Your Guide To iOS 9’s Features

Apple has officially started rolling out iOS 9, the latest version of its iOS mobile operating system. As expected of any new iOS iteration, iOS 9 comes with its own set of enhancements and new features. In this post, let us take a look at each one of them.

New and Improved Siri. When searching, Siri will now offer up the latest news headlines, your favorite places to eat, and even the most frequent people you call or text. This is made possible with a few tweaks that allows Siri to help you search based on time, location, and usage habits. Apple’s personal digital assistant has now been made more seamless when used with pre-installed iOS apps, which makes tasks such as setting appointments, creating reminders, and making notes all the more easier. Finally, Siri now detects your voice, which makes it even more personal.

Spotlight. The iOS 9 update has made Spotlight better at handling search. You can just swipe right to launch the Spotlight search, then key in or dictate a search, and search results will be displayed not just from the Internet but also from messages, emails, calendar, Wikipedia, and from other mobile apps. 

Split Screen. Users of iPad devices can now enjoy true split screen capabilities, by way of the new Slide Over and Split View functionalities offered by iOS 9. Plus, there is a new Picture in Picture feature that allows you to play a video on a certain part of your iPad’s display screen. Also, it should be noted that split screen only works on the iPad Pro, the iPad Air 2, and iPad Mini 4. 

News App. Basically, it is just a feature that delivers news to your iOS device. But Apple has made the new delivery process faster, easier, and prettier, and it allows users to access news without having to venture into the Internet (which could take some time loading pages and stuff). 

Ad Blocking. You can never really get rid of advertising, but with iOS 9 now supporting ad blockers, at least you can get a breather every now and then. This is more evident in Apple’s Safari web browser, whose reader view feature now eliminates ads from showing up. What this ultimately means for users is that they now can enjoy surfing web pages more without having to deal with those annoying (and even noisy) ads. 

Low Power Mode. iOS 9 also brings in better power efficiency for owners of iPhones and iPads. As a matter of fact, Apple is claiming that users can expect up to an extra hour of battery life. But with the Lower Power Mode feature, users can set their device so that it will limit how often it checks for new mail or refreshes mobile apps, and even limits automatic downloading. Brightness settings, including visual effects, are also minimized or even deactivated for optimum power mileage.

Wi-Fi Assist. This is how the feature works -- if there is a Wi-Fi connection, the Wi-Fi Assist automatically connects your iOS device to the network, but when you find yourself moving to a location that no longer has Wi-Fi, the feature automatically connects your device to cellular data. It can be spotty at times, but the idea behind it is certainly spot on.

Apple Maps. The version that comes with iOS 9 now includes transit data within the mobile app that combines multiple stops and multiple mass transit options, e.g. riding the bus, taking the train, or walking home. 

You can download iOS 9 by going to Settings > General > Software Update.