Apple’s mobile operating system for its iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Apple TV and similar devices. Apple iOS was originally called the iPhone OS but was renamed in 2010 to reflect the operating system s evolving support for additional Apple devices.
Apple iOS is currently in v10.x release, with iOS10 first being introduced at the company’s 2016 Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in early June 2016.
Current List of iOS Releases
Features and Enhancements in Newer Releases
Recent versions of iOS have introduced a number of powerful new features to the mobile OS, most notably Apple’s Siri advanced voice recognition application, “Proactive,” a contextual, predictive personal assistant that’s tied in with Siri to deliver personalized information based on a user’s preferences, habits and location, a built-in instant messaging client (iMessage), integrated support for Apple’s iCloud personal cloud storage service, iTunes Radio, and AirDrop support.
Most recently, Apple iOS10 builds on iOS 9 with new features and enhancements that include Raise to Wake, contextual predictions, rich notifications, additional 3D Touch capabilities. As has been the case with each new iOS release since its debut, improved Siri functionality.
Support for Older Devices
Older devices such as the original iPhone and iPod touch are not supported in the iOS 4, iOS 5, iOS 6 and iOS 7 family of updates, and the iPhone 3G and second-generation iPod Touch cannot be updated past iOS version 4.2.1.
The primary competitors to Apple iOS in the mobile operating system space are Windows Phone 7, Google s Android OS, and the BlackBerry OS. Apple iOS does have a head start in the apps department, with its App Store already featuring more than 500,000 third-party applications.
