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[TechRadar] Updated: iOS 10 release date, news and features

2016-07-17

Updated: iOS 10 release date, news and features

<img src="http://cdn.mos.techradar.com/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-release-date-june-2016-470-75.jpg" alt="Updated: iOS 10 release date, news and features"/><h3>iOS 10 release date, news, features and beta </h3>Update: iOS 10 public beta is available to download, and there are new features, like live streaming of apps, in the developer version. While the iOS 10 release date likely two months away, this is very much unfinished iPhone and iPad software. Here's the latest in case you want to wait.Apple's iOS 10 update for iPhone and iPad lives up to its milestone software version number, with the first official details announced at <a href="http://www.techradar.com/news/computing/apple/wwdc-2016-1320425">WWDC 2016</a> in San Francisco last month.As you'll read in our <a href="http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/ios-10-beta-features-preview-1324559">iOS 10 first look</a>, it's filled with major changes for your daily phone and tablet routine, but don't worry, all of the new features are for the best - and absolutely free to download. <mediainsert caption="null" mediatype="YouTube" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jnwW4VC8hPM" width="420">YouTube : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jnwW4VC8...ert>The Cupertino company laid out all of its mobile operating system specs in an all-too-appropriate ten segments. We break it down even further. Here's what we learned about iOS 10.<h3>iOS 10 release date</h3>Apple is once again planning a staggered iOS 10 release date among app developers, public beta testers and then everyone else who wants to wait for the final version.<img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-release-date-beta-420-90.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420" title="Three different iOS 10 release dates, depending on who you are"></img>So technically, iOS 10 is out right now. It launched the same day as WWDC in beta form to developers and trust us, Beta 1 wasn't ready for average iPhone and iPad users who aren't making apps.You didn't have to wait long to test out iOS 10 on your own. Apple launched the iOS 10 public beta just 23 days after the developer beta, and it'll help squash bugs two months before the official release date.That's good news. Last year's public beta was a success for Apple judging from the smoother sailing of iOS 9, and it continued that streak with new iOS 9.3 features that also went through a three-month beta.If you decide to wait for the final version of iOS 10, it'll take a while longer due to additional bug testing. A stable version of iOS 10 should launch alongside the new <a href="
://www.techradar.com/us/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/iphone-7-130399">iPhone 7</a> and <a href="http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/iphone-7-plus-1321126">iPhone 7 Plus</a> in September.<ul><li>Feel like taking a risk? How to <a href="http://www.techradar.com/us/news/world-of-tech/download%20iOS%2010">download iOS 10</a> beta right now</li></ul><h3>iOS 10 compatibility</h3>iOS 10 is coming to your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch, unless of course you have an age-old phone or tablet that still uses the 30-pin dock connector or is an older iPod touch.<img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-compatibile-iphone-ipad-420-90.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420" title="It's lightning or NOTHING!"></img>That's where Apple draws the new line in the sand for 2016. Its forthcoming mobile operating system update won't support for iPhone 4S, iPad 2 and iPod touch 5th gen.It's not a big surprise. In addition to their non-lightning connections, these devices include 512MB of RAM and stuck around for iOS 9 when we thought they'd be axed from that update last year.<h3>iOS 10 raise to wake</h3>Apple redesigned the iPhone and iPad lockscreen, giving us the biggest revision since the first iPhone nine years ago. Slide to unlock is gone and replaced with simple instructions: "Press Home to open."<img src="http://cdn.mos.techradar.com/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iPhone%206%20Plus/HandsOn3/6Plus-HandsOn-15-420-100.JPG" alt="iOS 10" width="420"></img><img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-raise-wake-200-100.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="200" class="zoomable lft"></img>What's been added is the ability to raise your iPhone to wake it, fixing the all-too-common issue of blowing past lockscreen notifications when you hit the fast TouchID home button. This is a great solution that we have seen on a select number of Android phones, like the Google <a href="http://www.techradar.com/reviews/phones/mobile-phones/nexus-6p-1305318/review">Nexus 6P</a> and <a href="http://www.techradar.com/reviews/phones/mobile-phones/nexus-5x-1305317/review">Nexus 5X</a>, and it almost reminds me of flicking my wrist to light up the <a href="http://www.techradar.com/reviews/wearables/apple-watch-1264567/review">Apple Watch</a>. This is the sleeper hit of iOS 10 that is going to change your daily iPhone routine. <h3>Rich lockscreen notifications</h3>You'll see that notifications are broken up into bubbles now and use 3D Touch to show hidden menu actions - just hard press on a calendar invite alert and you'll be able to accept or decline it.<img src="http://cdn1.mos.techradar.futurecdn.net/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-lockscreen-notifications-new-420-100.