Apple breaks down iOS 9's features

Apple revealed everything you wanted to know about iOS 9 at its keynote during WWDC.

Tue, 09 Jun, 2015 - 01:00

iOS 9 is available right now to those enrolled in the iOS developer program. But the rest of us will have to wait until either the public beta in July or later this year when it’s expected to launch alongside a new iPhone.

Siri is now smarter than ever and can work out what you mean by ‘it’ or ‘this’ depending on the context. For example, if you’re talking about something with a friend in iMessages and ask Siri to "Remind me about this later today," it'll scan the open app and try to understand what "this" means.

She’ll also be more aware of surroundings. If you plug in headphones while at the gym, the Now Playing interface will be available from the lockscreen; if you plug it into your car, Siri can open an audiobook you’ve been listening to or even tell you when you need to leave to make an appointment.

Speaking of appointments, Siri will put new appointments in your calendar. Overall, Siri will be quicker and more accurate, as well as capable of doing more.

iOS 9 will also bring an improved QuickType keyboard to the iPad. This should make typing and editing much easier.

The new operating system will make it easier to multitask. On the iPad, iOS 9 introduces Split View and picture-in-picture viewing. Slide Over lets users open a second app without leaving the app they're currently using. Split View will only be available on the iPad Air 2, but the other views will be available to all other iPad users.

iOS 9 will be quite inclusive. It will be available on the iPad 2 and later, on the iPad mini and later, from the iPhone 4s onwards, and even on the iPod touch 5th gen.

It’s likely that iOS 9 will arrive in September alongside a new iPhone. But those hoping to get their hands on a work-in-progress version will be able to download the beta from July.