The best business smartphones won't have everything you need to get you through the workday, but they can be a reliable backup option should tasks need finishing on the go. That requires snappy processing power, long battery life, and enough display space to see read your emails and even fix spreadsheets. 

Over the last twelve months we have tried and tested some of the best around, from the latest iPhone to the best Samsung has to offer. In this article, we will provide you with a detailed review of each device, what to look for when purchasing a new smartphone for work, and also an insight into our testing methodology. 

The Best Business Smartphones 2026

If you're an iOS person or you're business is deep into Apple's product ecosystem then the iPhone 14 Pro is, in our opinion, the best value for money right now. The 15 models are out, but there isn't enough of a difference between the two to go for the absolute latest but there will be a price difference. 

With its A16 Bionic processor, the 14 Pro is an extremely powerful smartphone. In Geekbench 5, the 14 Pro hit 5,497 for multi-threaded workloads, leaving its Android rivals in the dust. For comparison, the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra only managed 3,475. If it's speed you need, the iPhone 14 Pro is the clear winner in that regard.

The iPhone 14 Pro is currently priced at $999, which is still admittedly high – though that is far more affordable than the very latest iPhone 15 Pro. An argument could also be made for an older model, such as the iPhone 12, which has almost the same design, and most of the necessary features, for almost half the price – something businesses are most likely going to weigh up.

However, the 14 Pro has plenty of worthwhile extras, such as the Dynamic Island which makes emails and notifications that little bit easier to deal with.

Read our full Apple iPhone 14 Pro review for more information.

Google has found great success in the smartphone market with its Pixel range and that is partly to do with its innovative AI-based features. Take the Pixel 7 Pro, for example, which captured the imagination with its 'Magic Eraser' tool that allows users to make groundbreaking edits to photos.

The element that made us all go 'wow', and what really sold most on the Pixel 7 Pro, was the ability to remove objects and people from images. This is down to the innovative Tensor G2 chip and its machine-learning capabilities. It's also worth noting that it is still early days and AI capabilities on phones will become very advanced in the years to come. But for right now, the Pixel is arguably the best around.

For businesses the most appealing aspect of a Google Pixel is its native links to the Workspace suite of apps – there is no phone around that can replace the performance of a laptop, but for quick checks, minor tweaks, and little notes, the Pixel 7 Pro is great for Gmail, Google Docs, even Google Sheets. There is also potential space here for AI in the future.

Read our full Google Pixel 7 Pro review for more information.

Flip and foldable phones might seem gimmicky in the consumer space, but they do have a reasonable purpose for businesses. This is largely because they're mini tablets, offering larger screen space than your average phone. And the absolute best of the best here is the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4. 

Packing an octa-core snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chip, the Fold 4 is a smooth operator and business-friendly handheld. Switching apps is effortless, editing Google Docs is actually doable, and the larger screen really does allow you to work on the go.

Its Geekbench 5 scores are also noteworthy, with a multithreaded score (3,960) far above the likes of the Pixel 7 Pro and the Huawei Mate X2s. You have the processing power to handle the heaviest of work apps.

However, what really matters, and what businesses should take note of, is the inclusion of a Samsung S-Pen. The whole experience of a foldable screen gets better with a stylus, from annoying docs to creating doodles, it just offers that little bit more.

Read our full Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 review for more information.

There is something to be said for smaller phones; they're easier to handle and ultimately use on the go, for example. But what Sony has with its Xperia 5IV is a narrow smartphone with its compact 6.1in display and its slender 8.2mm thick chassis. It is a very unobtrusive device, perfect for minor business needs. 

The OLED display and its 21:9 aspect ratio and a 120Hz refresh rate are the big plus points of the device. The size is great for your thumb, as it can actually reach all parts of the display, but also good for streaming content as the aspect ratio takes away those annoying black bars. What's more, it's also very vivid with 99.9% of the sRGB color space covered under our calibrator. This is a display that matches the likes of the S22 Ultra and the iPhone 14 Pro but in a smaller way.

There is also a stellar camera system on the IV, which is less important to business users, but it does mean that the device has a more premium quality to it and therefore a more premium price. It is still under $1,000, but only just. 

Read our full Sony Xperia 5 IV review for more information.

What to look for in a business smartphone

When shopping for a smartphone, it’s easy to be lured into thinking that you should simply go with whichever device boasts the highest specs - but this isn’t always the case, and in some instances, more technically advanced devices can actually offer a less satisfying experience.

For example, while a super-powerful processor may seem attractive, most flagship phones have far more CPU power than the average user needs, so unless you’re planning on using your phone to handle extremely demanding tasks like professional videography, you may find that a mid-range processor offers better value for money. It may also result in better battery life thanks to less power-hungry components, which applies equally to screen technology.

The higher a display’s resolution and refresh rate, the more charge will be needed to power it, which can quickly sap your battery. While most devices with a high refresh rate also include dynamic optimisations to mitigate this, it’s nonetheless worth bearing in mind. Generally, you should aim for a resolution of between 1080p and 1440p, and a refresh rate of at least 60Hz, which will ensure the best blend between battery life and user experience.

Regardless of how long the battery lasts, however, you should make sure to look for devices that include fast-charging support, as this will inevitably come in handy at some point. Wireless charging is also a nice feature to have, but unless you own a wireless charging pad, or your work has them dotted around the office, it's unlikely to be a feature you use very often.

You should, however, make sure that your chosen phone supports Wi-Fi 6 and 5G; these technologies may still be comparatively nascent, but skip this functionality and you may need to upgrade sooner than planned as it becomes more widespread.

Those seeking the most secure phone possible should check our best secure smartphones list.

FAQs

Are iPhones or Android phones better for business use?

There’s a certain amount of animosity that can sometimes be observed when it comes to Android vs iPhone; Android fans contend that Apple devices are needlessly expensive, prone to failure and restrictive to use, while iPhone devotees insist that Android devices are cheaply-made, poor quality hardware brimming with malware.

All of these arguments have grains of truth behind them, but on balance, it’s iOS that comes up trumps for business. As the dominant platform, it tends to be prioritised by software developers, and although high-end manufacturers like Samsung and Google can offer experiences that compete with Apple’s smartphones, the wider Android ecosystem does contain more than its fair share of duds.

However, the simple fact is that in most cases, Android and iOS are equally capable for business users. The software required for business smartphones - enterprise collaboration apps, document management systems, device management tools, and so on - are all available across both platforms, and as long as organisations don’t try and cut too many corners on the price of the unit itself, device quality is unlikely to be an issue.

How often should I update my employees’ company smartphones?

Smartphone technology moves at a seemingly breakneck pace, and every year manufacturers are touting more and more impressive specs and features. This leaves businesses with a dilemma: do they invest more money in upgrading employees’ devices every year or so, or do they sweat them for a longer period and risk missing out on the latest capabilities?

The key thing to bear in mind is that many of the features these newer smartphones boast are geared towards personal use, as opposed to business. While an improved camera is nice for taking holiday snaps, it doesn’t make much difference for most workers’ day-to-day use. With this in mind, it’s better to invest in buying higher-end devices and sweating them for a longer period of three to five years, which will offer better long-term value.

Should I get a 5G business smartphone contract?

5G has been around for a number of years now, but its introduction somehow doesn’t seem as revolutionary as previous generations of mobile broadband. Many contracts will now include 5G connectivity as standard, but it’s still worth paying a bit extra to secure a business smartphone contract that supports the latest standard - assuming your corporate devices do as well.

When employees are on the road - or working flexibly from a third location - the added speed and stability that 5G can offer is an excellent way to ensure consistent productivity, and sharing a 5G connection via hotpot can even be used as a backup broadband connection for PCs and laptops in the event of a connection failure.

How we test

We measure the effectiveness of a smartphone in a number of ways; to test the quality of the display, we’ll use a colour calibrator and the open source DisplayCal app to measure how much of the sRGB colour gamut it covers, as well as the Delta-E rating. This tells us how much of the colour spectrum it’s able to represent, and how accurate those colours are. We’ll also test the maximum brightness and contrast ratio.

Performance testing is carried out using the Geekbench 5 benchmark app, which gives separate results for single-core and multi-core operations. For phones that don’t support this app, we’ll use a different benchmarking app, then run that same app on a phone which does support Geekbench, and then use that as a basis for comparison.

To test the battery of a smartphone, we’ll charge it to 100%, use the calibrator to set the brightness to 170cd/m2 (or as near as possible) and then play a looped video in flight mode until the battery runs out. This gives us a figure that can be compared across models, but to assess real-world longevity, we track how long the battery lasts on average during our testing period.

Malware that spies on iPhones will target enterprise deployments as well as consumers' devices, a security firm involved in its discovery has confirmed.

Pegasus, the spyware that installs itself on a user's iPhone by sending them an SMS message with a malicious link to click on, was revealed yesterday by mobile security company Lookoout, which investigated the malware with Citizen Lab.

Once installed, the malware, allegedly created by Israeli firm NSO Group, collects information from apps including Gmail, Facebook, Skype, WhatsApp, Calendar, FaceTime, and can also activate the iPhone's camera and microphone to listen in on conversations.

Pegasus is the final link in a three-part chain that is being called Trident. The first example of the attack was directed against human rights activist Ahmed Mansoor, but the cybersecurity firm warned that enterprises will be the prime target of the malware.

"These exploits are ideally suited to perform targeted, enterprise-focused attacks, and we expect that customers of this type of software are using these attacks for that that purpose," Mike Murray, Lookout's VP of security research & response, wrote in a blog post.

"The going price for Pegasus was roughly $8 million for 300 licenses, so it's not likely to be used against an average mobile device user, only targets that can be considered of high value."

These targets are not only the CEO and CTO of enterprise firms, whose devices will have secrets worth stealing, but also lower level staff, whose devices may not have as rigorous protection as those of C-level staff.

"Rank-and-file employees with credentials to access enterprise networks are clearly perceived as valuable targets by global threat actors," Murray said. "Unprotected employee mobile devices with access to sensitive corporate data are now likely to be the lowest hanging fruit for attackers looking to breach an enterprise."

A few years ago iPhones may not have presented such a large risk to enterprises' security, but Apple has built a $25 billion B2B business on the back of its flagship device over the last three years.

It has relied on partnerships with the likes of IBM and Box to get its hardware into businesses, with the firms aiming to offer the software businesses need on the devices staff actually want to use.

The iPhones most at risk are those used for both work and personal communications, Lookout warned, with one employee clicking the malicious link being all hackers need to break into an enterprise.

Apple has pushed out an update that fixes the vulnerabilities Trident exploits, but now IT staff must try to ensure all employees download the patch.

iOS 9 introduced a swathe of new features for both iPhones and iPads and the latest major update, iOS 9.3, brought even more options. Here are our top tips and tricks for iOS 9.3's new features on iPhone and iPad.

Schedule Night Shift mode

Looking at a tablet or phone's screen late in the evening can lead to a disturbed night's sleep because of the amount of blue light it emits. Night Shift mode in iOS 9.3 limits the amount of blue light produced by your device by applying an orange tint to your iPad or iPhone's screen.

You can set Night Shift to switch on and off at certain times by tapping Settings, Display & Brightness, Night Shift then sliding the Schedule slider to the right. Tap the From/To field, Custom Schedule, then select a time under Turn On At and another under Turn Off At (see screenshot below left). Alternatively, set it to automatically activate when it starts getting dark and switch off when the sun comes up by tapping Sunset to Sunrise'. You can also adjust the intensity of the effect using the Colour Temperature slider.

Switch on Night Shift mode instantly

To activate the Night Shift effect instantly, tap Settings, Display & Brightness, Night Shift and slide the Manually Enable Until Tomorrow slider to the right. Alternatively, swipe up from the bottom of the screen to open the Control Center, then tap the Night Shift button (the sun-and-moon icon at the bottom left).

Duplicate images in the Photos app

iOS 9.3 has added a quick way to duplicate photos ideal if you want to create backups of an image you intend to edit, for example. Open the Photos app, tap the photo, then tap the share button (arrow icon at the top right). On the next screen you'll see the photo you selected at the top of the screen, marked with a blue tick (see screenshot above). Next tap the Duplicate' icon at the bottom-left of the screen (see screenshot above), and tap Camera Roll at the top left. The images will be added to your Camera Roll library as the most recent additions.

Use new 3D Touch submenus

The 3D Touch shortcuts function (which lets you long-press the screen for a menu of options) now works on more apps, including Weather, App Store, Stocks, Health, Compass and Settings the App Store app shortcut lets you update your apps, for example. On the homescreen, hold your finger down on one of these apps to open its submenu, then select the option you want.

Customise your News app

Apple has improved how it selects which articles appear in the For You section in its News app. To customise articles, open the News app, tap Explore on the menu bar at the bottom of the screen and browse the categories, tapping the +' symbol on any that interest you.

To remove any of these, tap Favourites, Edit then tap the X' symbol on those you want to delete.

Password-protect your Notes app

Apple has added password-protection to notes you create in the Notes app, which means you can feel more confident about using them to store sensitive information (PINs and passwords, for example). Tap Settings on the homescreen, Notes in the left-hand panel, then Password and follow the instructions to add one (if your device has a Touch ID fingerprint scanner, you can use that instead).

Open the Notes app, then select the note you want to password-protect (this must be contained in your iCloud or On my iPad' folder). Tap the share button (the arrow icon at the top right) and select Lock Note. Enter the password you just created when prompted and you'll see an unlocked padlock icon appear next to the note's title on the left (see screenshot). Repeat this process for any other note you want to secure. To lock all password-protected notes, tap the padlock icon at the top right of the screen (it will change to show it's locked).

Since its release in September 2015, iOS 9 has brought multiple new features to Apple's devices both in the initial release and subsequent 9.x updates. Here you can find out all the latest news, features and information about Apple's latest mobile OS.

iOS 9 at-a-glance:

• General release was on 16 September
• Introduced split-screen for iPads, new keyboard shortcuts, and Siri upgrades
• iOS 9.2 was released on 8 December, containing general enhancements and bug fixes
• iOS 9.3 expected in Q1 2016

iOS 9 latest news

26/08/2016:Apple has rushed out an update designed to address critical security flaws that let hackers spy on iPhones, urging businesses and consumers alike to install it.

