that really ticked many people off. It seems Apple has heard the grumbling and taken heed of the warning. iOS 9 clocks in at a lowly 1.3 Gig.
When and Where
iOS9 will be free in the Fall, and no devices are being dropped for this release. There will also be a public beta coming in July which you can sign up for here.
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