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420"></img>3D Touch-enabled iOS 10 notifications work even better for Messages. You can immediately respond to messages as soon as you pick up your phone, without ever leaving the lockscreen. It's all done inline.No more digging around the home screen and layers of app menus to check vital information. If you have a doorbell camera notification, you can see who's at the front door, use the intercom or unlock the door.<img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-apple-home-3d-touch-420-90.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420" class="lft"></img>This "peeking at apps" capability via the lockscreen isn't limited to Apple's first-party apps. Uber is just one third-party app maker that allows you to hard press on notifications. You'll get live updates on where your driver is on a map - usually headed in the other direction.<h3>Clear all notifications button</h3>What may be the best change to iOS 10 notifications is the ability to clear all of your old notifications with 3D Touch. Swiping them away one by one or dismissing them in groups is a time-consuming mess in <a href="http://www.techradar.com/news/software/operating-systems/ios-9-what-we-want-to-see-1253732">iOS 9</a>.<img src="http://cdn1.mos.techradar.futurecdn.net/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-clear-all-420-100.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420"></img>Just hard press that little "x" icon within the redesigned (and now dedicated) notifications pulldown menu and tap the "clear all" box that pops up. Tap it once to just dismiss the group of notifications.It's super easy to clear away expired alerts with iOS 10 and it will please everyone inflicted with phone notification-clearing OCD.<h3>Live broadcasting apps</h3>iPhone and iPad gaming is about to get a little more social thanks to the new ability to live broadcast apps (or record them for later video viewing) in Replay Kit-supported apps.<img src="http://cdn1.mos.techradar.futurecdn.net/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-live-broadcasting-420-100.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420" title="Live stream app content (Credit: Reddit/Coldplayer42)"></img>This is a big deal for not just iOS games, but also coding tutorials and <a href="http://www.techradar.com/us/howto">how to</a> guides. In fact, the existence of iOS 10 live app broadcasting was <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/apple/comments/4skq0e/ios_10_beta_2_opens_support_for_third_party_live/">discovered</a> within Apple's code-teaching Swift Playgrounds app.Apple announced the live streaming capabilities of Replay Kit at WWDC, so we did know it was coming. However, iOS 10 beta 2 (not the public beta 1 yet) marks the first time it's been seen within an app.<h3>Control Center is decluttered</h3>The swipe-up-from-the-bottom Control Center overlay menu has a brand new look that helps declutters the layout in iOS 10, and it's something Apple users have been asking for.<img src="http://cdn1.mos.techradar.futurecdn.net/art/AAevents/1WWDC2016/screengrabs/022-ios10-controlcenter-420-100.jpg" alt="iOS 10 release date" width="420"></img>It once again features four app shortcuts along the bottom (flashlight, stopwatch, calculator and camera app) and moves the fifth Beatle, <a href="http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/night-shift-how-this-ios-9-3-feature-helped-me-sleep-better-1317815">Night Shift</a>, to a new, bigger spot above the quartet. That fixes an issue where people said having five app shortcuts in that bottom row, a short-lived idea that came about when Night Shift debuted in <a href="http://www.techradar.com/us/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/ios-9-3-update-new-iphone-and-ipad-features-1313731">iOS 9.3</a>, made the buttons a tad too small.<img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/AAevents/1WWDC2016/screengrabs/021-ios10-music-420-90.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420"></img>Bigger AirPlay and AirDrop buttons appear above Night Shift, too, while toggles for Airplane mode, WiFi, Bluetooth, Do Not Disturb and Orientation lock are unchanged (except for their new blue hue when on). But what happened to the music controls? Slide right on the Control Center, and there's a dedicated pane for the volume, playback and device output controls, and even music album cover art.<h3>Lockscreen camera and 'widgets'</h3>It's easier than ever to flip on the camera with iOS 10 because sliding the lockscreen right (when Control Center isn't open) automatically transitions to the camera app. <img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-widgets-new-420-90.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420"></img>This is a camera app shortcut we've seen on several Android phones and it beats reaching for the bottom right corner, where the camera shortcut remains in iOS 9. You use the camera app everyday, why not make it easier to access?What happens when you swipe to the left on the lockscreen? Glad you asked a second question. It reveals a new spot for Apple's Today menu "widgets." It's not as customizable as Android widgets, but it's new location a big improvement.<h3>Graphical 3D Touch shortcuts</h3>Within the home screen, 3D Touching app tiles like Activity gives you a more graphical account of your fitness goals. You'll know faster than ever that you have to close those daily activity rings.<img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-3d-touch-apps-420-90.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420"></img>ESPN had even richer shortcut information within its 3D Touch menu. It runs scores and there's a button to easily add a widget. It's even more graphical, throwing up a drawn out play-by-play interface and video of in-progress games you're following.All of this peeking at apps can be done without leaving the home screen, and it means that 3D Touch is becoming a little more relevant in iOS 10.