Gallery: Here Are the Highlights of Apple's iOS 9
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Search is smarter, and will now incorporate context-sensitive tools. Your current time and location impact your results by surfacing the most relevant info first. Headed out the door in the morning? Flip to Search (with a right-swipe on the homescreen) for nearby breakfast, coffee and tea locations.
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The way you use your device is your business—hence the term personal device—and with privacy enhancements to iOS 9, you can be sure that your data and usage stats won't be tied to your Apple ID or other Apple services. iOS 9 will also feature more robust six-digit passcodes and two-factor authentication to better keep your data secure.
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The new Proactive Assistant feature also uses context to surface relevant info, but it goes deeper than Search. It will suggest apps, contacts, and media based on your location, time of day and activity. It can queue up music for your commute, suggest relevant people to add to an e-mail thread, or alert you that you need to leave by 8:05 to make your flight. (Yes, it's a LOT like Google Now.)
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Passbook gets some love and a new name; it's now called Wallet. It still stores cards and boarding passes, but now can also hold loyalty and rewards cards, as well as Discover and store cards. In addition, Apple Pay is teaming up with Square to develop new contactless card readers that will enable independent merchants to accept Apple Pay in their stores.
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Finally, Maps is adding transit info, something we've all been clamoring for since Apple split with Google and forced its own Maps app down our throats. Not only is Transit covered in the new Maps, but it supports step-by-step transit-enabled directions and includes some station maps to optimize your route right down to the station entrance.
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Simple and elegant, the new photos scroller lets you scrub through your photos as you're viewing. No more endless back-and-forth between the large view and the collections panel—just hold and drag on the timeline at the bottom of the screen to flip through your photos quickly.
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The iPad gets more high-powered with the new multitasking and split-screen capabilities. Now, you can swipe or pull down to add any one of a number of applications to your screen, where it sits nestled off to the side of your primary app. Plan a route in maps while consulting an itinerary in Messages, or watch the game while you work up a to-do list in Notes.
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Replacing Newsstand is a more attractive, more functional News app. It delivers daily news stories based on your interests in a curated, easily navigable format. Stories are optimized for iOS devices, and publisher layouts are designed for iPhone and iPad. And if you didn't hear, you'll be able to read WIRED within the new app.
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Switching between apps looks a lot more like the tab navigation in mobile browsing with iOS 9. See full screen previews of your open apps and switch between them with quick swipes and taps. You can also add things to Notes—links, pages, maps, and more, all directly from an app.
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Siri gets an update in iOS 9 as well, boasting a new interface and deeper integration. Now the digital assistant can sift through your photos and deliver particular images based on time and location. She can suggest contacts and apps when you ask certain questions. She also powers Search and can perform conversions and simple calculations—great for around the kitchen when your hands are covered in waffle batter.
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