Are you getting the most out of your iPhone, iPad, or Mac? Here are my 5 favorite features of Apple’s latest mobile software – iOS 9.
iOS 9 has been in the hands of Apple lovers for a few months now, and after having some time to use it in day to day life I’ll give you my 5 favorite features.
1) Embedded News App
I’m a bit of a news junkie. I study political science at University and I’m always on the hunt for the best way to stay up to date. Leave it to Apple to solve my problems.
News is fantastic. It looks very similar to the new Music app layout which allows for continuity between apps and a relatively intuitive interface. There are five tabs across the bottom: For You, Favorites, Explore, Search, and Saved.
The For You tab is pretty simple. When you first open the app you can select channels or areas of interest that are important to you. Every day, the app compiles the top stories into a briefing that is fast and easy to read. This is my favorite tab because it makes if easy and fast to stay up to day.
Favorites lets you add to the initial list of highlights that you selected. It’s nice because it gives you some flexibility.
Explore works with the For You tab to show you things you might be interested in, but also shows you what news is the most popular at any given moment. This is my second favorite feature.
The last two tabs are self explanatory, you can search for an event or story and the app delivers all pertinent information to you. I also loved the Saved section because it lets me keep things that I might want access to later. It will be really handy for term research papers that ask you to cite current articles on a developing news story.
2) Siri Suggestions
It used to be when you swiped to the right of your home screen, you could just search for different items on your phone or iPad. You can still do that, but now you can do so much more.
Siri gives you easy access to the apps you use the most, some suggestions for things to look for in Maps, and also the most recent news stories. All of this is very helpful and lets you get to the apps you use the most often quickly instead of looking for them on your home screen or trying to find them in the multi tasking windows.
3) Notes
Notes got a HUGE upgrade in iOS9. Now you can add check lists, photos and sketches to your notes. You can also bold, italicize, and underline your text. You can also make bulleted, dashed, or numbered lists.
It’s very handy and makes formatting so much easier when you’re trying to jot things down and make sense of them later.
4) Multitasking on iPad
The new iPad multi-tasking features are wonderful. You can run two apps side by side, have an app slide out temporarily, and most importantly, you can set up Persistent Video Overlay which makes it so your video doesn’t stop when you press the home button (can I get a round of applause and a Facebook like from all you Netflix binge watchers our there?)
5) Longer Battery Life
I feel like my battery is always dying. Now I can control it a little more. Apple released a low power mode that reduces power consumption temporarily. If you know you’re going to be away from a phone charger all day, you can switch this on and your batter will last longer. It’s been very helpful for me twice already.
What are your favorite iOS 9 features?
Guest Author: Mason Kriz – I’m a student, technology lover, and problem solver. When I’m not helping people create solutions to their problems or in class, I like to play music, watch soccer, and come up with witty things to tweet. Follow me on Twitter: @themkriz.