<h3>Talk to Siri normally</h3>Two billion requests a week go through Siri, and it's now going to do "so much more," according to Apple. With that, they announced that iOS 10 will open up Siri to third-party developers.<img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-siri-smarter-420-90.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420"></img>Now you'll be able to ask Siri things like, "Send a WeChat to Nancy saying I'll be five minutes late.'" It can be said variety of ways and still understood by the now-smarter Siri.In (very literal) other words, Siri also works just fine if you say it like "Tell Nancy I'll be five minutes late with WeChat," and even "Siri, can you shoot a message on WeChat and say I'll be five minutes late?"Siri for iOS 10, all of a sudden, is going to be a whole lot less "Sorry..." for miscues. This is thanks to what Apple calls an "intense API," which even functions in this new way in its multiple languages.<h3>Siri third-party apps</h3>Besides WeChat, Siri is ready for other chat apps, like WhatsApps and Slack, and ride hailing services like Uber, Lyft and Didi in China (which Apple invested in recently).<img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-siri-features-420-90.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420"></img>Searching photos through apps like Shutterfly and Pinterest can be done with your voice thanks to Siri, and you can start, pause and stop fitness workouts with MapMyRun, Runtastic and RunKeeper. Siri can also help you send money to friends with Number26, Square and Alipay, or start a VoIP call to tell your friend why you're not paying them on time via Cisco Spark, Vonage and Skype.<img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-siri-third-party-apps-420-90.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420"></img>This makes Siri much more useful now that Apple's personal assistant has broken free of pre-loaded apps, and makes driving a tiny bit safer thanks to messaging and VoIP integration for <a href="http://www.techradar.com/news/car-tech/apple-carplay-everything-you-need-to-know-about-ios-in-the-car-1230381">Apple CarPlay</a>. <h3>Siri-influenced QuickType keyboard</h3>Apple's on-screen QuickType keyboard can intelligently tell the difference between what you're saying and what computers usually think you're saying (but not) thanks to more advanced Siri intelligence.<img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-quicktype-current-location-420-90.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420"></img>Using deep learning kept locally, or what Apple calls "differential privacy," iOS 10 understands the wider context of what you're typing, influencing the words in the suggestion bar above the keyboard.It has better context by taking into account the whole sentence, not just spitting out the next guess based on the previous word.This will be completely opt-in, masked and stored on the device, according to Apple. That's different from Google's data-harvesting using its online servers. QuickType is also adding a handy button for your current location whenever someone asks "Where are you?" or requests someone else's contact information. That Contacts app will go further unused.<img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-quick-type-contact-info-420-90.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420"></img>Locally, Siri uses deep learning to analyze a conversation and is able to pick up on you and a friend talking about food, a proposed time and resturant address, and then pre-fill in Calendar event when you go to add it to the Calendar app. "Look at that, it's already halfway filled in," you'll say.Rounding out the QuickType iOS 10 features is the ability to paste a recent address you looked up without having to copy it to the clipboard, do the same for movies and restaurants you've searched and adjust to your multilingual typing.It's Apple new "easy button" for iOS 10, and it's all about shortcuts to everyday activities.<img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-photos-memories-tab-420-90.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420"></img><h3>Photos with advanced computer vision</h3><img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-photos-memories-organization-200-100.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="200" class="zoomable lft"></img>iOS 10 is going to make use of deep learning so that it'll be easier to organize photos with what it calls "advanced computer vision." This is how Apple plans to rival Google Photos.Again, stressing that it's done locally, Apple touts the Photos app's ability to create albums based on face recognition, and can do the same for object and scene recognition thanks to 11 billion computations. It also serves up a way to see photos overlaid on a map based on where they were taken.Apple plans to take Photos to the next level with Memories, which are supposed to remind you of events in life by clustering together photos into trips, people and topics. It seems to have a nice magazine-style interface I can get behind. iOS 10 will also let you assemble your captured photos and videos of a particular memory with a special movie that's cut automatically. It's customizable, with a number of mood choices and three length options, just in case you don't want to fine tune it yourself. Despite the AI-infused deep search and facial recognition capabilities, Apple promises privacy protection.