Every year, Apple breathes new life into the iPhone with an update to iOS, the phone’s operating system. Last year, iOS 14 brought a relatively major update, with features like home screen widgets and the App Library. Earlier this year, however, Apple announced iOS 15, and it’s set to make just as much of an impact on our daily lives.
Currently, iOS 15 is in its fourth public beta, and that basically means that the operating system is still being tested and tweaked before a wide release. But, you can download it and install it on your iPhone if you wish. That doesn’t mean you should though. In fact, we’ve installed it on our devices so that you don’t have to. Apple has moved past the first public beta, and the second one is now available.
Excited for iOS 15? If so, here’s everything you need to know about the next-gen iPhone operating system.
The best new features in iOS 15
iOS 15 is set to get a ton of major improvements, and we’ve listed them here. That said, it’s important to note that many of the updates aren’t technically updates to iOS, but more to services like Maps, FaceTime, and so on. That means that the new features will be available on iPhones with iOS 15, but they’ll also be available on Mac computers running macOS Monterey and iPads running iPadOS 15.
Focus
The iPhone is finally getting user profiles. These profiles, called Focuses allow you to choose which notifications are let through based on your activity. For example, you could have a Sleep Focus that only lets through a call from close family members. Alternatively, you could have a Work Focus that only lets through work emails and messages from your colleagues. And so on. Users can also create custom Focuses.
Your iPhone will intelligently suggest new Focuses, and Focuses will sync across all of your Apple devices — which means that they’ll apply to your Mac just as much as your iPhone. Developers can hook into Focuses too — so third-party apps will work with them as well.
Revamped notifications
Notifications seem to get revamped every time a new version of iOS or Android is released, and this year is no exception. For iOS 15, notifications have gotten a design refresh, with more rounded corners and things like contact photos for people that have messaged you.
Notifications can be never-ending, however, Apple is attempting to fix that in iOS 15. In the update, you’ll get a personalized notification summary, and that can include a summary of less-important notifications at a time of the day that the user specifies. Not only that, but users can now easily mute notifications from an app or messaging thread for a selected period of time.
Search on iOS 15 is getting better too. On iOS 15, Spotlight can leverage information from your photos, including text from within photos. Users can also search photos from the web, and get rich search results for information about things like TV shows, actors, and so on. You’ll even get rich information about contacts, which includes location information if they have shared it, and recent conversations.
Apple Maps
Even Apple Wallet is getting some upgrades. Notably, the Apple Wallet app will support more key cards, including key cards for your HomeKit lock, hotel doors, and more. Apple Wallet will also get more remote car functionality, allowing users to honk the horn, open the trunk, and more, on compatible cars.
