iOS 9 Tidbits: Battery Saving Features, Search for Settings, Keyboard Changes, Email Attachments, and More

[MacRumors]

Apple covered the major new features of iOS 9 during today's keynote event, introducing a more intelligent and proactive Siri, split-screen multitasking for the iPad, major performance enhancements, Transit directions in Maps, a new News app, and more, but there are hundreds of other minor improvements that went unmentioned.

We've gathered up a list of some of the more notable changes and hidden new features in iOS 9 that have not yet been mentioned, to give you a better idea of what we can expect to see when the new operating system is released in the fall.

iCloud Drive - It wasn't mentioned during the keynote, but there's a new optional iCloud Drive app on iOS that can be turned on in the Settings menu. The app lets you access files stored in iCloud Drive.

Keyboard changes - The shift function has been altered once again, making it easier to determine when it's activated and when caps lock is turned on. With shift pressed, all letters on the keyboard are now shown in upper case. With shift off, letters on the keyboard are lower case. On iPad, there are new edit controls, and the keyboard now uses the new San Francisco font.

Shift on at top, shift off at bottom​

Find My Friends/iPhone - Find My Friends and Find My iPhone are both default apps with iOS 9 and come installed automatically. Before these needed to be downloaded from the App Store. Find My Friends can be added to the Notification Center, where it tracks the location of your friends.

Battery saving - Using ambient light and proximity sensors, your iPhone now knows when it's facedown on a table and will not turn the screen on, even when a Notification is received. Other enhancements add an additional 1 hour of battery life to the iPhone with iOS 9, and there's a new Low Power Mode that increases battery life another three hours. You'll get pop ups suggesting you turn on Low Power Mode when your iPhone reaches 20% and 10% battery life.

Battery settings - To go along with all the new battery features, there's a new dedicated "Battery" section in the settings app, where Low Power Mode can be turned on. It also displays more detailed battery usage information that can be sorted by apps using the most and the least amount of power. With Low Power Mode, background activity, motion effects, and animated wallpapers are disabled. Battery information is also displayed in the Notification Center, for both Apple Watch and iOS device.

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Article Link: iOS 9 Tidbits: Battery Saving Features, Search for Settings, Keyboard Changes, Email Attachments, and More

 

[AngerDanger]

It wasn't mentioned during the keynote, but there's a new optional iCloud Drive app on iOS that can be turned on in the Settings menu. The app lets you access files stored in iCloud Drive.

Great, now make it so you can turn every other stock app on and off.

 

[usarioclave]

Ugh, I used the upper/lowercase keyboard on Android and hated it. The differing keys mess with my hit targeting. Maybe Apple figured out a way to make it less crappy.

 

[Cougarcat]

Does anyone know what the low-power mode actually does? Edit: nevermind. Either I'm crazy or the article was updated after I posted this.

 

[iTom17]

iOS 9 is getting better and better!

Love all the little features. The ability to actually put an attachment in Mail alone makes it a great release for me.

 

[JPLC]

Some stuff is good. But most, again a lot more noise in the UI. iOS has some function overkill.

I really like the News app and Music. Can't wait to use splitscreen on my iPad. And Siri? Yeah, lets see about that...

 

[Supacon]

This is exciting. Some really great little tweaks here! Loving the lowercase letters on the keyboard that disambiguate the Shift situation as well as the ability to disable "Shake to Undo", which has been the most annoying user-interface method of all time.

 

[enthusiastic]

Edit: I'm very lazy.

 

[yg17]

I really hope the 6 digit passcode is optional.....

 

[Monique1]

iOS 9 is getting better and better!

Love all the little features. The ability to actually put an attachment in Mail alone makes it a great release for me.

Yep. Only took them 9 tries. LOL!

 

[s2mikey]

Some of these features are actually cool. Funny how there in a separate thread from the main WWDC thread. Nice summary and post.

 

[_Refurbished_]

Regardless of what this article says, I'm sure we'll still see the threads listed below:

#1 - My battery life is terrible w/ iOS9

#2 - My WiFi doesn't work after updating to iOS9

 

[terrapinjess]

Still no all day events in Notification Center, huh? Why do I even get my hopes up? Anyway, these seem like some great updates! Really happy with what's coming otherwise...

 

[Benjamin Frost]

I don't want a lower case keyboard. I can't believe they still haven't fixed the Shift key. Gordon Bennet.

Is it so hard for Apple to allow us a permanent row of numbers on the default keyboard? There's tons of space on an iPad. It's details like this that are still condemning the iPad's metamorphosis into a true laptop replacement.

 

[teslo]

this is a lot more of an 'enhancement' oriented release than the 'solidify and bug-fix' release that was rumored.

hope this still quiets the vocal minority with all their soul-crushing issues. you guys are frikken LOUD

 

[CrazyForApple]

This is exactly what I wanted from iOS 9! Thank you Apple.

 

[Captain Nougat]

I really hope the 6 digit passcode is optional.....

It is, what happens is for TouchID the default is now 6 digits, but you can go back in to the settings and change the password back to 4 digit or the longer alphanumeric password

 

[koruki]

waiting for an android user to come and claim they've had all these features 50 years ago

 

[ThisIsNotMe]

Can't wait to see what they do with 'content blocker' in mobile Safari. Hopefully it resembles Ghostery ( or AdBlock Plus) and would prove to be a killer feature.

 

[C DM]

Ugh, I used the upper/lowercase keyboard on Android and hated it. The differing keys mess with my hit targeting. Maybe Apple figured out a way to make it less crappy.

I don't think the keys or the layout is changing, just the label on the keys changes basically.

I don't want a lower case keyboard. I can't believe they still haven't fixed the Shift key. Gordon Bennet.

Is it so hard for Apple to allow us a permanent row of numbers on the default keyboard? There's tons of space on an iPad. It's details like this that are still condemning the iPad's metamorphosis into a true laptop replacement.

Well, they are "solving" the shift key by changing the button labels themselves.

Still no all day events in Notification Center, huh? Why do I even get my hopes up? Anyway, these seem like some great updates! Really happy with what's coming otherwise...

Yeah, after all this time still no display of all day events it seems. Unfortunate.

 

[isaace777]

What iCloud drive should have been upon release.

Edit: Deleted text.

 

[teknikal90]

ive been getting terrible battery life on my iphone. hoping a fresh install of iOS 9 will help

in other news the new font sucks

 

[TechRemarker]

I really hope the 6 digit passcode is optional.....

Yes, passcode will be optional just like it currently is. The only difference is if you enable a passcode now it will be 6 digits instead of 4. Though of course you could keep you current and simply add two 0's to the end or such. 6 however is a concerning number since most every average person will use their birthdate which will be the first things thiefs, friends and family and jealous partners try first.

 

[Oohara]

waiting for an android user to come and claim they've had all these features 50 years ago

Well let's be honest, Android has had some of them for quite a while. I don't care about who had what first though, I'm just happy to finally be getting some of that good stuff for my iDevices.

They're incredibly slow with improving the keyboard though. I mean, even Swype which now is available on iOS has the upper/lowercase change for Shift on/off. What I really hope they achieve is to make third party keyboards actually work in all situations on iOS. Then I can finally stop switching to my Note 3 whenever I need to write a longer text oin a mobile device.

 

[Paulshaqz]

i'm not seeing the batteries widget on the notification center anybody else having that issue? I'm reinstalling iOS 9 to see if that helps.