<h3>Apple Maps is way better</h3>iOS 10 fixes my biggest complaint about Apple Maps - its inability to scroll ahead on a route. Right now, Maps annoyingly springs you back to your current location whenever you try to look anywhere else.You'll be free to pan and zoom around the map with the new Apple Maps update and the navigation software is also dynamically zooming in and out of long stretches and complex interchanges.<img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-maps-420-90.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420"></img>Maps for iOS 10 is adding traffic on route to better compete with Google Maps and expanding its Nearby functionality with more points of interest that you can find along your route.Vehicles that supports Apple CarPlay not only get suggested alternate routes based on traffic conditions, Maps' turn-by-turn directions can pop up on the instrument (if they have a screen next to the odometer).Apple is weaving iOS 10 information from other apps into Maps, like if it knows you go to work at a certain time, it'll make a suggestion for the route, or make one based on a calendar event address. That's just the start. It's also opening up Maps to third-party developers, so Uber riders can call, follow and pay for their ride without ever leaving Apple's app. It's getting there.<h3>Apple Music</h3>Apple Music with iOS 10 is being redesigned for its 15 million paid subscribers, and it "allows the music to be the hero," according to Apple. It lets the cover art stand out.<img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-apple-music-lyrics-420-90.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420"></img>It looks to be a much cleaner design, highlighting cover art properly and suggesting music that you'll like in a more logical fashion. But it's not going to excite you for iOS 10 if you're not a paid subscriber.The Apple Music refresh does add some more depth by way of lyrics (though it doesn't seem to follow along with the words like other apps do, like SoundHound do). The For You tab is does a better job at curating your personal playlists and it absorbs the Connect tab that we previously heard was getting a diminished role. Likewise, the 'New' tab has become 'Browse.'<img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-apple-news-update-420-90.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420"></img><img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-apple-news-breaking-notifications-200-100.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="200" class="zoomable lft"></img><h3>Apple News</h3>Apple News is reaching 60 million people every month with 2,000 publications and it's in for a redesign, too. The For You tab now breaks news into personalized topics and hand-picked stories by editors.News for iOS 10 will also introduce subscriptions so that you can see every issue of National Geographic or read the Wall Street Journal, periodicals usually behind a paywall.Breaking news notifications have been added to this pre-loaded app so that big stories appear right on the iOS 10 lockscreen.<h3>Home app</h3>Apple's developer-focused HomeKit is coming to end-users with iOS 10 (and also Apple Watch), and the new app appears right on the homescreen unsurprisingly called "Home."<img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-apple-home-420-90.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420"></img>It'll tie all of your home-based IoT gadgets together into a simple interface and include Scenes to change the mood of rooms in a pinch, no matter who makes your home's previously fragmented smart tech. Siri acts as a shortcut to interact with your home accessories, and Control Center does too. Two swipes to the right in the Control Center menu brings up a grid of home accessory toggles.<img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/apple-home-update-420-90.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420"></img>Also from the lockscreen, you can peek at home notifications, say, if you get a doorbell alert. Peek into the notification by hard pressing on the bubble and a video doorbell like Ring will give you a live camera view.<h3>Phone</h3>Hate listening to voicemails? Never actually check them? Me too. That's why I'm excited that the rumored voicemail transcription idea made it into iOS 10.<img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-voicemail-transcripts-420-90.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420"></img>It'll let you know what a voicemail message says via more convenient text right within the visual voicemail. Apple is also partnering with Tencent in China to alert iPhone owners there that an incoming call might be spam.<img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-voip-calls-420-90.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420"></img>VoIP is no longer going to take a backseat, as a WhatsApp call, for example, can be answered right from the lockscreen, just like a normal incoming call. They'll also be part of your recent and favorites lists.<h3>Messages</h3>Messages is introducing rich links within a conversation and a live camera view as soon as you press the camera button. Like emoji's? You're going to love iOS 10.<img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-messages-emoji-overload-420-90.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420"></img>Apple is making bigger emojis that are now three times as large as before, and the keyboard can now identify words you can easily replace with emojis via a single tap on each word.There's also a chance that the final version of iOS 10 launches, likely in September, Apple will include the <a href="http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/here-are-the-new-emoji-coming-to-a-keyboard-near-you-in-2016-1323833">72 new emojis</a> developed by the Unicode Consortium. They're already in the company's emoji style and <a href="http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/android-7-what-we-want-to-see-1311290">Android N</a> is set to debut them too. Hop (kangaroo) to it, Apple (apple fruit). Expressions don't stop there. There'll be bubble effects so you can "say it loud" with a bursting bunch of text, or say something "gently" with slow-to-exist texts.