The Trident vulnerability lets hackers spy on your iPhone with one click, reading information from apps like Gmail, Facebook and WhatsApp.

It was first discovered yesterday by mobile security specialist Lookout, working with Citizen Lab, after a human rights activist in the UAE noticed suspicious messages on his iPhone and reported them to Citizen Lab.

Trident uses three previously unpatched security flaws in iOS to subtly install spyware on the iPhone, starting with SMS phishing messages that direct the user to a website that downloads malware onto their device.

The spyware copies the target's calls, texts, calendar and contacts, and can also activate the camera and microphone to spy on conversations.

However, Apple has issued a fix for Trident and other flaws in its latest iOS update, iOS 9.3.5. Users can upgrade to this today by going to Settings>General>Software Update, and selecting Install Now.

25/07/2016:Almost 90 per cent of iPhones and iPads now run iOS 9, according to Apple. The company released statistics on 18 July showing that the most recent edition of its mobile OS (excluding iOS 10, which is still in beta) is used by 86 per cent of devices, with a further 11 per cent running iOS 8, which was released in September 2014. Only three per cent use an earlier version of the OS.

In comparison, Google's latest version of Android, Marshmallow, is used by just 13.3 per cent of Android devices, according to Google's latest statistics. Its predecessor, Android 5 Lollipop, is used by a little over 35 per cent of devices, while 30.1 per cent use 2013's Android 4 KitKat OS. The remaining 21.5 per cent use an older version of Android.

iOS 9 is set to be superceded by iOS 10, which debuted at WWDC 2016 in June and is currently available as a beta testing version. Its general release is scheduled for this autumn, with a September launch date expected, alongside the iPhone 7.

23/06/2016:The third beta of iOS 9.3.3 has been seeded to developers and public beta testers.

iOS 9.3.2 is currently available on general release to consumers, but registered Apple developers and public beta testers have received the release of iOS 9.3.3 ahead of time to help ensure apps are still working properly, work out any bugs in the operating system and provide feedback to Apple.

This beta comes just two weeks after the previous beta release and is the third to be issued since testing began on 23 May. As it is a 9.3.x update, it will effectively be a bug fix and performance improvement update and will not introduce any new features. However, it's still important for users to upgrade if and when they can following the general release to ensure their mobile devices are as secure as possible, as is the case with all operating systems.

While 9.3.3 may be free of new features, iOS 10 is also currently with developers in beta form. It will be launched this autumn, likely alongside the iPhone 7, and has several new features including support for animations and a greater range of emojis in the Messaging app, improved Maps, the incorporation of AI into Photos to group fond memories together in a way that is similar to the Memories function on Facebook, and Apple Pay for online payments, although this will be restricted to certain trusted sites.

03/06/2016: iOS 9.3.3 is reported to have been jailbroken, according to reports.

According to Forbes, someone with a jailbroken device has managed to get the latest beta version of iOS, which could mean that the code allows jailbreaking.

Italian developer Luca Tedesco has claimed that he has successfully jailbroken a device with Apple's iOS 9.3.3 beta on board. Apparently iOS 9.3.1. and iOS 9.3.2 do not have any publicly available jailbreaks, which seems to suggest that Apple has been successful in keeping Jailbreak devices at bay.

With WWDC around the corner and iOS 10 expected to drop then, it has been speculated that jailbreakers are holding fire until the new operating system makes an appearence.

18/05/2016:There are reports that the latest update to iOS 9 is bricking the 9.7-inch iPad Pro.

According to MacRumors, after installing iOS 9.3.2, users have reported seeing an "Error 56" message which instructs them to connect their device to iTunes.

While not all 9.7-inch iPad Pros have had the error, the report said the issue was widespread and cited numerous messages on social networks as evidence of the problem. According to Apple support documents, the issue is a hardware one. The fix involves installing the latest version of iTunes, checking third-party software and attempting repeat resources.

The problem could lead to Apple issuing a patch for its latest update.

17/05/2016: Apple has released iOS 9.3.2, which includes a number of bug fixes for iPhone and iPad.

The release, which is likely to be one of the final updates before the arrival of iOS 10, is primarily a bug-fixing and performance revision.

Included in the update are fixes for an issue where some Bluetooth accessories could experience audio quality issues when paired to the iPhone SE, for an issue where looking up dictionary definitions could fail, and for an issue involving VoiceOver users using the Alex voice, where the device switches to a different voice to announce punctuation or spaces.

A problem that prevented MDM servers from installing custom B2B apps has been fixed.

The update also fixes an issue that prevented typing email addresses when using the Japanese Kana keyboard in Mail and Messages has also been addressed.

More information on this iOS update can be found on Apple's support page.

03/03/2016:Apple's upcoming iOS 9.3 upgrade will notify you if your employer is tracking your iPhone.

With lots of businesses now using mobile device management (MDM) services to monitor workers' devices, Apple's latest version of iOS will feature a message at the bottom of the lock screen, saying "This iPhone is managed by your organisation".

The move, reported by 9to5Mac and revealed on Reddit,gives users more transparency over their device privacy, with the About' page in Settings' also warning users, saying: "This iPhone is supervised. [Company name] can monitor your internet traffic and locate this device."

Apple offers its own MDM service to companies, so the announcement shows the device maker is trying to straddle the line between company control and employee freedom, but at least users will now be aware if their device is being monitored.

IT admins will also get more control over employees' iPhones with iOS 9.3, with features allowing them to prioritise apps they deem most important, and an MDM service giving them the power to control home screen layouts and notification settings, according to developer Steve Stroughton-Smith.

Other management features let IT approve certain URLs in Safari and set out text on the lock screen.

The move reinforces the tech giant's security credentials as it fights the FBI's attempts to weaken the iPhone's security, to make it easier to access data in criminal investigations.

16/02/2016:Apple Pay could arrive in China on Thursday, bringing the company's payment technology to the world's largest single smartphone market.

The service will be rolled out on Thursday 18 February, according to aReutersreport citing officials from both the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and China Guangfa Bankal, though Apple has yet to confirm the date.

Apple Pay has been somewhat delayed in its arrival to China but looks set to be a huge opportunity for the company. Not only is China the second biggest market for Apple's iPhone sales, its people are already well accustomed to mobile payments.

Last year, the total number of Chinese consumers paying for goods and services via their smartphones totalled 358 million. That's more than 15 times the number of people in the US using similar technology in 2015, according to data from eMarketer.

This provides a huge potential audience for Apple. First, however, it will have to beat the current market leaders - Tencent Holdings and Alibaba Group - who control most of China's mobile payments world between them.

20/01/2016:Code suggesting that the iPhone 7 will drop the headphone jack has been found in the latest iOS 9.3 beta 1.1 software release.

As reported by9to5Mac, Twitter user@kyoufujibayadiscovered code reading, 'Headphones.have.%sinput.NO.', appearing to confirm long-circulated rumours that Apple's next iPhone will opt for wireless audio solutions and Lighting adapter for connecting headphones and speakers.

13/01/2016:Three quarters of Apple devices now run iOS 9, just four months after it was released.

This is according to Apple's own App Store stats, based on which OSes are connecting to it, but if they are to be believed, the latest operating system is growing steadily, up from 70 per cent last month and 66 per cent the previous month.

12/01/2016:iOS 9.3, the latest version of Apple's mobile OS, has been seeded to developers, meaning it could soon be on its way to consumers.

Two key new features are Night Shift and private Notes. The former reduces the amount of blue light emitted by the device's screen, which has been shown to disrupt melatonin production and, therefore, sleep patterns, by shifting colours on the display towards the warmer end of the spectrum.

Additional privacy settings on Notes - the built-in note taking tool for iOS and Mac OS - allow users to lock entries that contain very sensitive data, such as financial details or medical data, with a password or Touch ID. Additional new features in Notes include the ability to sort entries by date created, date modified, or alphabetically.

There are also new features being introduced in iOS in Education in 9.3, including iPad sharing, Apple School Manager mobile device management (MDM) software, a new classroom app and a new identity management tool.

There are also updates to the News app, meaning the suggestions in For You will be "better tailored to your particular interests", according to Apple.

Health has had a few tweaks, including a new dashboard. The app also displays stand, move and exercise data, as well as users' goals.

Finally, there are additional CarPlay features. New and For You suggestions from Apple Music will be displayed on the head unit's screen and the Nearby service will, as the name suggests, inform the driver of car parks, restaurants, petrol stations and other significant locations nearby.

It took a little over a month for iOS 9.2 to make it from first developer beta to full release (with an additional three developer betas in between), meaning we could see iOS 9.3 released to the general public by the end of February.

09/12/2015: iOS 9.2 has come out of beta and is available to download for iPhone and iPad users.

As part of a slew of updates from Apple, including OS X, WatchOS, and tvOS, iOS 9.2 now improves Apple Music, iBooks and iOS Mail apps and bug fixes.

Improvements to Apple Music makes it easier toharmonise your iCloud Music Library with the streaming service, meaning users can now seewhether or not any song has been downloaded, and then download whole albums or playlists.

iBooks now supports 3D Touch on the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus.

Mail now supports Mail Drop for large attachments as well as a number of bug fixes for the mail client. There is also Siri support for Arabic and a new Top Stories section in the News app.

There are also stability improvements for Safari and Podcasts.

30/10/2015:iOS 9.2 is now available to public beta testers, three days after it was opened up to developers. The release, which is available as a 1.6GB over-the-air update to those already enrolled in the beta program, has several bug fixes and update to the Safari View Controller that introduces support for third-party extensions, such as password managers.

In tandem with the beta release of iOS 9.2, Apple has decommissioned iOS 9.0.2, meaning it is no longer possible to downgrade to any version of the OS earlier than iOS 9.1, which was released on 21 October.

27/10/2015:A lawsuit has been filed against Apple by a couple in Florida, claiming that a feature present in iOS 9 caused them to exceed their wireless data cap, reports ComputerWorld.

The problem occurred, the couple claim, because of the Wi-Fi Assist feature - which switches the phone to a cellular connection if Wi-Fi signal is weak - automatically enabled with iOS 9.

The lawsuit reads: "Defendant failed to disclose to consumers that this automatic switch to cellular data caused by an activated Wi-Fi Assist (the default setting) may result in exceeding the data capacity allowed under their phone plans. This is especially true as there is no warning or disclosure when the phone switches from Wi-Fi to cellular data."

23/10/2015:After investigating claims that their app for iOS was draining users' battery life, Facebook has released an update to assuage the issue.

Rather than offer details on the new changes, the App Store release notes remain vague, promising a better experience and updates every two weeks. However, Facebook's Engineering Manager Ari Grant provided more information on the fixes in a public post.

The first issue identified was a CPU spina loop that doesn't perform a useful taskin the app's network code which drained battery life because of the repeated processing.

The second problem had to do with the way audio sessions were managed. In some instances, audio sessions remained open after viewing videosas though the audio was playing silently in the backgroundafter exiting the app. Although the app isn't doing anything, battery life was drained because the app remained active in the background.

Changes have been made to the app and the update is available for download today, but Grant's statement seems to imply that additional fixes are in the works. In relation to the CPU spin, he said, "the version released today has some improvements that should start making this better." The issue with audio sessions has been fixed, though, and background audio has been removed completely.

Grant made a point of mentioning that the issues addressed were not caused by any location features and reiterated that Facebook does not access device location without permission within the app.

Update the iOS Facebook app as soon as possible to eliminate unintended battery drain.

With the announcement of bi-monthly updates and Grant's allusions to other potential issues, it seems reasonable to look forward to future battery life improvements.

iOS 9 release date

Apple unveiled iOS 9 at WWDC 2015, but it was only released three months later on 16 September, alongside the iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus and iPad Pro.

Since then it has received multiple updates, having just hit the first developer preview for version 9.3 in early January, which will likely be generally available in February.

While the next major release of iOS - iOS 10 - is expected to be revealed in June this year and released in September, iOS 9 will likely continue to receive incremental updates until then.

iOS 9 supports five generations of iPhone, from the iPhone 4s to the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, as well as all four generations of the iPad mini, iPad 2, 3 and 4, iPad Air and iPad Air 2, the iPad Pro, and fifth and sixth generation iPod Touch.

iOS 9 features

iOS 9 apps

iOS 9 features a brand new 'News' app, which will act as an aggregator similar to Flipboard or News Republic. The app will pull content from various online sources based on the user's preselected reading preferences, with embedded content like images, sound, and video.

It also features Health, which was first introduced in iOS 8 and, with iOS 9.3, can now show stand, move and exercise data, as well as users' goals, and Notes has been given a lick of paint - adding sketches, to-do lists, secure notes and more.

The Watch app is also pre-loaded, as it has been since the release of iOS 8.2 in early 2015, as is Maps, which now includes public transport data for certain cities (currently limited to London in the UK).

Wallet, which incorporates Apple Pay, also comes as standard, as well as Music, which replaced iTunes and incorporates both users' iTunes library, the Apple Music streaming service, and Beats Radio.

Old stalwarts like weather, reminders, iBooks, Podcasts and FaceTime are all also present and correct.

iOS 9 Siri and search

One of the features updated for iOS 9 is Siri, with anonymous search, a far lower word error rate, and a universal search screen. Siri will now be context sensitive, much likeAndroid Marshmallow's Now on Tap.

Asking Siri to 'remind me about this' while reading a web page or iMessage conversation will fill in the reminder description with details culled from that web page or the conversation and provide a link back to the relevant app.

iOS 9 also offers more in-depth search. When a user types in the search field, iOS 9's search function can predict what they want to see. For example, typing in "weather" will show the local weather forecast before the user has finished typing, as well as offering links to relevant apps and websites. Similarly, typing in the name of a sports team will bring up the results from its latest fixture, although it must be a quite well-known team - Manchester United works, Luton Town doesn't.

