The most polished smartphone OS
Just as with other long-established operating systems, new versions of iOS mostly consist of polishing the core experience and adding a few new tools rather than delivering something completely new. iOS 14 was the closest we’ve seen to a revolutionary change in Apple’s mobile OS in years. Most notably, it added entirely new widgets and app icon options. iOS 15 has less lofty ambitions, bringing updates to FaceTime, Maps, Notifications, and Photos, as well as some new system-wide capabilities. Still, while version 15 may not be the biggest update, iOS remains our favorite mobile operating system. The latest update, version 15.1, adds support for SharePlay, ProRes video format from iPhone 12 and 13, Covid-19 vaccination support in the Apple Wallet app, new prebuilt text-overlay Shortcuts, and a few more capabilities. New FaceTime Features Apple is finally opening a little crack in its walled-garden approach: FaceTime now lets you create a group video chat with Android and Windows users via a web link. The experience is not as immediate or high-quality on non-Apple devices, however. The person who starts the video room on an Apple device has to approve non-Apple users’ admission, and participants can use only native browsers—forget Firefox. Note that non-Apple devices can’t start a call, they can only join one created by an Apple user. In testing, I even got a useless, distorted view when trying it from a Pixel 4 XL, as you can see below. In all fairness, the feature is still in beta release. I did get FaceTime to work on a Windows PC in the Edge browser, but the image quality wasn’t as good as when I tested it using all Apple devices: FaceTime in iOS 15 also sports some new visual and audio capabilities. Like Zoom, FaceTime video calls now have a Portrait mode that blurs the background and a grid view that shows participants in even rows and columns. For some reason, iOS 15 doesn’t get iPadOS 15 ’s Center Stage feature, in which the camera follows you around in the frame. I expect it’s because you’re more likely to be holding your phone than setting it down and walking around as you might with an iPad, though some phone users may beg to differ. As for new audio capabilities, FaceTime now can take advantage of Spatial Audio and Voice Isolation mode. The first mode requires AirPods Pro ($199) or AirPods Max ($499), which include hardware that tracks your head position so that the sound sources remain in fixed apparent positions. Voice Isolation is one of three mic options in the Control Center pulldown menu, and it blocks out ambient noise. The other new choice is Wide Spectrum, which picks up all the ambient sound. The third option, Standard, behaves like the earlier iOS versions, using some isolation while still allowing some ambient noise. SharePlay, another new FaceTime feature for iOS, is now available. SharePlay lets you and your pals stay in touch while watching a show or listening to music. The entertainment is synced for all participants, and they can chat in a small Messages box and see each other in thumbnail videos. It works between different Apple devices ( Apple TV 4K, HomePod, Mac, and iPad). Anyone in the call can use the Play, Pause, Rewind or Fast Forward controls for the playing media. Also new is screen-sharing capability. New Focus Modes Screen addiction is a real problem that Apple has tried to address with several iOS releases. ScreenTime is the best-known example. New for iOS 15 are Focus options, which expand the capabilities of the existing Do Not Disturb mode. Notifications only come through based on your current Focus mode. Work, personal time, sleep, fitness, mindfulness, gaming, reading, and driving all receive different levels of notifications. Contacts not allowed through for a Focus mode will see your unavailable status in Messenger and some third-party apps, but an Urgent Message option lets them break through for emergencies.
