iPhone users, have you updated your devices to the new iOS 9 yet?
On September 16, 2015, Apple officially released their new update to compatible Apple devices. If you have not already downloaded it, go ahead and update now with over the air update. You can now update quickly without plugging your phone to charge with reliable WiFi and or connecting it to iTunes. Here are a few things you'll love about iOS 9:
Longer Battery Life
One of the things we care about more than anything in life is the battery, especially the struggle of seeing your battery life at 20 percent or below. With the new update, you can quickly go to Settings and switch to Low Power Mode or iOS will ask you through a pop-up if you would like to enable when the device is at 20 percent. This new feature disables things like background app refresh, automatic downloads, mail fetch, etc., extending your battery life as much as possible. When your phone is plugged in, Low Power mode will be automatically disabled. iOS9 is also programmed to know when your phone is faced down from proximity sensors, so when you receive a notification, the screen will remain turned off to conserve energy. The only downside is that it will take longer for your phone to charge.
Maps
Public transportation returns! Back in 2012, when Apple moved away from Google Maps and formatted their Maps, it devastated many who lived in cities reliant on public transportation. Now that the new maps now include Public Transportation (only in select cities**), people who have multiple maps downloaded to use other applications’ public transportation guidance can now delete those extra apps. When you plan a route, just one tap or asking Siri will showcase the schedules of public transits information with lines and stations, right in the palm of your hand. While searching through Maps, you can utilize the Nearby feature, which shows you a list of categories (Food, Drinks, Shopping, Travel, Services, Fun, Health, Transport) from each group and includes a more detailed list of items to choose from. For example, if you want Food, you can select what is popular around you—cafes, restaurants, and so on. This allows you to explore more around you.
**Currently only in Baltimore, Berlin, Chicago, China, London, Mexico City, New York City, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Toronto and Washington.
Back Button
Unlike Android phones with a universal back button on the phone itself, Apple's iPhone is programmed to allow you to jump from one app to another. If you have not noticed, in the top right-hand corner it says “<[app previously on]”. If you ever need to go back, just tap it and it’ll bump you right back to what app you were using before.
Siri
Siri just got smarter! Siri can now search and understand a wider range of topics along with answers, providing the user with more information and helpful suggestions even before asked; for example, in the Spotlight Search, recommended apps, news and locations will appear. Just talk to your Siri as you would to a friend, and it should have no problem understanding you.
“Find pictures from Chicago in May."
“Find videos I took at the beach."
“Read my latest email."
“Show my selfies."
“Get the ____ app”
“Do I have any new texts?"
The list of commands can go on and on; it all depends on how you want to interact with Siri.
Apple Pay
I instantly fell in love with Apple Pay since the day Apple launched last year with iOS 8. Even if you forget your wallet or don’t want to fumble through your bag, you can pay quickly and securely by tapping your phone with Touch ID. iOS 9 now includes more credit cards (like Discover), and will soon include store credit cards (Kohl’s Charge, JCPenney, etc.) and rewards cards (MyPanera, Walgreens, Dunkin’ Donuts, etc.).
Now renamed from Passbook to Wallet, Wallet also stores items like your digital boarding passes and tickets. What if you lost your phone? No worries, the accounts are protected! As soon as you notice that your device is lost/stolen, quickly use Find my iPhone through iCloud, suspend Apple Pay and stop the ability to make payments.
Notes
Bye-bye, Wishlist and To-do! With the new update, Notes is now “Noteworthy.” You can now take pictures from the Notes app, add text, save information from other apps, draw and sketch your ideas beyond expectations. As always, all your notes can be accessed from any of your Apple devices when connected and synced with iCloud.