Additionally, even before the user has started typing, the search page will display Siri Suggestions for commonly used contacts and frequently used apps. The Nearby feature of Maps is also available, with shortcuts to Lunch, Coffee, Shopping and Petrol. The latest news headlines are also displayed.

Split-screen for iPad

For iPad, iOS 9 enhances the experience for enterprise users, with an improved keyboard multitasking - all designed for using the device at work.

"The iPad is a transformational device," said Craig Federighi, Apple's VP of Software Engineering, when announcing iOS 9 at WWDC 2015.

Using the Slide Over feature, swiping your finger in from the edge of the screen will allow you to quickly see a second app without having to leave the app you're currently using. Expanding upon this is Split-Screen, users will be able to use two apps onscreen at the same time, rather than having to switch between them.

Holding two fingers down on the keyboard will allow you to move the cursor without having to use the fiddly text caret as with current versions of iOS.

A feature that will be familiar to Samsung Galaxy users is the ability to play a video on top of another app in a small resizable and moveable window.

All of the multitasking features will be available on the iPad Air, iPad Mini 2 and newer, except for Split-screen, which can only be used on iPad Air 2 and iPad Pro.

iOS 9 keyboards

Apple's onscreen keyboard will have new shortcuts in the Quick Type predictions bar for copying, cutting and pasting as well as formatting text. Users of Lightning and Bluetooth keyboards will also get new shortcuts such as an OS X-style Cmd-Tab app switcher. These keyboard-related features are, however, exclusive to iPad and not coming to the iPhone.

iOS 9 memory requirements and battery life

iPhone users have previously complained about the amount of free space required when moving from one version of iOS to another. Apple has remedied this with iOS 9, meaning just 1.3GB of available space is required, compared with the 4.6GB needed to upgrade to iOS 8.

Power users will be particularly pleased to hear that Apple has focused a great deal of efforts on battery life with iOS 9. From the get go, this will give users an extra one hour of typical use, based on a full charge, according toFederighi.

But the battery life good news doesn't stop there. There is a new low power mode in iOS 9 that "pulls levers you didn't even know existed" to provide an additional three hours of juice on top of the bonus hour already delivered.

The back story

The new iOS was previously codenamed Monarch. It was expected prior to the event that the new iOS would improve stability and optimisation for Apple devices, sporting various new features but focusing primarily on eradicating some of the bugs and performance issues present in iOS 8.

Back in January, Apple was rumoured to be beta testing iOS 9, despite the previous iteration of its mobile operating system having only been released the previous September.

Previous to this, MacWorld reported that various analytics software was displaying searches and clicks that appeared to have originated from an operating system called 9.0'. This activity signalled that a prototype of the software was being used on Apple devices, possibly by employees.

The iOS 8 release was plagued with issues and bugs, and some users even took to legal action against Apple due to the update taking up too much space (19 per cent) on the 16GB iPhone 6.

This article was last updated on 12/01/16 to reflect new information.

Last night the story broke that a piece of commercially-produced malware had been discovered which would allow someone to remotely take over an iPhone. The malware, dubbed Trident, used three previously undiscovered vulnerabilities in iOS to gain access to the phone and install sophisticated spyware.

What does the iPhone Trident exploit do?

It allows malicious users to remotely jailbreak a phone and install software on it that's hidden from the phone's owner. The malware is triggered by someone visiting a web page - the phone's user doesn't need to agree to download anything. The spyware package allowed its masters to use the phone's camera and microphone to record anything at any time, as well as monitoring chat software such as WhatsApp.

How was the Trident malware discovered?

The malware appears to have been specifically targeted at Ahmed Mansour, a human rights activist in the UAE. Mansour received text messages on his phone which claimed to link to details of human rights abuses. However, he became suspicious of the messages, and passed details on to Citizen Lab, who dissected the malware and linked it to an Israeli company which makes spyware for use by governments.

Who made the Trident malware?

Can the Trident malware affect me?

In theory, yes. In practice, this kind of targeted malware attack is almost always designed to focus on specific users by the government responsible. They also tend to want to keep the malware they use close to their chests because it's a costly piece of software which (ironically) they don't want to get into "the wrong" hands.

It's already been patched

If you're on iOS 9, hit software update and download iOS 9.3.5. This patches the exploits used by the NSO malware, as well as throwing in a few other security fixes into the mix.

Isn't this all pretty shady?

Yes it is. Add together shadowy companies making malware and governments targeting human rights activists for surveillance by hacking and you have something that sounds like it's out of a pacy cyberwar novel. Sadly, it looks like it's not fiction.

The iPhone 6 and 6 Plus are fantastic devices, which are largely without fault. However, nothing in life is perfect all of the time, so here are our handy tips and tricks for making your experience with either device as well as the latest iPads that little bit better.

Apple tablets and smartphones now ship with iOS 9 as their default operating system, and the latest OS offers plenty of opportunities to play around with the screen display, device security, and your input settings.

One useful inclusion in iOS 9 is the 'Search Settings' field in the Settings menu. This tool lets you search for a specific setting instead of scrolling through endless menus on your device.

A good way to avoid annoying your friends in the pub, or co-workers at lunch, is to turn off the click sound on your keyboard via Settings > Sounds > Keyboard Clicks this is something we'd strongly advise you do.

Before we really get started, we wanted to drop in a little bonus tip for when you're trying to send large attachments via email on the iPhone - something that's tricky to do but that has a very easy fix.

iPhone 6/6 Plus tips: sending large emails

If you're on version iOS 9.2 or later, OS X's Mail Drop feature is now availabe on your mobile device, meaning you can send huge attachments (up to 5GB) via iCloud.

Don't worry about trying to search this function on your iPhone or iPad - it comes up as an option automatically when you try to attach a very large file to your email. A pop-up window simply asks you if you'd prefer to send the file in Mail Drop.

iPhone 6/6 Plus tips: top five essential apps

Apps are arguably the most important part of any smartphone. Naturally, the first thing you'll want to do with a new handset is fill it up with Twitter, Facebook, Snapchat and the like, but once you've done that, here are the five apps we think are absolutely essential.

Google Maps

One of the biggest benefits of the smartphone revolution is never having to get lost again. Thanks to GPS, we can find out exactly where we are at any given moment. However, Apple's Maps service pales in comparison to Google's far superior offering. As well as walking and driving directions, it'll even do public transport! Ace.

Dropbox

Dropbox's internet file-sharing service has proved invaluable to many users, both in business spaces and at home. With Dropbox also beefing up its feature-set for iOS 8, there's really no reason not to get on board with cloud storage. Dropbox is currently the most popular consumer service, but rivals like Box and Google Drive are also equally slick.

Silent Phone and Text

Data privacy is an increasing concern among those who use their smartphones for business. If you're handling sensitive information, we'd recommend outfitting your device with encryption apps. We're fans of Silent Circle's Silent Phone and Silent Text apps, for secure voice, video and SMS communication.

Feedly

No one wants to be the last to know about the latest news, and Feedly is a great way to keep on top of developments. Add your favourite sites, and all their latest news and articles will be displayed for you in the app. You can read them at your leisure, share or save them, and divide them into specific categories.

Evernote

When it comes list-making, quick memos and sharing projects with colleagues or friends, Evernote is among the finest note-taking apps you'll find. Using its sturdy iOS app on its basic (free) plan gives you access to cross-device syncing, the ability to share notes and store your web clippings. It's plus and premium tiers offer much, but you can do some much with the service in its basic form from storing helpful templates to managing entire projects that this digital notebook is an essential app.

iPhone 6/6 Plus tips: security and privacy

1) Setup Touch ID and a strong password

Everyone wants their device to be as secure as possible. When you're setting up the iPhone 6 it will ask you if you want to enable Touch ID we recommend doing this as it's simple and effective.

You'll also be prompted to set up a 4-digit passcode as default but you should take steps to beef this up.

Let's put it into context. Say you're on a train and the person looking over your shoulder sees you tap in your 4-digit pin. Now if this unscrupulous so-and-so happens to be a thief, you'll have a problem as they'll know the passcode to access your device once they pinch it.

To make it harder for people to access your device Go to Settings > Touch ID & Passcode and then switch off Simple Passcode'. You'll be prompted to enter a longer 6-digit password with the ability to use alphanumeric characters. We recommend using three memorable words as a long password is a strong password (Click here for more tips on a secure password).

Using a long password may seem like a drag but, with Touch ID enabled, most of the time you'll be unlocking the device or paying for apps via a thumbprint. The strong password is there to give you peace of mind if the device ever goes missing.

There's also another option for users who carry around sensitive information on the device. You can set the device to wipe all data if the passcode is entered incorrectly 10 times. This is a nice failsafe and can be activated via Settings > Touch ID & Passcode > Erase Data.

2) Stop your iPhone (or iPad) from tracking you

Ever wondered where your phone gets that handy navigation and road condition information when you glance at the Notifications Center at different times of the day? It gets it by tracking your movements whenever you go provided you are connected to a Wi-Fi hotspot, such as at home, work, a coffee shop or even the Tube network.

Though this can have benefits, if you'd prefer to stop your phone tracking your frequently visited locations, go to Settings > Privacy > Location Services > System Services and then Frequent Locations. From there, turn the option Off. For added privacy, hit the Clear History button, too.

3) Enable backup

The ability to backup your device is useful if you ever lose it as you can sync the new device and pick up where you left off.

Go to Settings > iCloud > Backup to enable it. When your phone is plugged into a power supply and connected to Wi-Fi, all documents, accounts, photos and settings will be backed up.

4) Hide photos

We've all had that awkward moment. Showing a friend or relative a few pictures in our camera roll and then suddenly swiping to an embarrassing picture. In iOS 9 it's possible to hide those private photos by pressing and holding it and then tapping Hide'. This means it will no longer show up in your camera roll and will be in its own Hidden folder'.

iPhone 6/6 Plus tips: accessibility and customisation

5) Get a new keyboard

Apple introduced its own QuickType' predictive text keyboard, but this takes time to adjust to your usage pattern. It's possible to download a third-party keyboard and our personal favourite is Swype (99p). This lets you drag your finger across the screen to type out words and has a great prediction feature.

SwiftKey is also a popular keyboard on Android, but so far its reviews aren't quite as good as Swype on iOS 9.

If you want to use a third-party keyboard as your primary form of input you need to go to Settings > General > Keyboard > Edit and then drag it to the top of the list.

6) Minimise email message

It's possible to minimise an email you're composing by swiping down from the top of the message. This allows you to check other emails for any important information or to copy an address. Once you're ready to continue with your message just tap on the "New Message" tab at the bottom of the screen.

7) Multitasking with videos or FaceTime on iPad

In our modern reality of multiple screens, multiple email accounts and multiple jobs, multitasking is pretty much de facto for us all. One of the new additions to iOS 9 on iPad is the ability to view another app while simultaneously seeing a FaceTime call or video in a smaller picture-in-picture screen.

To activate the feature, while holding a FaceTime call or viewing a video press the Home button or tap the Picture-in-Picture button to resize the viewing window. From here, you can then flick the smaller screen to move it about the main screen.

Currently, this feature is only available on iPad Air, Air 2, iPad Mini 2, 3 and 4, and iPad Pro. Great for when you need to finish that work email be can't resist watching the last 10 minutes of your favourite TV programme.

8) Get out of a group iMessage thread

iPhone 6 users can now opt out of iMessage threads in group chat. To do this, launch the iMessage app, select the group you want to opt out of. Then tap on Details in the top right-hand corner and choose "Leave this conversation". The only drawback is this only works when all people on the thread are iMessage users.

9) Use Siri-hands free

Up to now Siri has always had to be activated by pressing and holding the Home button. To make it easier to use iPhone in a car, Apple now lets you interact with Siri hands-free when the device is plugged into a power source.

Go to Settings > General > Siri > Allow Hey Siri' to activate this.

10) Train Siri

Siri is able to learn who your contacts are so - for example - you can tell her "Jeff is my dad" and then ask her to "send a message to dad".

It's also possible to correct any pronunciations - by saying "that's not how you pronounce it", ask Siri to identify songs as well as search the web.

11) Speak Screen

A useful option to have when your hands are tied. It's possible to get Siri to read back things on the screen.

To activate this mode go to Settings > General > Accessibility > Speech and turn on Speak Screen.

Then tell Siri to "Speak screen."

12) Optimise the display

The iPhone 6 and 6 Plus are bigger handsets, so there's an option to enlarge the icons and bold the text.

To do this go to Go to Settings > Display & Brightness and toggle the relevant options.

We also like the option to bold text - Settings > Accessibility > Bold.

13) Use Spotlight

iOS 9 has an excellent universal search feature. Swipe down from halfway on the home screen to activate Spotlight.

This searches your device, Maps, the web and the App Store.

14) Access the top of the screen

All iPhones were designed to be used with one hand. But as the screen sizes have increased, Apple has introduced its Reachability feature. Top reach the top of the screen, simply tap the home button twice (not press it twice) and the screen shifts down. You can make a selection and the screen will then pop back up afterwards.

iPhone 6/6 Plus tips: notifications

15) Setup emails/notifications

Adding accounts on the iPhone is simple, with all the popular services from Gmail to Exchange accepted. Go to Settings > Mail, Contacts, Calendars to configure them.

Don't forget to fine-tune alerts. It's possible to choose how many lines of a message are previewed in notifications - personally, I like 4 lines - but you can play around and see what suits you. It's also useful to enabled the Show To/Cc label' if you're used to sending emails to multiple recipients.

Going to Settings > Notifications > Mail allows you to choose how you are alerted about messages. You can choose none, banners or alerts and also whether you want messages to appear on your lock screen.

16) Email thread alert

Keeping on top of emails can be a headache at the best of times especially when you're on the move.

The Mail app has a handy Notify Me' feature to help make sure you don't miss the most important emails. This is particularly useful when you're collaborating on a project to deadline or trying to organise meetings.