<img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-messaging-bubble-effects-420-90.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420"></img>You can also use "Invisible Ink" that requires the message receiver to slide their finger over a text or photo. It'll either be a nice surprise, or horrific shock to your friends. Apple showed off an Invisible Ink demo in which a blurry photo turned out to be a bride-to-be's hand with a wedding ring on it. I'm pretty sure there are going to be a lot of appendages sent using Invisible Ink.<img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-messages-invisible-ink-420-90.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420"></img>You can react to individual messages with expression-driven Tapbacks (reminds me of Facebook reactions) and write out meaningful messages with handwritten "digital ink."<img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-messages-handwritten-420-90.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420"></img>With club disco lights, big emoji and full-screen fireworks for iOS 10, Messages is one crazy app. But it'll get even more insane in the future because Apple is opening up Messages to developers with an SDK.<img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-messages-fireworks-420-90.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420"></img>So far, Apple has shown off integration for licensed Disney stickers, food ordering services and bitmoji-like expressions provided by JibJab.<img src="http://mos.futurenet.com/techradar/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-messages-stickers-disney%20copy-420-90.jpg" alt="iOS 10" width="420"></img><h3>More to come from iOS 10</h3>Rounding up iOS 10, Apple quickly mentioned Notes with multiple users editing a document, the ability to edit Live Photos without annoyingly relegating them to stills and a new conversation view for Mail.On the iPad, Split View support for two Safari windows has been added, finally letting you open up dual Safari windows at once on your tablet, you multitasker, you.Apple said that despite the deep learning capabilities of iOS 10, it'll keep that to the silicon on your device and not invade your private data thanks to "differential privacy."We'll have more iOS 10 news, as the developer and public beta prepare us for the the full iOS 10 update. When that launches in a few days in September, we'll certainly discover additional features to talk about.<ul><li>Watch this space: <a href="http://www.techradar.com/news/wearables/apple-watch-2-what-we-want-to-see-1289202">Apple Watch 2</a> and <a href="http://www.techradar.com/news/software/operating-systems/apple-watch-os-3-release-date-news-and-rumors-1323096">watchOS 3</a></li></ul><h3>iOS 10 rumors that we wanted to come true</h3>Apple's iOS 10 update for iPhone and iPad is the milestone upgrade that's almost certainly going to launch today at <a href="http://www.techradar.com/news/computing/apple/wwdc-2016-1320425">WWDC 2016</a>.Downloading the iOS 10 beta on June 13 and the final release three months later is now so routine, it's no longer a big scheduling surprise. But where Apple takes the mobile operating system is still a mystery.We're just now reporting on the first iOS 10 update rumors, including new interface and app features that haven't been pushed out to your <a href="http://www.techradar.com/reviews/phones/mobile-phones/iphone-6s-1303758/review">iPhone 6S</a> and <a href="http://www.techradar.com/reviews/pc-mac/tablets/ipad-pro-1269255/review">iPad Pro 12.9</a> as part of <a href="http://www.techradar.com/news/software/operating-systems/ios-9-what-we-want-to-see-1253732">iOS 9.3</a>.Apple is preparing the redesigned <a href="http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/10-things-we-d-like-to-see-in-the-iphone-6s-and-iphone-7-1269122">iPhone 7</a> and <a href="http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/iphone-7-plus-1321126">iPhone 7 Plus</a>, according to the latest leaks, and that means the interface may take on a few surprises. Here's what we've heard in the news.<h3>iOS 10 release date</h3>Apple is testing iOS 10 right now, meaning it's on track for another June release date at the company's Worldwide Developers Conference event, WWDC 2016.<a href="http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/here-s-when-apple-s-big-developer-conference-is-happening-1319227">Siri let us know</a> that the keynote date is today, Monday, June 13. It's when official iOS 10 announcement will happen with an introduction by Craig Federighi, Apple's senior vice president of software engineering.<img src="http://cdn1.mos.techradar.futurecdn.net/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-update-launching-when-420-100.jpg" alt="iOS 10 release date" width="420" title="Think no different. Think June, July and September again"></img>The iOS 10 beta should be available to developers immediately, while a public beta is likely to launch in July, just as it did with <a href="http://www.techradar.com/news/software/operating-systems/ios-9-what-we-want-to-see-1253732">iOS 9</a>. After all, last year's public beta was a big success for Apple judging from the smoother sailing of iOS 9, and it continues to be a surprise with new iOS 9.3 features.If you decide to wait for the final version of iOS 10, it'll take a while longer due to additional bug testing by developers and faithful Apple fans trying out the beta. A stable version of iOS 10 should launch alongside the new iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus in September.