Apple showed iOS 5 this week and released a beta version for developers. iOS 5 includes over 200 new
features that will be available to iPhone, iPad and iPod touch users
this fall.
New iOS 5 features include:
- PC-free feature - iOS 5 users can
activate and set up their iOS iPhone or iPad. - FaceTime over a 3G connection.
- New accessibility options for hearing, vision, and cognitive disabilities. iOS 5 works with specialized hardware
accessories. The LED flash and custom vibration settings let you see and
feel when someone's calling. - LED light and custom vibration notification for calls, text messages or alerts.
- Wi-FI Sync to wirelessly sync your iOS device to your Mac or PC over a shared Wi-Fi connection.
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With iOS 5 and iCloud, you enter your Apple ID and password, and
iCloud will seamlessly integrate with your apps to automatically and
wirelessly keep all of your mail, contacts, calendars, photos, apps,
books, music and more, up-to-date across all your devices without ever
having to connect to a computer. -
Notification Center provides iOS 5 users with an innovative way to
easily access all notifications?text messages, missed calls, calendar
alerts, app alerts and more, all in one place, from anywhere in iOS 5. -
Newsstand is an easy-to-organize bookshelf, displaying the
covers of all your newspaper and magazine subscriptions in one place. - Safari is updated in iOS 5. New features include Safari Reader, Reading List,and Tabbed Browsing.
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iOS 5 includes built-in Twitter integration, so you can sign in once and
then tweet directly from all your Twitter-enabled apps, including
Photos, Camera, Safari, YouTube and Maps - with a single tap. New APIs
give third-party developers the ability to take advantage of the single
sign-on capability for their own iOS 5 apps. - iMessage allows you to easily send text messages, photos,
videos or contact information to a person or a group on other iOS 5
devices over Wi-Fi or 3G. iMessages are automatically pushed to all your
iOS 5 devices. -
The new Reminders app helps you manage your tasks; create and group
related tasks together; and set time or location-based reminder alerts. -
New features in the Camera and Photos apps give you instant access to
the camera right from the lock screen. - Game Center - now with the ability to add photos to your profile,
purchase new games from within the Game Center app, and gives you easier ways to
find friends and new games. - Mail enhancements that include the ability to compose messages using
draggable addresses, and a new formatting bar with bold, italics,
underline and indention controls. -
AirPlay Mirroring to wirelessly display everything you do on your
iPad 2 right on your HDTV through Apple TV. - A system-wide split keyboard to make it even easier to type on your
iPad.
Availability:
The iOS 5 beta software and SDK are available immediately for iOS
Developer Program members at developer.apple.com.
iOS 5 will be available this fall as a free software update for iPhone 4, iPhone
3GS, iPad 2, iPad, iPod touch (fourth generation), and iPod touch (third
generation). Some features may not be available on all
products.