To activate this go into the email, click on the Flag at the bottom then Notify Me. The email thread will then have an orange blob next to it and a little bell. Every time someone responds to the thread you get a notification.

If you want to be absolutely sure you never miss a notification from Notify Me' threads go to Settings > Notifications > Mail > Thread Notifications and change the notification type to Alerts'. This way the message will remain on screen until you dismiss it so you won't overlook it accidentally.

17) Change vibration settings

The vibration on the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus is so forceful, it verges on the annoying.

It's possible to change the vibration alert or even create a customised version. Go to Settings > Sounds > Ringtone > Vibration. From here you can choose another alert or tap out your own, less aggressive tone.

18) Reply to texts from any app

It's possible to respond to text messages from any app when you get a banner notification. If you swipe down from the top it's possible to tap out a reply and send it.

You have to be quick though because the ability to send a quick reply disappears along with the banner notification.

19) Turn off repeat alerts

On the iPhone, Message alerts are configured to repeat after two minutes. This can trick you into thinking you have a new message. Go to Settings > Notifications > Messages and turn 'Repeat Alerts' to never.

20) Use the flash as notification light

As there is no notification light on the iPhone, sometimes if can be difficult to tell if you have a message. It's possible to get the camera flash to blink when you have messages. To activate this, go to Settings > Accessibility > LED flash for Alerts.

iPhone 6/6 Plus tips: data and networks

21) Keep on top of Location settings

iOS 9 makes it easier to keep track of your privacy/location settings. When you open an app like weather or maps for the first time, it will ask permission to "use your location" in the background. It's best to click 'not allow' as you don't want apps sucking up battery life unnecessarily.

To check which apps are able to access your whereabouts - go to Settings > Privacy. From here it's possible to see which apps have access to information such as Contacts, Calendar info, photos etc.

The best thing about the Location settings is the ability to switch it off - and that's what we'd recommend. This will save battery and you can always turn on GPS for the times when you need turn-by-turn directions.

22) Find your iPhone

You can check whether this is activated by going to Settings > iCloud > Find my iPhone. The beautiful (and slightly worrying) thing is that even if your Location setting is Off' you can override the setting through 'Lost Mode' from iCloud.com.

Activating this automatically switches on Location tracking and also allows you to lock the phone and display a message on the screen along with a contact number.

It's also worth turning on the Send Last Location' setting, as this will tell you the last known whereabouts of the device before the battery died.

23) Use Safari's settings

Safari has plenty of new features. You can now request desktop websites by tapping on the URL, and then flicking down to see an option to Request Desktop site'.

If you accidentally close a tab it's possible to reopen it by pressing and holding the +' button. This brings up a list of recently closed windows.

Apple has also added Private browsing mode, but be careful. If you don't close individual tabs, the next time Safari is opened you could be embarrassed as the web pages will automatically load.

24) Limit background data downloads

This is a pretty simple setting, which can help to save battery life, especially if you've got dozens of apps. Go to Settings > General > Background App Refresh and make sure non-critical apps are not pulling through data.

Most users won't need Stocks, Weather and Podcasts running in the background - whereas Mail and instant messages are vital. Remember to check back here periodically once you've downloaded a few apps to make sure nothing unnecessary is sucking the battery.

iPhone 6/6 Plus tips: battery

25) Charge your iPhone 6/6 Plus faster

Both iLounge and MacRumours have corroborated that it's possible to charge the latest iPhones faster with an iPad adaptor. The iPhones ship with 1 Amp chargers whereas the iPads double the capacity (2.1 Amps).

This doesn't appear to cause any damage (unlike the false report last year that microwaving an iPhone 6 would rapidly return it to full charge), but just make sure you don't do any intensive tasks while charging as you'll generate a lot of heat.

According to estimates, the iPhone 6 can get to full charge in approximately two hours with the iPad adaptor.

26) Check battery usage

The battery percentage is off by default and we'd recommend keeping it this way as this can create a sense of paranoia as you constantly keep checking battery life.

A useful feature is the ability to check which apps are draining battery life. Go to Settings > General > Usage > Battery Usage and you'll see a list. You can then close anything sucking up too much power.

27) What to do when you have a low battery?

There is no "power saving mode" to activate in iOS. But when you are running low on juice there are things you can do to conserve energy.

The display is usually the source of power drain so go to Settings > General > Accessibility and either Invert Colours' or choose Greyscale'. It also helps to turn down the brightness.

Using 4G also sucks up power - so this can be temporarily disabled via Settings > Mobile > Enable 4G. And don't forget you can also switch off Background refresh' completely until you are fully charged.

iPhone 6/6 Plus tips: camera

28) Burst Mode & Time Lapse

Holding down the shutter button will trigger burst mode and give you a running count of how many pictures you're taking.

It's also possible to record a time-lapse video within iOS 9 - handy if you want to check who's been pitching cookies from the jar.

29) Manually adjust exposure

Tapping on the screen to take a picture will not only refocus, it will also bring up a little bar allowing you to increase or decrease the exposure levels.

30) Record smoother video

The iPhone 6 has some impressive video recording chops, more so when a high frame rate is used. This doubles the number of frames per second from 30 to 60. To enable this, tap on the Photos and Camera option within the main Settings, and set Record video at 60 FPS.

31) Easily select multiple photos

Selecting more than one photo in the Photos app involves a tedious amount of tapping tapping on each individual photo, over and over again, until you've selected all the ones you want to share or delete.

It doesn't have to be this way though. Tap the Select button in the upper right hand corner of the Photos app. Then simply slide your finger over the photos you want in a single smooth motion to select them. This even works non-contiguously so you can slide your finger over one block of photos to select them, then scroll through to another part of your camera roll or album to select another bunch.

This slick new interface method is making its way to other apps the same trick also works in Google Photos, for example. The selection action and reaction animations aren't as smooth in Google Photos as they are in the stock Apple photos app, but it's still a worthwhile trick to know.

This article was originally published on the 24/09/2014 (related to iOS 8) and has been updated multiple times (most recently on the 30/6/2016, with tweaks to reflect iOS 9's changes).

Apple's WWDC developer conference saw the company unveil iOS 10, the latest version of its mobile and tablet operating system. The new software includes a host of new features, including substantial updates to areas like Siri, VoIP tools and iMessage.

There's lots to look forward to no matter how you use your iPhone, whether you're an urban explorer or a serial texter. Here's how iOS 10's new features stack up against iOS 9.3.

Siri

Siri, Apple's digital assistant, was first launched as part of the iPhone 4s back in 2011, but since then it's had limited improvements compared to the rest of Apple's software.

This is set to change, however, with the news that Apple is opening up Siri's SDK to developers, allowing them to build voice command integrations into their apps. This will up Siri's usefulness dramatically, as major companies like Uber and Dominos enable voice command functionality.

Phone

One of the great things about tools like Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp is that they can basically replace your traditional cellular service, allowing users to send calls over the internet.

With iOS 10, VoIP tools will genuinely feel like the equal of traditional phone calls. The iPhone app's API has been opened to developers, meaning when your iPhone receives a WhatsApp call, for example, it will react in the same way as it does when it receives a standard call.

For those that still actually use voicemail, iOS 10 will also perform automatic voicemail transcription, giving you a text record of your messages without actually forcing you to listen to them.

iMessage

Apple is gunning for IM services like Snapchat, WhatsApp and Facebook Chat with the newest version of iMessage, and it's likely to be this that most consumers get excited about.

There are a number of new features for iMessage in iOS 10, such as 'bubble effects', which lets users add different effects to their messages for emphasis, such as softly fading in.

You can also use 'invisible ink', which obscures messages until you slide your finger over them, meaning you can surprise people with messages.

Emoji - the new language of communication in 2016 - have been overhauled too. Emoji are 30 per cent bigger in iOS 10, and predictive text will suggest emoji as you type. iOS 10 will even go back through your messages to suggest which words you can 'emojify'.

The iMessage SDK has been opened up, so developers can now integrate their tools into the app. Apple showed off the function with Square Cash, which now allows users to send money with a text.

Music and News

Apple's Music and News apps have both been redesigned, with a new coat of paint and a slight reshuffle in terms of layout. In terms of functionality, however, nothing much has been added, aside from the addition of subscriptions to News and a lyrics pane to Music.

Photos

The camera has to be one of the most commonly used features of the iPhone, so it's about time that Apple invested some energy into improving the Photos app. Thankfully, it has, and the camera looks much better for it.

Much like Google Photos, the app now employs AI and machine learning tools to intelligently identify the subjects of your photos, including separate locations, items and people. It then groups them, allowing you to look through, for example, all your photos of specific friends.

There's also a new 'memories' tab, which collects all of the photos and videos from a given event - a festival in Ibiza, for example, or a kayaking trip in the Dordogne. It can even string them together with music and text overlays to create a charming little video.

There's good news for the professionals, too: iOS 10 will now support RAW image capturing. This feature - which captures a full image with no compression or alteration - is used in professional photography, and has featured on numerous Android handsets.

Maps

Apple's Maps app has often been seen as the poor relation to Google's offering, but the latest version could turn the tables. Apple is promising to be more proactive and hands-on with its latest version, offering a variety of suggestions to users.

These suggestions include route alterations, restaurant recommendations and more, and will vary based on your location and time of day. There are also optimised integrations for Apple's CarPlay software, too.

Like many of its other apps, the Maps SDK is now freely available, so expect to see heaps of plugins and integrations with major third-party services like Uber or OpenTable.

Compatibility

It's bad news for the iPhone 4S, as iOS support for the device officially ends as of iOS 10. If you want the new version, then it's time to upgrade. Second and third-generation iPads are also out of luck, as is the fifth-gen iPod Touch.

However, updating something as old as the iPhone 4S wouldn't be a good idea, even if it was supported. The 4S already saw a marked performance drop when updating to iOS 9, so updating to the latest iOS version would likely render it unusable.

Anything from the iPad 4 and iPhone 5 upwards will be compatible with iOS 10, but as always, devices on the lower end of that curve may want to skip the upgrade, as the age of the hardware can often mean significant speed decreases.

No matter what your smartphone operating system loyalties and preferences are, you have to admit that Apple's iOS is never boring. iOS 7 introduced a dramatic visual refresh, while iOS 8 introduced more Android-style flexibility with features such as third-party keyboards and extensions. iOS 9 continues iOS 8's theme of giving users more flexibility and does so with several new features first introduced by its competitors.

Despite the cavalcade of new features, iOS 9 is, generally speaking, an incremental and iterative update for iPhone and iPod Touch users. It's a different story for iPad users though - iOS 9 brings significant changes to the way you use your Apple tablet.

Latest news

07/04/2016: One week after the general release of iOS 9.3.1, Apple has seeded the beta of iOS 9.3.2 to developers. Being an update to 9.3, it doesn't make any radical changes, but rather fixes a handful of bugs and introduces some minor new features.

In terms of bug fixes, the release notes indicate these addresses known issues in the built-in Dictionary, iBooks, Safari and Simulator, although there isn't much detail as to what these are.

It also deals with an issue in Quick Actions that caused stuttering and lag when used.

iOS 9.3.2 is only available to registered Apple developers, with no current indicated schedule for a public release.

08/03/2016:An iOS bug has caused iOS owners to receive 'ghost emails' from 1970.

The emails appear in the stock Mail app on iPhone and iPad dated 1 January 1970 with no sender, users have reported on Reddit.

Although Apple has yet to issue an official explanation, common consensus appears to be that the issue is down to an error in iOS that causes the app to download the email's information incorrectly.

The error can be fixed by closing the app and hard-resetting the device.

The perplexing '70s date stamp - a clear 30 years before the invention of the iPhone - can be easily explained, too.

UNIX-based operating systems like iOS use 1 January 1970 as the start date for their clocks, meaning that to an iPhone, it's effectively the beginning of time.

This is also the cause of an error that surfaced last month, in which some iPhones could be bricked by setting them to this date.

For certain timezones, setting the devices to this date fools the phone into thinking that its internal clock is below zero, meaning it will fail to boot.

Naturally, users are discouraged from attempting to replicate this bug, as they may have to take their phone in for repair.

09/02/2016:Virtual reality (VR) could feature on iOS within the next two years, an analyst research note has indicated.

The note, obtained by AppleInsider, comes from Piper Jaffrey analyst Gene Munster, and charts some of Apple's recent acquisitions and hires in the VR space.

At least 141 Apple employees have a background in augmented reality (AR), according to Munster,and the IP gained through acquisitions such as PrimeSense indicate that the company is looking to explore "mixed reality" applications for future devices.

Apple secured a patent for "head-mounted display apparatus for retaining a portable electronic device with display" last February, and made several acquisitions including AR start-up Mataioduring 2015.

08/02/2016: Apple has defended the Error 53' security update that has been destroying thousands of users' iPhones.

After upgrading to iOS 9, many unsuspecting iPhone owners have found that the error has completely locked their phones, with no way to unlock them, and no way to recover the data.

The error arises as a result of tampering with the iPhone's TouchID sensor. Unfortunately, it can also be triggered by replacing the device's screen, if users do not take it to an official Apple engineer.

Taking an Apple device device anywhere other than an Apple Authorised Service Provider for repair automatically voids the warranty, and thishas left unwitting customers with a useless handset after a simple screen repair.

The company says this is for security reasons, suggesting that stolen iPhones could be installed with compromised fingerprint readers to allow criminals to gain access.

"We take customer security very seriously and Error 53 is the result of security checks designed to protect our customers,"a spokesperson for the company said.

"This security measure is necessary to protect your device and prevent a fraudulent Touch ID sensor from being used. If a customer encounters Error 53, we encourage them to contact Apple Support."

System requirements, performance and battery life

iOS 9 is unique among all the major mobile operating systems in supporting very old hardware - it's officially supported on the iPad 2 and the iPhone 4s, which both came out in 2011, although iPod Touch support only goes back to the 5th generation model.