<h3>iOS 10 beta</h3>The iOS 10 beta is back, and it's no surprise given the initial rousing success of the iOS 9 beta to squash software glitches. That means there are three ways to download the operating system update once iOS 10 becomes available.<img src="http://cdn1.mos.techradar.futurecdn.net/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-beta-420-100.jpg" alt="iOS 10 release date" width="420" title="Expect another beta program for bug-proofing"></img>Apple Developer Program members were the first to be able install iOS 10 in June. That required enrolling in the official developer program and paying a fee of $100 (about £69, AU$140).Since everyone wants everything for free these days, testing out iOS 10 is cost-free via the public beta. It requires jumping through some hoops on Apple's website, but registration takes no more than a few minutes of your time and the download is now over-the-air OTA.The iOS 10 beta program is unfinished and a bit buggy. Missing features, app crashes and overall slown performance mean you may want to wait to test drive it on your main iPhone or iPad.<h3>iOS 10 compatibility</h3>Amazingly, iOS 9 didn't cut anyone out of the mix when the update rolled out to devices in September. The iPhone 4S and iPad 2 still work with the latest operating system update.That may not happen again given the simple fact that iOS 10 may require more than 512MB of RAM. <img src="http://cdn2.mos.techradar.futurecdn.net//art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-compatibility-iphone-ipad-420-100.jpg" alt="iOS 10 release date" width="420" title="At least, this is what we expect right now"></img>We really thought both of these devices would be axed when the iOS 9 update became available. Because these Apple gadgets are going to be five years old by the time iOS 10 comes out, we think it's time to put the still-clinging-to-life 30-pin dock-equipped phone and tablet to rest.Expect the iPhone 6S, <a href="http://www.techradar.com/reviews/phones/mobile-phones/iphone-6-1264565/review">iPhone 6</a>, <a href="http://www.techradar.com/reviews/phones/mobile-phones/iphone-5s-1179315/review">iPhone 5S</a>, iPhone 5, iPhone 5C, and the bigger <a href="http://www.techradar.com/reviews/phones/mobile-phones/iphone-6-plus-1264566/review">iPhone 6S Plus</a> and <a href="http://www.techradar.com/reviews/phones/mobile-phones/iphone-6-plus-1264566/review">iPhone 6 Plus</a> to handle iOS 10 without a hitch. Add the newer <a href="http://www.techradar.com/reviews/phones/mobile-phones/iphone-se-1317464/review">iPhone SE</a> to the phone roster, too.Same goes for the <a href="http://www.techradar.com/reviews/pc-mac/tablets/ipad-pro-9-7-inch-1317466/review">iPad Pro 9.7</a> and 12.9, <a href="http://www.techradar.com/reviews/pc-mac/tablets/ipad-air-2-1269207/review">iPad Air 2</a>, iPad Air, <a href="http://www.techradar.com/reviews/pc-mac/tablets/ipad-mini-4-1303873/review">iPad mini 4</a>, <a href="http://www.techradar.com/reviews/pc-mac/tablets/ipad-mini-3-1269214/review">iPad mini 3</a>, iPad mini 2 and maybe even the original iPad mini. Also, not to be forgotten, the iPod Touch 6th gen should be fine.<h3>Siri and voicemails</h3>When it comes to iOS 10 features, we fully expect Apple to improve Siri simply because this happens every year. This time, Siri may become your true personal assistant by handling your voicemails.<img src="http://cdn1.mos.techradar.futurecdn.net/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-features-siri-voicemail-420-100.jpg" alt="iOS 10 release date" width="420" title="Siri, hold my calls! Thank you, Siri!"></img>The became the first big iOS 10 rumor: Siri can tell a caller why you can't pick up the phone and even transcribe voicemail messages so you can read them on the go or in loud venues.The Siri voicemail service is <a href="http://www.techradar.com/news/software/siri-may-soon-answer-calls-and-turn-your-voicemail-into-text-1300969">reportedly</a> part of something called iCloud Voicemail, and it's supposed to be an enhancement of the standard digital audio recorder.Apple isn't launching a mobile network of its own like Google's <a href="http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/google-project-fi-what-we-know-about-the-nexus-cell-network-1291051">Project Fi</a>, at least not yet. However, this feature, if it's a part of iOS 10, means that the company is one step closer to doing just that.<h3>Siri third-party apps</h3>That's not everything we may see from Siri. Apple's personal assistant for iOS users is likely to become entrenched in your home as a competitor to <a href="http://www.techradar.com/reviews/audio-visual/hi-fi-and-audio/audio-systems/amazon-echo-1272454/review">Amazon Echo</a> and forthcoming <a href="http://www.techradar.com/news/digital-home/google-home-release-date-news-and-features-1321794">Google Home</a> speakers.<img src="http://cdn.mos.techradar.com/art/portable_speakers/Amazon/Echo/review/amazon-echo-hero-420-100.jpg" alt="iOS 10 release date" width="420"></img>To do this, however, the normally-closed-off company needs to open up Siri so that more third-party apps will be able to use the capabilities. Amazon's Alexa assistant can easily call up an Uber, for example.The latest rumors indicate that there's a <a href="http://www.techradar.com/news/world-of-tech/apple-might-unveil-a-siri-powered-answer-to-amazon-echo-at-wwdc-1322087">Siri SDK</a> that will debut at Apple's WWDC keynote on June 13, and there's a chance it could come with new speaker hardware (though that's less certain).That's certainly going to impact iOS 10, as an enhanced Siri used by third-party apps will jumpstart the amount of things Apple users can do after saying "Hey Siri." <h3>Peer-to-peer Apple Pay payments</h3>Apple Pay is continuing to expand to new countries, but what's missing from your iPhone's digital wallet is the ability to directly send people payments. So far it's just between you and an NFC cash registers.