Just because you can install iOS 9 on four year old devices doesn't mean you should though. As our in-depth testing of iOS 9 on an iPhone 4s and an original iPad mini (which has almost identical specifications to the iPad 2) revealed, iOS 9 only brings, at best, very uneven responsiveness and battery life improvements to these older devices.

It's a different story on newer, more up to date devices though. We only saw modest improvements in Apple's already class-leading JavaScript rendering performance on an iPhone 6 Plus and iPad Air 2. There was no improvement in 3D rendering performance, although our 3D graphics tests have yet to be updated for Metal, Apple's new alternative to the OpenGL API which allegedly brings performance improvements.

There were notable increases in battery life though. When running iOS 8, our iPhone 6 Plus lasted seven hours and 41 minutes in our web browsing and music playback test. Under iOS 9, this increased by over half an hour to eight hours and 15 minutes.

The difference was more dramatic on our iPad Air 2 which went from seven hours and 47 minutes to nine hours and 10 minutes after the OS upgrade. This exceeds Apple's claims of one hour improvement in battery life for iOS 9. These improvements were repeated when we reran the tests, with minor differences of five minutes either way, so they weren't one-offs.

Interface

As expected, iOS 9 keeps the same minimalist interface first introduced in iOS 7 but with some subtle changes. The new system font, San Francisco, replaces Helvetica Neue. Although it didn't improve legibility on the non-Retina original iPad mini or the small 3.5in iPhone 4s, we found that the subtle differences in weighting and spacing did improve legibility on the iPad Air 2 and iPhone 6 Plus. Unfortunately, you can't change it back if you don't like it.

The app switcher has changed from a series of small, clearly separated and free-standing cards representing each app to a series of larger, overlapping cards. Although this seems like a trivial change at first, we found the larger cards easier to swipe through single-handed on large screen phones such as the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus. Plus, the new large card design discourages endless browsing through the carousel of apps, emphasising its use for quickly switching between recently used apps rather than as an alternative to the home screen which it had become for some people.

iOS 9's new app switcher

It's easy to overlook the changes to Apple's default keyboard, especially if you've long switched to a third party alternative, but they're useful enough that they may tempt you to switch back - especially on the iPad.

A small but very welcome change is that the key caps now switch back and forth between lower-case and upper-case labelling depending on whether or not you've engaged the caps lock. It's therefore much more obvious which case you've selected, unlike in iOS 7 and 8 where the only hint was an ambiguously highlighted shift key.

On the iPad, the keyboard gets a Shortcuts Bar which flanks either side of the QuickType autocorrect suggestions field first introduced in iOS 8. Filled with useful buttons such as undo, redo, paste and text formatting options, it makes working on even small blocks of text much easier than before. Windows Phone has a similar, but far more basic shortcuts bar accompanying its on-screen keyboard.

Holding two fingers down on the keyboard turns it into a giant touchpad for moving the text caret. This iPad-only feature makes text editing even easier, making this clever feature an immediate favourite.

The keyboard turns transparent in touchpad mode

Reminders may not be as feature-packed as third-party to-do list apps, but it does have one feature those apps don't. Reminders in Apple's app can now include links to other apps. So you can set a reminder to read an email later and include a link that will take you direct to the email in question. This clever little feature still needs some work though. For example, setting a reminder to call a particular contact included a link that opened the Phone app, but this just took us to the call list and not to the details for the specific contact.

Reminders can now include links to other apps, although they don't always work quite right

A much smaller, but no less useful new feature available on iPads as well as iPhones and iPod Touches is a context-sensitive back button that appears in the top left hand corner of the screen when you click a link in an app that opens another app. Tapping the back button takes you back to the first app. It's a small touch, but helps make multitasking just that bit smoother.

Built-in apps

Of all of Apple's built-in apps, Notes gets the biggest makeover. It's now a serious alternative to rival notetaking apps, with features such as freehand drawing using your finger, automatically numbered lists, checklists as well as the ability to add photos, file attachments and even links to other apps (where supported) in a note.

There are some odd quirks with Notes though, such as the almost non-existent ability to edit your drawings after you've drawn them and the requirement that you enable iCloud syncing for your notes just to use the freehand tools.

iCloud syncing is a departure from previous versions of the Notes app which used an IMAP mailbox in one of your email accounts to sync notes between multiple devices. Once switched over to iCloud, you can't switch back so notes will only be synchronised between iCloud-enabled devices.

Unless you object to iCloud-centric notes syncing, the revamped Notes app means it's less likely you'll go hunting for a third-party notetaking app if you don't already use one. But you're less likely to be won over if you're already a dedicated fan of Evernote, OneNote or SimpleNote.

iCloud Drive, the Dropbox-like online storage component of Apple's cloud services, finally gets its own dedicated file manager app. Oddly though, it's hidden by default and has to be enabled in the Settings app before it will appear on your homescreen. In any case, there's nothing special about it and certainly nothing that will tempt you over if you're already a dedicated user of another cloud storage service.

There's no real need to use iCloud's online storage service as Apple continues to make it easier for third party services to integrate more closely with iOS apps. The default Mail app finally gains the ability to add attachments to emails, including files stored on OneDrive, Dropbox and Box.net from a straightforward file picker window. Previously you had to delve into, say, the Microsoft Word app and email the files you wanted from there. This wasn't very intuitive.

You can now add attachments to emails from cloud storage services such as Box

Apple's new News app filled with curated content from the likes of The New York Times, The Guardian, Vanity Fair and CNN, isn't actually available for British iOS users yet. We suspect Apple is still stocking the app with UK-specific news providers and content before becoming available on this side of the pond.

Apple's homegrown Google-less Maps app was an unmitigated disaster when it launched with iOS 6. Missing landmarks and addresses as well as incorrect routing and directions made it a laughing stock. The data underlying the app is now much improved, at least in our experience in London and the South East and in many cases Apple's map labels and symbols are more legible than those in Google Maps with the notable exception of public transport stops and stations. Google Maps, while not perfect either, still has the edge though when it comes to the most accurate and up-to-date location and routing information.

Maps now regains the ability to give you public transport directions that it lost when Apple moved away from Google as its backend. In our experience it worked well, but there's a major catch. It's currently only available in a handful of cities worldwide - the only British city with public transport directions in Apple Maps is London. All of this means that Apple Maps is likely to continue as an adjunct to Google Maps, rather than replace it outright.

Apple Maps once again has built-in public transport directions, but the only British city it supports at the moment is London

The Photos app gains a few useful smart albums for selfies, panoramas, videos and, in a godsend for software reviewers, screenshots. We're a little disappointed that other apps haven't received some love and attention though.

An example is the Calendar app. You can add events to the Calendar app on OS X by typing details in natural language, such as lunch with Kat at 2pm on Friday the 25th' rather than fiddling about with a time-consuming dialogue box. It doesn't always parse the details correctly, but it's good enough that we wish the iOS Calendar app had the same time-saving feature.

Behind the scenes

A small but useful benefit is the ability of third-party apps to use a far faster HTML renderer than the one in previous versions of iOS. Previously, apps that needed to display web content, such as a social networking app with statuses containing a web link, rendered that content using an engine that was noticeably slower than Safari - especially JavaScript-heavy pages. Third-party developers have to opt into this feature though, which we hope they will do as soon as possible.

Third-party apps can now use a far faster built-in HTML renderer for showing web content

The most controversial new feature in iOS 9 by far is the ability to add content blockers to the Safari web browser. Downloaded as apps from the App Store, almost all of the content blockers released to date have been ad-blockers. Other types of content blockers, such as adult content filters, are also in the works from various developers.

We won't delve in-depth into the arguments for and against ad blockers on mobile devices here, but we welcome their inclusion in iOS 9. Badly designed ads can make it hard or impossible to read and navigate mobile websites, slow down rendering speeds and hog bandwidth - all of which can be especially aggravating if you're on a slow network and/or have a data usage cap. With all this in mind, giving users more control using content blockers is, overall, a good thing.

iPad multitasking

Multitasking on the iPad is now a lot easier thanks to iOS 9. There is a trio of new multitasking features, but they are not available on the iPhone (even the huge 5.5in 6 Plus and 6s Plus) and only some iPads will be able to take advantage of them. To use the new Picture-in-Picture and Slide Over features, you'll need an iPad Mini 2, an iPad Air or later. To use Split View, you'll need an iPad Air 2, iPad Mini 4 or later. All three of these features are of course supported on the upcoming iPad Pro.

These new multitasking features in iOS 9 will be instantly familiar to users of Windows 8 and 10 tablets as well as owners of recent Samsung Galaxy Tabs. Picture-in-Picture lets you watch video in a small resizeable window while using other apps. You can only stick this window in one of the four corners of the screen, rather than anywhere you wish, but it's still useful to have. Video apps that already support Picture-in-Picture include BBC iPlayer, DailyMotion and, of course, Apple's own FaceTime video chat service.

When using an app, swipe in from the right hand side of the screen and you can use another app on top of it. The second app occupies around of the screen and you can't use your original app while using the second app. Apple calls this Slide Over and it works well for quick tasks such as checking emails or Tweets without completely disrupting your workflow.

Whether you want to use Slide Over or Split View, they're both activated the same way

The second app in Slide Over on an iPad essentially looks and works much like an iPhone app

Split View lets you use two apps on-screen, side-by-side, simultaneously. It's activated very similarly to Slide Over, but the second app can occupy up to half of the screen. It works well and makes complex workflows easier to accomplish on an iPad.

Picture-in-Picture and Split View working together

All this may be old hat to Galaxy Tab and Windows users, but Split View is already better than the similar feature on Samsung tablets purely because of more widespread developer support. Microsoft Office, Slack, Scanner Pro and PDF Expert are some of our favourite and most frequently used apps and all have already been updated to support Split View (Apple's iWork apps are conspicuous by their lack of support).

This is all the more impressive given that iOS 9 has only been publicly available for a few days compared to Samsung's years-long head start. Plus, in a neat touch, you can use Split View and Picture-in-Picture together.

Search and Siri

Siri has quietly and quickly grown into one of the best feature on iOS. Overall, we find the transcription accuracy of this voice-activated personal assistant to be very good. We use it everyday for setting alarms, entering reminders and calendar events and transcribing texts and short emails.

Siri has been overshadowed though by the similar-but-different Google Now, the personal assistant built into recent versions of Android. Using data in apps such as GMail, Google Calendar and Google Maps, Now is much more proactive. It can reminding you to leave in time to get to your next appointment, even taking into consideration traffic or public transport conditions. It can show the status of upcoming flights or the shipping status of online shopping orders. It's all very clever.

Siri tries to do something similar, but without harvesting your data and having it processed by cloud-based servers. Siri Proactive apparently does all its data processing on-device which will be reassuring whether for corporate compliance reasons or just because you're concerned about your privacy and big data overreach.

It's early days for Siri Proactive, but so far it hasn't been as helpful as Google Now on Android. It offered to add appointments to our calendar based on restaurant reservation confirmation emails and it offered to open our favourite music app when we plugged in our headphones. It remains to be seen whether Apple's more privacy-sensitive approach will be able to match Google's cloud-based machine learning strategy in making a better personal assistant.

Siri's Proactive feature automatically offered to create new calendar events based on reservation confirmations emails in our inbox

We're not definitely not fans of the Siri suggestions screen, which sits to the left of your first home screen. The list of recently accessed contacts sits here, moved from its previous home in the app switcher on iOS 8. But it's joined by app suggestions, news headlines and suggestions for things to do in your local area. Apart from being cluttered, the headlines and locality-based suggestions weren't as tailored to our preferences compared to Google Now's similar feature.

So far, we haven't found the new Siri suggestions screen to be especially helpful

Siri does at least get a few additions to its core remit of voice control. For example, you can search through the Photos app by giving commands such as show me photos of Turkey'. But without cloud-based machine learning, the accuracy of the search results is dependent on how anal you've been in tagging your photos with the correct metadata. So the results for our search showed snaps of a trip to Istanbul, which had all been correctly tagged, but not those of a trip to Cappadocia which hadn't.

We do like the ability to search for files and data across all the apps installed on your device from the main iOS search field, accessed either from the Siri screen or by swiping down from the middle of any home screen. Some third-party apps have already been updated to support this universal search, with DropBox, Scanner Pro and PDF Expert among the first. The level of support varies though - for example DropBox only supports searching among your recently accessed and offline files, rather than amongst all your files, which is disappointing.

Another somewhat variable search feature is the new ability to search in the Settings app. This should be a godsend given the increasingly complex, nested nature of the Settings app, but it's not as smart as it could be. To find the battery settings, for example, you have to search for the keyword battery' - the synonymous energy' and power' didn't work. Shame.

You'll need to use exactly the right keywords when searching the Settings app

Security and enterprise

iOS 9 contains fewer new enterprise-specific features compared to previous versions of Apple's mobile operating system, although that's a sign of the operating system's growing maturity. Almost all of the new enterprise features here are focussed on security and mobile device management (MDM).

Security passcodes can now be up to six digits long, increased from four, making them just that bit more secure. Two-factor authentication is now supported, but only when a device is being set up for the first time - sadly an iOS device still can't be configured to require both a fingerprint and a passcode when unlocking for that extra layer of security.

There are several new fine-grained MDM controls, all of which have been long awaited and thus very welcome. Apps bought from the public-facing consumer App Store can now be converted into managed apps under your control. Apps bought under the Volume Purchase Program (VPP) can now be assigned to devices even if they don't have an Apple ID. VPP apps can be installed on any device your company owns, no matter where in the world it is. bypassing the annoying geographical restrictions sometimes found on the public App Store. You can even restrict access to the public app store entirely, ensuring that only managed apps that you approve can be installed. You can now managed VPN settings on an app-by-app basis and even restrict apps from using cellular networks.

Conclusions

For iPhone and iPod Touch users, iOS 9 is an evolutionary update full of small, neat little touches that make your everyday mobile experience that little bit smoother, easier and more convenient. The full utility of Siri Proactive remains to be seen, but it faces tough competition from Android Marshmallow's improved version of Google Now which is due out soon.

The effect is far more dramatic on the iPad, or at least iPads that can take advantage of the new multitasking features. We've never bought into the specious argument that iPads can't be used for work - they're certainly not a great fit for professional writers or spreadsheet jockeys, at least not without an external keyboard, but non-office workplaces such as warehouses, hospitals, studios and schools make use of them in other more lateral uses.

But prior to iOS 9, there were plenty of situations where an iPad wasn't quite the right fit. The new multitasking features and the revamped onscreen keyboard means the iPad is a more viable business computer in more workplaces than ever before.

iOS 9 really is good. (So good, in fact, it got 5/5 and a recommended award in a review by our sister title Expert Reviews).The only thing that should stop you from upgrading is the age of your devices - older devices will get less out of it and may even run more slowly. It may borrow ideas quite liberally from its competitors, but iOS 9 raises the bar again for mobile operating systems.

If you need any further convincing, our sister title Alphr.com runs down the five reasons to upgrade to iOS 9 today here. It's well worth a read.

Verdict

For most users, it will be a case of when they upgrade to iOS 9 not if

Requires iPhone 4s, iPad 2, iPad mini, iPod Touch fifth generation or later

Apple and Microsoft go up against each other with their own takes on what a tablet should be. Can Apple hold off the challenge of its rival?

Apple iPad Pro vs Microsoft Surface Pro 4: Latest News

19/02/2016:Power management problems bugging the Surface Pro 4 and Surface Book have led to Microsoft issuing a patch to fix things.

In a blog post, Surface chiefPanos Panay said that customer feedback has lead to the firm releasing a set of Microsoft and Intel driver and firmware updates to help users "get the most of the power management options that Surface is designed to offer and continue to make your Surface more productive.

"We are committed to continuing to improve Surface to keep pushing out updates to make your device more awesome," he said."And to continue to help all our customers realise the full benefits of the latest silicon and Windows 10.With that in mind, one of the most important steps you can take is to ensure your Surface is up-to-date with the fixes we post on Windows Update."

Apple iPad Pro vs Microsoft Surface Pro 4: The comparison

Competition between computer software and hardware makers is more intense than it ever has been. Ironically though the products they make are, at least on the surface, increasingly similar. The Apple iPad Pro and the Microsoft Surface Pro 4 have some striking similarities - big screen tablets with styli for drawing and keyboards that could potentially enable these tablets to take the place of a laptop.

Then there's the marketing and intended usage cases. Microsoft has proclaimed the Surface Pro 4 to be the tablet that can replace your laptop'. While Apple's marketing hasn't been as strident, Tim Cook, the company's CEO, has been less reticent. He declared, with only a small qualification, that the iPad Pro is a replacement for a notebook or a desktop for many, many people' in an interview with the Telegraph.

Of course, Apple and Microsoft have approached their big screen tablets from two very different sets of design assumptions. The iPad is of course based on iOS, a touchscreen, mobile-first operating system. Apple's software and hardware are minimalist with features taken for granted on the desktop only added in slowly, if at all, in an effort to maximise simplicity. The Surface Pro comes equipped with Windows 10 which, despite Microsoft's efforts, still has a very obvious desktop heritage. Microsoft doesn't believe you should have to compromise on anything in your tablet.

This makes this head-to-head one of the most interesting we've had in a long time. It's not just a case of pitting the two big screen tablets against one another, but also seeing whether either can truly take the place of your trusty laptop.

Tablet Ergonomics

The Surface Pro 4 and iPad Pro have similar dimensions and weight due to their similarly sized screens - the former has a 12.3in screen with a 3:2 aspect ratio while the latter has a 12.9in screen with a 4:3 aspect ratio. The iPad Pro is thus a little taller and wider than the Surface Pro 4, but with little difference in weight between the WiFi-only versions of both tablets - 713g for the iPad Pro and 800g for the Surface Pro 4.

While around 800g is light enough to carry around in a bag all day, it's so hefty in your hand that you'll need to rest either tablet against a table, your torso or something else during use rather than holding them. Two-handed use might be possible, but only for relatively short periods of time. Both tablets are evenly weighted, although the iPad Pro is a little thinner which makes it a bit easier to handle.

With this in mind, the Surface Pro 4 has an immediate advantage - its built-in multi-angle stand should allow you to find a comfortable viewing angle in all but the trickiest of usage scenarios. As it's made out of the same sturdy metal as the rest of the tablet, it's highly unlikely to buckle or give way.

The same can't be said for the iPad Pro. You'll need to buy a case with a kickstand built-in, such as Apple's official Smart Cover, as the iPad Pro lacks an integrated stand of its own. However, not only is it restricted to one viewing angle, which won't be comfortable for everyone, it's not as sturdy as the Microsoft tablet's integrated stand.

The Smart Cover stand is formed by folding Apple's screen cover back in on itself. While the stiffened rubber or leather-clad material is sturdy enough in the vast majority of situations for the smaller and lighter iPad Airs and Minis, the Pro version can collapse in on itself in some circumstances - ones which wouldn't faze the Surface Pro 4 stand. Apple's official keyboard cover (more on this later) also doubles as a stand of course and feels much more rigid, albeit not to the same standard as the Surface Pro 4.

Winner: Surface Pro 4. Although its sturdy built-in stand adds a little extra weight, its sheer convenience is worth it for most people so Microsoft's tablet wins this round.

Screen

When it comes to the screens themselves, there's little to separate these two tablets. When it comes to colour accuracy, contrast and brightness, both tablet screens are excellent. Both screens have very high resolutions - 2736x1824 for the Surface Pro 4 and 2732x2048 for the iPad Pro.

The Surface Pro 4's very high resolution can be a liability as a surprising number of Windows programs, especially older ones not specifically designed for touchscreen use, still haven't been upgraded to make use of very high resolutions. Unreadably small text, fuzzy graphics and other odd graphics scaling problems are thus still annoyingly common.

While high resolution optimised iPad apps are common, most of these have been optimised for the smaller displays of the iPad Air and Mini. They can look a little fuzzy when run on the far larger iPad Pro, although the effect isn't quite as coarse and amateurish looking as the scaling problems on the Surface Pro 4.

Even when apps have been specifically updated for the iPad Pro, a surprisingly large number of them seem to have been rushed with large expanses of unused space. If the situation with previous iPads is any indication then these issues will likely become less common over the coming months although there is, of course, no guarantee.

Winner: Tie. Both tablets have great looking screens, but also problems in software support for those screens.

The pen is mightier than the keyboard

Both the Surface Pro 4 and the iPad Pro have aspect ratios that are noticeably squarer than the 16:9 standard on laptops - both are close to the size and shape of an A4 sheet, although the iPad Pro comes closest. This not only makes reading feel more natural but also makes them better suited for stylus use.

Only the Surface Pro 4 comes with its stylus in the box. If you want the Apple Pencil, as Cupertino calls its stylus for the iPad Pro, then you'll need to pay 79 extra for it. Although this might seem like a lot, in general, it's a premium well worth paying.

The Surface Pro 4's bundled stylus is far from bad. It's pressure sensitive and it has a virtual eraser on its end. You can also double press the eraser to quickly launch OneNote, no matter if you're using another app or even if the tablet is asleep. It's accurate with generally good palm rejection and it works reasonably accurately with Windows' built-in handwriting recognition.

The Apple Pencil is in a different league, though. There's almost no lag when using the Pencil to sketch, draw or paint, whereas there's always a small but noticeable amount of lag with Microsoft's stylus. This high level of responsiveness combined with the Pencil's superb angle, tilt and pressure sensitivity meant that using the Pencil felt far more accurate, precise and natural than Redmond's competitor. Plus, its palm rejection is close to flawless.

The Pencil doesn't have an eraser nor are there any iOS apps with handwriting recognition as good as Microsoft's. Even so, the superb precision and responsiveness of the Apple Pencil hands this round to the iPad Pro.

Winner: iPad Pro. If you have even a modest artistic bent, the Apple Pencil will stand you in far better stead than the Surface Pro's pen.

Typing

Neither tablet here comes with its accompanying combined screen cover and keyboard. Both Microsoft's Type Cover and Apple's Smart Keyboard are costly extras - 109 for the former and 139 for the latter. Both connect magnetically to their tablets, obviating the need for fiddly-to-pair Bluetooth connections.

Microsoft has had four generations of Surfaces to refine its tablet keyboard cover, so it's no surprise that its keys feel the best. They are big and have plenty of travel and feedback for fast, accurate, error-free typing with almost no adjustment time needed.

Apple's keyboard uses keys similar to those found on the divisive keyboard of the 12in Retina MacBook. Although large, the keys here have very shallow feedback. Although they still give plenty of feedback when pressed so accurate and fast typing is possible, it still takes getting used to - especially as the keys are coated in an odd sports bag nylon-like material as opposed to the Type Cover's familiar plastic.

Microsoft's keyboard also has the advantage of height adjustability, even if it is only by a few millimetres. Keyboard shortcut support is unsurprisingly more widespread in Windows than iOS and the Type Cover also has a touchpad so you can avoid straining your arm forward as you would have to do with the iPad Pro's Smart Keyboard.

However, typing on both the Surface Pro 4 and iPad Pro when using either tablet on your lap can be awkward, uncomfortable or impossible. Whereas a laptop is rigidly, almost immovably stable, the tablets' keyboard covers are far more flexible and thus more unstable. The Type Cover is more rigid than the Smart Keyboard, giving it an edge, but it's still not ideal. Third party keyboard covers are on their way for the iPad Pro, offering a sliver of hope for Apple's tablet, but if you want the best typing experience now then it's the Surface Pro 4 you want.

Winner: Surface Pro 4, but bear in mind it's still not as good as a proper laptop.

Multitasking & Flexibility

iOS 9 added several welcome multitasking features to Apple's mobile operating system. These unsurprisingly work best on the iPad Pro which has a far bigger screen than any other iOS tablet. Almost all of those features will be eerily familiar to Windows 8 and 10 users. While very useful, they're not as refined as the equivalent features in Windows. Not only because Windows has had desktop-level multitasking for far longer, but also because more apps support them. Many iOS apps are still being updated to support iOS 9's new multitasking options.

The Surface Pro 4 not only has this multitasking advantage built-in but also has the flexibility afforded by a full-size USB3 port, a micro SD slot and a Mini DisplayPort. Although you can buy an external micro SD adapter for the iPad Pro, this is only for importing photos and not for adding more storage space.

The Surface Pro's additional connectivity probably explains its extra thickness, but it's worth it given the flexibility to use local storage and peripherals instead of currently dearer cloud and wireless equivalents. Wireless displays and cloud storage may be the way of the future, but the Surface Pro 4's ability to use wired peripherals and local storage give it an additional edge here.

Winner: Surface Pro 4. Multitasking-enhanced iPad apps will become more widespread while wireless peripherals and cloud storage may become ubiquitous in future. But in the here and now, the Surface Pro 4's software and hardware flexibility are serious advantages that can't be overlooked.

Performance

It's notoriously difficult to compare the performance of iPads against Windows tablets as they use completely different processor architectures. The iPad Pro uses an ARM-based dual-core 2.26GHz A9X processor. The Surface Pro 4 we tested used a more familiar Skylake 2.4GHz Core i5 6300U dual core chip, although both slower and faster versions using different Core chips are available. The A9X is paired with 4GB of memory while the Surface variant we saw was equipped with 8GB.

On their own terms, each processor was very impressive. The A9X is easily the fastest ARM-based processor we've ever seen, topping every benchmark from web page and JavaScript rendering to 3D graphics. The 6300U is easily powerful enough to run most Windows programs you can throw at it - only workstation-level tasks such as CADCAM or intensive 3D modelling and rendering would be beyond it.

Based on the few comparable benchmarks that will run on both tablets, the 6300U is clearly more powerful than the A9X, but Apple's custom-designed chip is as fast as low-voltage Core processors from a few years ago and faster than any Atom. Outside of benchmarks, it's unlikely most users will hit the limits of performance on either tablet - at least for a couple of years.

It's worth bearing in mind that while the 6300U is very powerful, this performance exacts a mild cost in heat and fan noise. On demanding tasks, such as video editing or running lots of applications simultaneously, the back of the Surface Pro 4 did become noticeably warm with lots of fan noise too. Although uncommon (especially compared to other Windows tablets), excess heat was even rarer on the iPad Pro performing similar tasks rare enough that Apple's tablet doesn't have a cooling fan at all.

Winner: Tie. This will be a controversial decision given that the 6300U is faster than the A9X, but for many use cases the difference doesn't matter and those users that do care will have to put up with the Surface Pro 4's potential heat and noise issues.

Battery Life

Intel's processors have become remarkably more power efficient ever since the fourth-generation Haswell chips, but you wouldn't know it from the Surface Pro 4. Microsoft's tablet lasted seven and a half hours when browsing the web and playing music in the background. It lasted just over eight and a half hours when playing H.264 video on a loop.

While those scores aren't bad, the iPad Pro lasted noticeably longer in both tests. In the web browsing test, it lasted nine hours and 18 minutes, while in the video playback test it lasted nine hours and 44 minutes.

Winner: iPad Pro. No surprises here - the iPad Pro upheld Apple's reputation for lengthy battery life with the Surface Pro 4 putting in a merely satisfactory showing.

Security

Both tablets have fast and accurate biometric security authentication systems. The iPad Pro has the Touch ID fingerprint reader which works very well. The Surface Pro 4 makes use of the Windows Hello feature in Windows 10. Based on facial recognition, simply looking at the forward facing webcam is enough to log you into Windows.

As the forward facing webcam uses Intel's RealSense depth perception technology, it can't be fooled by something as simple as a photograph of your face. Touch ID can be fooled by a detailed cast of your finger, so if you're important enough to be a potential target of such a non-trivial exploit then it's probably best to stick to a password.

Both Microsoft and Apple claim the tokenised biometric data never leaves your tablet. Apple goes further, stating that your data is stored in a secure area of the A9X that not even it can access. Disappointingly, though, Touch ID can only be used instead of a password and not in addition to one as part of two-factor authentication. Windows Hello can allegedly work as a second factor in tandem with Windows Passport, but setting this up is non-trivial.