<img src="http://cdn.mos.techradar.com/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/Apple%20Pay/Hands%20on/Apple%20Pay%20Review%20(9)-420-100.JPG" alt="iOS 10 release date" width="420"></img>You can't treat <a href="http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/apple-s-rumored-peer-to-peer-payment-software-has-it-out-for-venmo-1308756">Apple Pay as if it were PayPal</a> just yet, but that may change with the new iOS 10 update, according to the longest-running rumors about the operating system.Apple is said to be challenging the popular Venmo mobile payments app with the same ability: to send money between iOS devices. You may have to pay your Android friends back with real money, though.That's still good news for iOS users who want Apple Pay to become more useful. <a href="http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/samsung-pay-could-be-coming-to-your-iphone-1322314">Samsung Pay is poised</a> to encroach on the Cupertino company's territory, and new features is the best way counteract that.<h3>Apple HomeKit</h3>Your home is about to become smarter thanks to all of your household tech coming together to live under one roof: your iOS 10 device.<img src="http://cdn.mos.techradar.com/art/Connected%20home/Apple%20HomeKit/Homekit_Hero_NEW-420-100.jpg" alt="iOS 10 release date" width="420"></img>Apple's <a href="http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/ios-10-will-be-designed-to-control-your-smart-home-1320572">Home app</a> will transform for iPhone, iPad and Apple TV into remotes for smart bulbs, door locks, thermostats, door bells and all sorts of gadgets that fall into the Internet of Things classification. Right now, this smart home technology is extremely scattered. It's going to take a company like Apple to bring it together. You may recall that the developer-focused HomeKit is a year-and-a-half old, but iOS 10 is expected to make it into a front-facing feature for users with a new Apple Home app.<h3>Apple Music redesign</h3>Apple Music will celebrate its one-year anniversary at WWDC 2016 with a sudden aging-rockstar facelift. Yes, the new streaming service is already in for a retooling of its user interface.<img src="http://cdn.mos.techradar.com/art/software/Apple/Apple%20Music/apple-music-hero-420-100.jpg" alt="iOS 10 release date" width="420"></img>It's no surprise. There's a confusing rift between Apple Music streaming and iTunes music downloading, and that clunky design was cited as the main issue in our <a href="http://www.techradar.com/reviews/pc-mac/software/audio-software/apple-music-1298115/review">review</a>.Just don't anticipate Apple Music Connect to play a prominent role. The underutilized tab, meant to let artists share photos, videos and demo tracks with fans, didn't live up to its "connect" label, is in for a <a href="http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/ios-10-could-tune-out-apple-music-s-social-features-1320555">demotion</a>.<h3>Make 3D touch relevant</h3>3D Touch made its debut with the new iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus, and at first it was a little underwhelming. More apps now use it, but it could still stand to have a better reason to exist.<img src="http://cdn1.mos.techradar.futurecdn.net/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS-10/ios-10-3d-touch-420-100.jpg" alt="iOS 10 release date" width="420" title="Apple needs to make 3D touch more than a one-dimensional trick"></img>Control Center is exactly where this Force Touch-like technology should head next. Pressing the Wi-Fi or Bluetooth on-screen button should pop up the respective settings menus in a overlay window.Apple has done such a good job over the years by sliding opaque menus into view without requiring you to exit apps. These Control Center buttons should follow the very same principle.There are also rumors that Apple may get rid of the home button with an on-screen button (sort of like on some Androids) that uses 3D Touch. It's <a href="http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/apple-iphone-7-no-home-button-1297493">not a popular theory</a> among all, but it may happen one day. <h3>Customizable Control Center</h3>While 3D Touch would go nicely with Control Center, it'd also be clever to have the entire menu overlay become customizable. Right now, everything's set in stone by Apple.Instead of forcing everyone to have the Clock icon be a shortcut to the time, why can't I make that go to the stopwatch? Why can't the calculator icon be swapped out for a Photos shortcut?These are some of the requests we've been hearing from Apple users since Control Center made its debut in iOS 7 back in 2013. It's about time Apple put them into action.<h3>Apple News in the forefront</h3>There's nothing necessarily wrong with Apple News. The Flipboard-like app works well and has some of my favorite publications, but the app is too far removed. I hardly ever tap into it.