Winner: Tie. Both Touch ID and Windows Hello work really well. It's just a shame that using either as part of a two-factor authentication scheme is out of reach.

Conclusions

This head-to-head was fiercely and tightly fought. Overall, we don't think either tablet is totally ideal as a laptop replacement if only because of issues when used on your lap. For the best mobile typing experience bar none, it's hard to beat a proper laptop.

That said, if you can live with a compromised typing experience, then the Surface Pro 4 comes closest to laptop replacement status if only because of its desktop-class OS and selection of ports. It doesn't win this head-to-head outright, though - for sheer battery life and a superlative stylus experience, the iPad Pro is hard to beat.

In the end, this head-to-head is a tie overall as both tablets are currently niche devices that work very well in certain use cases, but not all. This won't please fanboys on either side of the aisle, but that's the way it is. For a jack-of-all-trades tablet, the Surface Pro 4 is a good bet. If sheer stamina and artistic capability are more important, then the iPad Pro and Apple Pencil should be at the top of your shopping and deployment list.

This article was originally published on 09/11/2015. It was last updated on 19/02/2016.

Update:iOS 9.2 is now available to download with enhancements and bug fixes to the OS and a host of apps. For more details head over this article here. It brings improvements toApple Music, iBooks and iOS Mail apps as well as a number of bug fixes.

iOS 9 is unquestionably a great piece of software, but don't go hurrying to update your devices just yet.

As with any operating system, the more iOS is updated to accommodate new devices, the more troublesome it is on older technology, and iOS 9 is no different.

In our tests, we found that the benefits and features introduced by the update were generally outweighed by the negative impact.

For starters, the vast majority of new features were incompatible with the older hardware. The new twin-column notification centre for the iPad Mini and Low Power Mode for the iPhone 4s are among the only headline additions that are actually available to earlier devices.

On top of this, iOS 9 actually introduces noticeable performance hits, with a measurable decrease in app response times.

As such, iPhone 4s and iPad Mini users would be advised to stick to iOS 8, and avoid iOS 9 altogether.

The big reveal

Apple revealed iOS 9 at WWDC earlier this year, well ahead of a public release, so developers could start getting their apps ready. iOS 9 might arguably be more of an iterative update compared to iOS 8, but it still brings big revisions to many default apps, upgrades to Siri and Search, and finally, iPad-specific multitasking features that have the potential to make the tablet an even more invaluable business tool than it is today.

Side-by-side

We've put iOS 9 side-by-side with iOS 8 to see what features are being introduced, what changes have been made, and what quirks you can expect when your update finally completes its arduous download.

Built-in apps and interface

Almost every new version of iOS has introduced or redesigned an important of the overall interface and a built-in app, giving upgraders something new and fresh to try out as soon as their iPhone or iPad has rebooted from the install.

For iOS 8, this included Reachability, Apple's one-handed mode that brings the top half of the screen closer to your thumb. Double-tapping the home button without actually pressing it in fully activates the mode, and tapping it twice a second time restores the app to full-screen.

A series of new gestures were introduced in iOS 8, letting you swipe down from anywhere on the middle of the homescreen to display Spotlight search. You could also swipe left or right on an email message to mark it as unread, flag it, file it or trash it. Interactive notifications finally arrived too, letting you quickly reply to a text message directly from the notification, for example, rather than forcing you to open the Messages app.

Apple's larger iPhones are only usable for small hands thanks to features like Reachability

It was the redesigned Photos app that marked the biggest change, however. The new-look gallery app was divided into three sections; Collections, Albums and Shared. In Collections view, photos are sorted by location, but you can also alternately see them organised by years. Albums view is self-explanatory. Sharing lets you see exactly which photos you've shared with other iCloud users, or which are currently synced to your iCloud account.

With the latest build of iOS, several more apps get complete makeovers. Passbook has been renamed to Wallet, and now contains both credit and debit cards registered with Apple Pay, plus boarding passes, coupons and reward cards. It can be accessed with a double-tap of the home button when your iPhone is locked, making it very quick for accessing boarding passes when you're queuing at the airport.

Passbook has been overhauled into Wallet, mostly to make Apple Pay easier to use

Apple's homegrown Maps app finally gets public transport directions for the first time, helping it better compete with Google Maps. With Siri integration you can now ask for a route, rather than typing in a location, and as long as your locality supports online travel disruption information, you'll get warned about delays when planning your route.

You can also change the preferred mode of transport, limiting yourself to buses rather than swapping onto a train, for example, and change the leave by or arrive by times to suit your schedule. Unfortunately the only British city currently supported by Apple Maps' transit directions is London and there's still no option for cycle directions yet either.

Transit directions fill a gap in the Apple Maps feature set, although it's still limited

The big new addition is the News app, a curated destination for articles and content from a wide range of publications, displayed in an easy-to-read format. It's a lot like existing third party app Flipboard, except Apple is in charge of what content appears

Currently, big name news providers like the New York Times, CNN, the Telegraph and Bloomberg are all featured heavily, but so are more independent titles such as Vice and Buzzfeed. During setup you can choose some of your favourite publications and topics, which will be pushed to the front page when you open the app.

Some articles open in a full-page layout, with carefully laid-out and designed in-line images and flowing text that let you read the whole thing within News, but others simply show a preview and force you into a web browser to read the full story. In this way News is similar to a RSS reader, so it remains to be seen what Apple will do to make it stand out from the competition.

News doesn't really do anything new, with third party apps already nailing curated content

It's the Notes app which has seen the biggest upgrades. A toolbar above the keyboard finally adds formatting options, letting you choose between bold, italicised and underlined text as well as different font sizes. You can also add bulleted, dashed, numbered or check lists for the first time.

Rich content additions make Notes far more useful, especially now that you can add photos or video from the camera roll or take cuttings from websites. You can also add links to notes that, when tapped, open another app to display a specific bit of content although this depends on third-party apps supporting this.

Notes is now much more useful, especially once you start adding photos and links

You can also add sketches using the new drawing tools. These sketches are added to your notes as images, though, so you can't annotate around your text. Oddly, you can only use these sketching features if you're signed in with your iCloud account.

Keyboards

Apple is famously restrictive when it comes to customisation on iOS, refusing to allow the wild kinds of tweaks and modifications available on Android [node/24620] in favour of a consistent design and familiar features across all devices. This changed with iOS 8, when custom keyboards were allowed in the App Store for the first time.

Swipe to type and intelligent suggested type finally arrived with iOS 8, thanks to third party apps

If you did go down the custom keyboard route in iOS 8, iOS 9's new default keyboard could tempt you back. For starters, the entire keyboard now changes to show whether or not Caps Lock is engaged - a godsend for anyone that struggled to remember whether the illuminated shift key on Apple's iOS 8 default keyboard meant you would be typing in caps or not. Now the entire keyboard changes to lower case until you press the shift key.

Two iPad-specific additions are the shortcut bar and easy text selection. The shortcut bar places an extra row of icons above the keyboard, alongside the improved autocorrect suggestions that arrived in iOS 8. It's the buttons either side of this that make all the difference, however; undo, redo and cut/copy/paste, bold/italic/underline, photo and attachment buttons make it much more convenient to work on text documents. The bar can also be customised by third party app developers, putting important shortcuts within easy reach.

Certain shortcuts only appear in certain apps - text formatting doesn't appear in Safari, for instance

Easy text selection is a major improvement over the old magnifying glass text selection method, letting you swipe anywhere onscreen, including on the keyboard, with two fingers to move the text cursor. A tap will highlight the currently selected word, and dragging will move the selection. You can then use the shortcut bar icons to cut or copy text.

The entire keyboard turns transparent when using easy text selection

It's not just the onscreen keyboard that got tweaks; you can finally use keyboard shortcuts with external, physical keyboards. There are shortcuts for switching between apps, bringing up search, and custom shortcuts designed for individual apps and will be very familiar to Mac OS X users.

Multi-tasking on iPad

Ever since the first iPhone, iOS devices have concentrated on one task at a time, but as screens have got bigger (and some Android tablets started letting you run multiple apps at once) it has made more and more sense for Apple to add multi-tasking to iOS.

The company started sowing these seeds way back in iOS 4 which allowed a limited, very specific selection of tasks to run in the background. iOS 5 added multi-finger app switching. Rather than double-tapping the home button to see the list of currently running apps, you could now swipe up with four fingers. Swiping left or right with four fingers would jump directly from one app to another, which made things a little faster when working across multiple apps at once. Pinching inwards with all five fingers would also take you straight back to the home screen.

A lot of apps don't yet support Slide Over view, but most of Apple's default apps do

iOS 9 takes multi-tasking to the next level, making it possible to use two apps simultaneously on an iPad for the first time. There are three different multitasking modes, although to use all three you'll need an iPad Mini 4, iPad Air 2 or iPad Pro. When using any app in landscape mode, a swipe from the right edge of the screen will pop out a new menu filled with a list of other available apps. Choose one and it will open to fill a third of the screen, leaving the original app running in the background. Apple calls this Slide Over and it's the only mode available on older iPads going back to the iPad Mini 2.

The Slide Over version of the app automatically adjusts to fill the smaller space and works and feels much like an iPhone app. Tapping anywhere else onscreen will return you to your original app. If you want to change which app appears in Slide Over view, swiping down from the top of the screen will bring back the app selection menu, and swiping to the right will hide the Slide Over app altogether.

Slide Over is great for quickly replying to mails or messages, or making notes without losing your place in a webpage or document

Split View goes a step further, letting you run two apps on-screen simultaneously. It works as an extension of Slide Over, adding a small slider to the edge of the window that you can drag to fill half the screen. The two apps then work side-by-side, letting you reference something while writing a document, for example. There are several different split possibilities, depending on the app, with 50/50 and 70/30 being the most common; dragging the dividing line will let you reposition the split, with both apps redrawing to correctly fill the space.

Working in two apps simultaneously could be a major boon for iPad productivity

Finally, Picture-in-Picture (PiP) lets you take a full-screen video or Facetime call and shrink it down, making it possible to work on other apps while the video keeps playing. You can then move the PiP video to any of the four corners of the screen, and expand or shrink it so it takes up more or less space, providing a better view of the app underneath. Tapping the video window will display playback controls.

Working on a document during a Facetime call is finally possible in iOS 9

Search and Siri

Apple also redesigned search in iOS 8, replacing it with Spotlight. Swiping down from the middle of the screen would then display a full screen search window, which could look up things on the web, the iTunes Store and the App Store, as well as what's saved locally on your device.

Spotlight Search gets a big makeover in iOS 9 with a more detailed screen pre-populated with your most frequently opened apps, top contacts and nearby amenities, as well as local news based on your location.

Quick access to frequently-opened apps makes Spotlight Search potentially useful if your homescreen is packed with apps and folders

Siri, Apple's virtual assistant, has been getting progressively more useful in every new version of iOS with better app integration, improved voice recognition and new search abilities.

Siri is now far more contextual, and works with photos and videos for the first time. You can say "show me photos from last year" and Siri will jump straight into the relevant part of the Photos app. Search within the Photos app has been made contextual as well, displaying a list of previous searches and using your location to show photos taken from the nearby area. As you use Photos, the number of suggestions increases, including One Year Ago flashbacks and Favourites.

Contextual search and Siri integration makes it much easier to find specific photos

Contextual reminders can now be set, meaning you'll get a notification to close the garage door when you get in your car, for example. If you're half-way through an email, saying "remind me to finish this tonight" will create a reminder with a shortcut straight into that specific email.

iOS 9's Siri is now proactive too, meaning it can create reminders, calendar appointments and warn you of traffic delays ahead of meetings automatically. It scans emails for dates, events and flight times, then offers to add them to your calendar. When creating group emails or calendar invites, you'll now get suggestions for the people you usually include.

You'll get a notification letting you know when it's time to leave for the next appointment in your calendar if you also included a location in the entry, and directions will be ready when you walk out the door. Finally, calls from unknown numbers will be cross-referenced with your emails, and if there's a match the most likely name will be displayed underneath the number.

iOS 9 Proactive should take out a lot of the hassle typically associated with calendar invites and group emails

Security and enterprise features

iOS 8 was more business-friendly in a number of ways, most notably through S/MIME encryption for individual emails and giving administrators wider ranging MDM tools. For example, companies could restrict files downloaded from corporate domains using Safari, remotely set device names, and block the device wipe feature. Password locks for mail, third-party apps, calendar, contacts, reminders, notes, messages and all user credentials after a reboot were another welcome addition.

The Mail app also gained tabbed messages and new VIP contacts, which sends you an alert when a specific contact sent you an email. This meant you could disable general email alerts but still get notified when important messages come through - ideal for anyone who gets hundreds or thousands of emails a day.

iOS 9 devices should be more secure thanks to stronger passcodes and two-factor authentication

With all the major enterprise features now in place, iOS 9 instead focuses on device security, enabling six-digit passcodes, rather than just four-digits, for Touch ID-enabled iPhones and iPads for the first time. With one million combinations instead of 10,000, passcodes should be a lot tougher for thieves to crack with brute force. Six digits is now the default, rather than four, so if you disable Touch ID on an older device then re-enable it later after upgrading to iOS 9, you'll need to come up with a six digit combination.

iOS 9 also gets support for two-factor authentication. This works similarly to the existing two-step verification process, but according to Apple uses "different methods" to trust devices and deliver verification codes. You have to enable the feature on Apple's websiteusing an Apple ID, but once enrolled, you'll get a prompt when signing in from a new device or web browser. This code is automatically displayed on your other Apple devices, or sent as an SMS message to your phone. The notification even shows you where in the world the new device is trying to sign in from.

Apple has made its latest iOS 9 mobile operating system available for both the iPhone 4s and the original iPad mini. These are two of the oldest devices to be supported by iOS 9. The iPhone 4s was launched in October 2011, with its 3.5in, 640 x 960 screen and Apple A5 chip running iOS 5 (the first version to include Siri). For a four-year old smartphone to receive a significant update in 2015 is remarkable.