<img src="http://cdn0.mos.techradar.futurecdn.net//art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS%209/review/ios-9-review-apple-news-app-420-100.jpg" alt="iOS 10 release date" width="420" title="Apple News needs to be in the leftmost menu, not just siloed in an app"></img>A better move would be to expand its presence in the leftmost menu. Yes, this is something that Samsung has done with its phone and tablets with Flipboard, but I've come to appreciate it.Otherwise, tucking the entire Apple News interface into its own app silos it from the rest of the operating system without the pizzaz it really deserves. <h3>Volume controls</h3>There's nothing more annoying than turning down the volume, tapping on a YouTube video during the middle of the night and hearing it still blare out my iPhone's mono speaker.Media controls are different from notification controls, it turns out, and there's no easy way to turn down the volume on a video without starting it up first. That's annoying.Many Android phone manufacturers have cleverly split up the volume control into two or three groups, and it doesn't look messy with a dropdown for more options beyond the main volume.With iOS 10, Apple needs to catch up with the times on volume controls, as the iPhone and iPad rocker doesn't exactly rock with limited and often confusing options.<h3>Cache and orientation bugs</h3>There are bugs and limitations to the iPhone and iPad that could be resolved with the iOS 10 update. Namely, caching and orientation flaws trip me up on a daily basis.<img src="http://cdn3.mos.techradar.futurecdn.net//art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iPhone%206%20Plus/Screenshots/Interface-05-420-100.jpg" alt="iOS 10 release date" width="420" title="Landscape is great, except when I never asked for it, like every time I unlock the Plus phone"></img>I'd like to be able to minimize an app without having it reset (read: Instagram) when I open it back up later on after having opened a couple of other apps in the interm. Memory seems to be the issue.I'd also like iOS 10 to address the flaw in which screen orientation flips too easily into landscape mode when unlocking the phone. It seems to be a bigger problem on my iPhone 6S. Its size is already unwieldy enough, and oddly, this doesn't happen on the smaller iPhone 6.<h3>Multi-user support</h3>Apple did a really nice job upgrading iOS 9 for its iPad line. Split Screen multitasking and better Bluetooth keyboard support made a big difference.<img src="http://cdn4.mos.techradar.futurecdn.net//art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS%209/review/ios-9-siri-420-100.jpg" alt="iOS 10 release date" width="420" title="Multiple profiles, especially for the enterprise-focused iPad, is a must"></img>However, Apple still hasn't given its fanbase multi-user support. This is something that Android tablets have had for a while and it's sorely missing on Apple devices. iOS 10 could be the time to do it.In fact, the infrastructure for multi-user login support has launched ahead of iOS 10. It turns out that iOS 9.3 includes new education features for multiple student-logins for classrooms. That's a good sign.Given that iPad Pro just came out in the last few months, and it's way more than a personal device, a lot of businesses and artist-filled studios might buy into the supersized idea if this could happen.Apple did introduce multi-user support for students in iOS 9.3 thanks to a new set of education features. It could easily expand the idea with iOS 10 at WWDC.<h3>iOS 10 Touch ID</h3>Touch ID works really well. It's faster than ever on the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus, and it's really accurate. Maybe not as fast at the <a href="www.techradar.com/us/reviews/phones/mobile-phones/nexus-5x-1305317/review">Nexus 5X</a> and <a href="http://www.techradar.com/reviews/phones/mobile-phones/nexus-6p-1305318/review">Nexus 6P</a>, but is it still too quick for its own good?<img src="http://cdn.mos.techradar.com/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iPhone%207/no-home-button-iphone-7-420-100.jpg" alt="iOS 10 release date" width="420" title="Please don't touch the home button, but add a double tap to wake option"></img>That's what I've been hearing from users of Apple's new smartphones. They habitually light up their phones with the home button, only to have their notifications vanish.iOS 9 made notifications easier to view in the pulldown menu by sorting them in chronological order (not by group), but an easier way to wake the phone may be in order. LG and HTC use an ingenious double tap the screen to wake method that makes the entire display a big button. That would solve this problem for Apple, and we're looking for hints of that in iOS 10 in advance of the iPhone 7 launch.<h3>More iOS 10 updates to come</h3>This isn't the last word on the iOS 10 update. Apple's still until Monday to unveil the software, and three months after that to finalize everything. What we've heard so far is just rumors.<img src="http://cdn.mos.techradar.com/art/mobile_phones/iPhone/iOS%209/ios-9-release-date-september-9-2015-news-420-100.jpg" alt="iOS 10 release date" width="420" title="Stay tuned for more iOS 10 coverage"></img>That gives us a little more time to hunt down official news and slightly less official leaks about the iPhone and iPad mobile operating system update.The iOS 10 release date seems like the easy part: likely today, June 13 for the developer beta, July for the public beta and September with the iPhone 7 for the final launch.iOS 10 features, on the other hand, remain a mystery with the exception of the solid-sounding Siri voicemail lead. There's definitely more to come during today's WWDC 2016 keynote at 10:00am Pacific time.<ul><li>Top competitor: <a href="http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/android-7-what-we-want-to-see-1311290">Google's Android N update</a></li></ul><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/techradar/allnews/~4/6UWe1Kxf318" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>

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