Although the first iPad mini was released a year after the iPhone 4s, it still used an Apple A5 processor; even worse, in an era of Retina-class displays for almost all other Apple devices, it had a sub-Retina 7.9in 1024 x 768 screen. We didn't expect Apple to still support a device that looked like an unloved child, even in 2012. With the A5 processor struggling to run iOS 8 on either device, and promises that iOS 9 is kinder to old hardware, we were keen to see whether the update could extend the life of these old workhorse devices which doubtless remain in use in countless offices and homes.

New iOS 9 Features

Apple's latest iOS brings plenty of new and useful features, but most are confined to newer hardware. For example, none of the new multitasking features are available for the iPad mini. You'll need at least an iPad mini 2 or iPad Air to invoke picture-in-picture and Slide Over, while only the iPad mini 4, iPad Air 2 or iPad Pro can handle side-by-side Split View.

You also don't get Apple's new News app nor support for the new, very popular content blocker apps - the latter requires at least an iPhone 5s, iPad Air or iPad mini 2. Content blocking inexplicably requires a 64-bit processor the A5 in the 4s and original iPad mini is a 32-bit chip. Neither device receives the Apple Maps update to route via public transport. While the iPad mini has the option to suggest installed apps (part of Siri's new 'Proactive' update), we actually saw no change - there was no Siri Proactive screen to the left of our main home screen, nor any app suggestions in the app switcher. The iPhone 4s doesn't even have this option.

We saw no change with Suggested apps enabled, so either it doesn't work on the iPad mini or it needs a lot of time to build up a profile

Only the iPhone 4s receives the new Low Power Mode, though - as we discovered (see below) - this mode doesn't downclock the processor as with more modern iPhones. Instead it merely shuts down background app updating, push email, the fancy interface graphics, dims the screen and enforces options such as Auto-Lock. It's handy enough, with iOS offering the option once you're down to 20% battery and automatically turning off Power Saving Mode once you're charged back to 80%. You can enable Power Saving Mode manually via the Battery section of the Settings app.

The iPhone 4s supports a limited implementation of Low Power Mode, but it's handy nonetheless.

The iPad mini supports iOS 9's neat new two-column Notification Center, but only if the iPad is in landscape orientation before you swipe down. It's rather annoying that you can't switch the orientation of Notification Center while it's being displayed.

Both devices receive the new, more compact, San Francisco system font but we didn't see much difference on the two displays here. Certainly not enough to give us more usable space on the small iPhone screen after the updates to Notes and the default keyboard gobbled up so much screen space. Both devices receive updates to Mail (to attach documents from iCloud Drive and insert more than 5 pictures), Notes (though without the freehand drawing tools) and the revamped app switcher with larger previews of apps rendered as overlapping cards. Both devices also run the new Universal search - swipe down with a single finger from the middle of any home screen and search terms will be checked against a wider variety of sources, such as compatible third party apps, rather than the limited selection previously.

The differences between the new San Francsico font (right) and the old Helvetica Neue (left) are subtle, at least on older screens - especially non-Retina ones.

Left: With the extra formatting tools enabled in Notes, there's barely any room on the 3.5in, 640 x 960 iPhone 4s screen to see what you're typing. Right: Picking a previous route in Maps on an iPhone 4s is now almost impossible.

iOS 9 Performance

More significantly for old hardware users is Apple's claims that "the apps in iOS 9 now take advantage of Metal, making more efficient use of the CPU and GPU to deliver better overall performance", while "apps and key technologies have been made more efficient to trim battery usage". That sounds like good news if, like us, your old devices struggle to run iOS 8 smoothly and suffered battery fatigue.

Unfortunately, just as we saw a hit to app launch times when moving from iOS 7 to iOS 8, we saw a further hit after upgrading to iOS 9. Only the camera app on the iPad mini and Safari on the iPhone 4s saw a drop in launch times, with all other launch time tests showing slight yet repeatable rises in the time taken to launch an app. The typical experience in iOS 9 on these old devices is to tap, wait a split-second for that to register, look at a black screen for a second or so and then wait another second or two for the app to finally become ready for use.

The decrease in app responsiveness is a disappointment considering Apple's claims, but we have to consider that we are dealing with old hardware that just doesn't seem to handle Apple's new Metal API/compiler particularly well. At least flicking through home screens is reasonably smooth, even if using complicated apps isn't - scrolling through the Guardian app on the iPhone 4s or iPad mini is surprisingly juddery.

At least the iPhone 4s gained some battery life from the update to iOS 9 - the 40 minute (approximately 9 per cent) increase in our Web use test, as well as Low Power Mode, suggests that in everyday use you'll be less likely to feel battery anxiety. The iPad mini showed no signs of extra life after updating to iOS9. We should stress that both devices on test have been in constant use since their launches three and four years ago, so both devices have suffered battery fatigue. We're only interested in the comparative times, allowing for a few per cent margin of error due to climatic conditions affecting the battery chemistry in the devices.

As Low Power Mode enforces Auto-Lock (to turn off the screen), we can't empirically test its effectiveness as our tests require the screen to be permanently on. However, we did run our performance test with the iPhone 4s manually put into Low Power Mode. Whether plugged in, on battery power or on less than 20% battery power we saw near-identical app-launching times as when Low Power Mode was disabled. The phone remained as responsive (or unresponsive, if you prefer) in either Low Power or standard mode, so we conclude that either the A5 chip in the iPhone 4s isn't being downclocked, as more capable processors in other iPhones are, or that it's being downclocked to an insignificant degree.

While we didn't have time between iOS 9 being publicly released and the publication of this article to build up anecdotal evidence or insight, we'd still use Low Power Mode. It automatically disables all the things that we'd otherwise spend a few minutes turning off in the Settings menu, and then automatically re-enables them once the phone is charged.

Download and install size

After the controversy of iOS 8 requiring 4.85GB of free space on your device to unpack itself and install, Apple says you'll only need 1.9GB of free space on your iOS 8.4.1 device to install the iOS 9 download (809MB as an over-the-air download in the case of our 4s). Plus, excess apps will be temporarily uninstalled to make room for the OS upgrade if necessary, then reinstalled automatically afterwards which should assuage owners of 16GB devices. Also, and despite Apple's claims that it has pared down and tightened up code, iOS 9 takes up a further 200MB of your device's storage than iOS 8, which itself took up 500MB more than iOS 7.

The over-the-air download for our 4s may only have been 809MB, but it needs 1.9GB of free space on your device in order to unpack itself and install.

Both of our devices were nominally 64GB, but after iOS 9 we'd lost 7.5GB on the iPad mini and 7.6GB on the iPhone 4s, up from 7.3GB and 7.4GB respectively when running iOS 8 (the 100MB difference between the two is likely due to the telephony hardware, software and interfaces of the iPhone, as our iPad mini is Wi-Fi only). While a large chunk of this unavailable space will be file allocation tables and other mundane formatting data, the extra 200MB of iOS 9 might be a reason to defer the update on any 16GB Apple device if you've already filled it to the brim.

If you do update to iOS 9, remember to force-quit all apps before doing so. If you don't, those apps that were open before the update will always launch after a cold boot, possibly undermining the reason you cold-booted in the first place - for example, to ensure the skinny 512MB of RAM is clear before launching a game or resource-hungry app.

Conclusions

Despite Apple's claims that iOS 9 runs easier on older hardware, we found the opposite to be true. Performance actually dropped on both of of our devices when compared to iOS 8, which itself caused an appreciable decline in the responsiveness of both devices over iOS 7.

We saw some battery life gain on our iPhone 4s, and Low Power Mode is a welcome addition to iOS. However, our first-generation iPad mini saw no battery life benefits from the update.

With so few of the new features of iOS 9 supported by the iPhone 4s and original iPad mini, and a hit to performance and app responsiveness, there's very little point in owners of these devices updating from iOS 8. In fact, if you've stuck with iOS 7 you should continue as you are. The only real reason to consider upgrading such old devices to iOS 9 is app compatibility. Given the often rapid uptake of new iOS releases, many third party app developers are often similarly quick to drop support for earlier versions of iOS in the newest versions of their apps.

Testing details

iPad mini (64GB) using iOS 7.1, 8.4.1, 9.0

iPhone 4S (64GB) using iOS 7.1, 8.4.1, 9.0

Battery test details:

Video use: screen at half brightness, full-screen video looped, Auto-Brightness disabled, Auto-Lock disabled, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth enabled, Background App Refresh disabled, iTunes Wi-Fi Sync disabled, iTunes Automatic Downloads disabled, iCloud disabled.

Web use: screen at half brightness, web page loaded, music looped, Auto-Brightness disabled, Auto-Lock disabled, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth enabled, Background App Refresh disabled, iTunes Wi-Fi Sync disabled, iTunes Automatic Downloads disabled, iCloud disabled.

Apple's annual Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC) took the wraps off a vast array of software-related announcements, with much for developers and end users alike to get excited about.

Scroll down for our live blog and links to key announcements, but if you want a quick overview of the main news, look no further:

• Apple has taken the wraps off OS X 10.11 El Capitan. It will make the user experience even more intuitive and speedy.
• OS X El Capitan available to developers now, with public beta in autumn.
• New version of watchOS also on the cards. Will be dubbed watchOS 2 and come with many many enhancements and new features.
• Next version of iOS will be iOS 9. Will include enhanced intelligence, in search and Siri that suggests things for users based on contexual information.
• Siri continues to improve and learn - it is 40 per cent more accurate now.
• New multi-tasking features in iOS 9 will boost iPad users' productivity.
• Public transport directions coming to Maps soon.
• Apple Pay coming to the UK in July.
• You'll also be able to pay for London transport travel using Apple Pay.
• Passbook has been rebranded as Wallet.
• Apple launches Apple Music with help from supporting cast of famous names.

In the meantime, we run down what you can expect to hear from Apple at WWDC 15 and what it means for you.

OS X 10.11 (El Capitan)

For the past 11 years, Apple has used the opening keynote of WWDC to show off the latest version of its desktop operating system, OS X, and this year is was no exception.

As predicted by MacRumours, OS X 10.11 - now dubbed El Capitan - is not a a massive departure from OS X 10.10 Yosemite in terms of look and feel because Yosemite was itself a far-reaching overhaul of the UI.

Credit: Yosemite National Park by Chase Lindberg

The name is also indicitave of this: El Capitan, pictured above, is an iconic large rocky outcrop in Yosemite national park, rather than a separate "beautiful place in California" in its own right meaning that it is to Yosemite what Snow Leopard (OS X 10.6) was to Leopard (OS X 10.5) - a release with increased stability and a few new functions to further improve the end user experience.

A beta of the new OS is available to developers immediately. The public can get their hands on the beta in autumn with a full version available soon after, but you can find out all the details of OS X 10.11 El Capitan's features here.

iOS 9

As with OS X, a new version of iOS has been a staple of WWDC for the past seven years, and it was widely expected that iOS 9 would be confirmed during the WWDC keynote.

It was also thought that, like OS X 10.11, iOS 9 would focus on stability and optimisation, rather than radical new features or design changes. However, while the interface has remained largely the same, Apple released a wide-ranging set of new features.

Ther is a new split-screen mode, enhanced multi-tasking support for the iPad, plus tweaks to Siri and Apple Maps among other things. Furthermore, security remains paramount, with Apple saying it has tried to enhance the user experience whilst keeping security and privacy and its core.

Additionally, as anticipated by 9to5Mac before last night's event, Apple has reduced the amount of memory required to download the OS to 1.3GB, compared to iOS 8's 4.6GB. This means iOS 9 will be available to the same range of devices as iOS 8.

Apple also surprised the audience by announcing the latest version of its moble programming language, Swift 2, will be open source.

Take a look at our iOS 9 hub for all the news and views on Apple's latest OS.

Apple WatchOS 2

With Apple Watch only having released in April, many thought it was unlikely there would be many, if any, major new announcements regarding the smartwatch or its operating system. However, contrary to these rumours, Apple showed off watchOS 2, an updated operating system for Apple Watch that boasts a number of new enhancements designed to please users, including a nightstand mode, time and location-contextual animated watch faces, Time Travel and support for native apps.

You can find all the details about the Apple Watch and watchOS 2 in our dedicated hub.

Apple Pay

Apple Pay was launched last September alongside the iPhone 6 and has seen strong adoption by consumers in the US, racking up three million registered credit cards in the first three days after it became publicly available.

It is now coming to the UK and will be available in 250,000 locations - more than when it launched in the US - from July, bolstered by support from the likes of Costa Coffee, M&S and Waitrose, as well as leading banks.

With Samsung and Google now bringing on the heat with their own mobile payments systems,Samsung PayandAndroid Pay, it made sense for Apple to stage a worldwide launch of its own payment system at WWDC 15.

Want to know more about Apple Pay? Look no further than ourdedicated Apple Pay hub, which aims to answer all your questions and more

Apple Music & Beats 1 Radio

As had been rumoured, Apple finally revealed what it intends to do with Beats Music, which it aquired in May 2014.

The overhauled service has been renamed Apple Music, which is made up of three parts: Apple Music, the primary streaming service, Beats 1, a 24/7 radio online station, and Connect, which lets fans follow their favourite artists. Apple Music will cost $9.99 per month in the US (it is thought it may be higher in the UK) for a single user, or $14.99 for a family subscription, which will be based around the existing iCloud Family Sharing feature of iOS.

The rebranding of Beats Music as Apple Music was revealed a few days early by Sony Music's CEO Doug Morris, VentureBeat reports.

According to VentureBeat Morris seemed generally enthusiastic about the launch of Apple Music saying it would represent a tipping point for the subscription music streaming market.

"A rising tide will lift all boats. It's the beginning of an amazing moment for our industry," he said.

For more information about Apple Music, take a look at our article, which follows the service from the Beats acquisition to the present day.