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iOS 15 facts for kids
Version of the iOS operating system | |
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![]() iOS 15 home screen on an iPhone SE (1st generation)
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Developer | Apple |
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Source model | Closed with open-source components |
General availability |
September 20, 2021 |
Latest release | 15.8.2 (19H384) (March 5, 2024 ) |
Repository |
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Update method | Software Update |
Package manager | App Store |
Platforms |
iPhone
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Kernel type | Hybrid (XNU) |
Default user interface |
Cocoa Touch (multi-touch, GUI) |
License | Proprietary software with open-source components |
Preceded by | iOS 14 |
Succeeded by | iOS 16 |
Tagline | In touch. In the moment. |
Support status | |
Obsolete, widespread third party app support | |
Articles in the series | |
iPadOS 15 (derived from iOS 15) |
iOS 15 is a major update to the iOS mobile operating system. It was made by Apple for their iPhone and iPod Touch devices. Apple first showed iOS 15 on June 7, 2021, at their Worldwide Developers Conference. It was released to everyone on September 20, 2021.
Later, on June 6, 2022, Apple announced iOS 16, which took over from iOS 15 on September 12, 2022. iOS 15 was the last version of iOS that worked on older devices like the iPhone 6s, first-generation iPhone SE, iPhone 7, and iPod Touch (7th generation). Newer iOS versions do not support these models.
Contents
- Cool New Features in iOS 15
- Focus Mode: Control Your Notifications
- Notifications Get a Fresh Look
- Live Text: Copy Text from Photos
- Smart Widgets on Your Home Screen
- Drag and Drop Between Apps
- More Control Over Home Screens
- Change Text Size for Each App
- Improved Search with Spotlight
- Unlimited Dictation Time
- Translate Text Anywhere
- Adjust Video Playback Speed
- Video Effects and Mic Modes
- Accessibility for Everyone
- iCloud Backups on 5G
- Digital IDs in Wallet
- App Updates in iOS 15
- FaceTime: Connect in New Ways
- Memoji: More Ways to Express Yourself
- Messages: Better Sharing and Organization
- Maps: Explore the World in Detail
- Photos: More Info and Smart Search
- Safari: A New Look and More Power
- Weather: Beautiful Animations and Alerts
- Siri: Works Offline and Shares Content
- Health: Share Data and Track Walking Steadiness
- Files: Better PDF Tools
- Reminders: Use Tags to Organize
- Voice Memos: New Playback Options
- Security and Privacy Features
- Supported Devices
- More About iOS 15 Updates
- Images for kids
- See also
Cool New Features in iOS 15
This update brought many new and helpful features to your iPhone and iPod Touch. These changes made your devices easier to use and more personal.
Focus Mode: Control Your Notifications
Focus is a new feature that helps you manage distractions. It replaced the old Do Not Disturb setting. You can set different "states" like Work, Sleep, or a custom one. For each state, you choose which notifications you want to get. You can also pick which apps and home screen pages show up. Focus can even turn on automatically based on your location or time of day. It also lets you decide which contacts can reach you. This feature syncs across all your Apple devices.
Notifications Get a Fresh Look
Notifications now look different and are easier to see. Messages from friends show their contact photos. App icons are also bigger. When a notification comes in, you can quickly mute that app for an hour or even a whole day.
Notification Summary
The Notification Summary is a smart way to handle many alerts. It groups notifications from apps you choose. Then, it delivers them all at once at a time you pick. This helps you avoid constant interruptions.
Live Text: Copy Text from Photos
If your device has an A12 chip or newer, you can use Live Text. This feature lets you select, copy, and even translate text found in pictures. It works in apps like Photos, Safari, and even with your camera. It uses smart artificial intelligence to recognize the words.
Smart Widgets on Your Home Screen
Widgets in iOS 15 became even smarter. They can change what they show based on what you're doing. For example, if you have an event coming up, your Calendar widget might appear in a smart stack. It will then disappear when the event is over.
Drag and Drop Between Apps
You can now easily drag pictures and text from one app and drop them into another. This makes sharing content much faster. Before, this feature was only available on iPads.
More Control Over Home Screens
You can now easily rearrange, delete, or hide your different home screens. You can also link them to your Focus modes. This means certain home screens can appear only when you're in a specific Focus.
Change Text Size for Each App
From the Control Center, you can now change the size of the text for individual apps. This is great if you need larger text in one app but prefer smaller text in another.
Improved Search with Spotlight
The global search function, called Spotlight, is now better. You can even access it from your lock screen by swiping down. It helps you find apps, contacts, and information quickly.
Unlimited Dictation Time
When you use voice-to-text dictation on your keyboard, there's no longer a time limit. You can speak for as long as you need.
Translate Text Anywhere
You can now translate text in any app. Just select the text you want to translate, and tap the "Translate" option.
Adjust Video Playback Speed
The default video player on your iPhone now lets you change how fast videos play. This is useful for watching lectures or quickly reviewing clips.
Video Effects and Mic Modes
In the Control Center, you can find "Video Effects." This lets you add a cool Portrait effect to your camera during video calls. "Mic Mode" helps you improve your sound. Voice Isolation removes background noise, making your voice clearer.
Accessibility for Everyone
iOS 15 added many features to make devices easier to use for everyone.
- Per-App Accessibility: You can set different accessibility options for each app. This includes bold text, larger text, or reduced motion.
- Image Exploration with VoiceOver: This feature describes photos to people with low vision. It gives them more information about what's in the picture.
- Audible Charts: This helps blind or low-vision users understand charts. It turns data into sounds.
iCloud Backups on 5G
You can now back up your device to iCloud even when you're using a 5G cellular network. This makes it easier to keep your data safe.
Digital IDs in Wallet
Your iPhone can now store a digital copy of your state ID or driver's license in the Wallet app. This started in certain U.S. states.
App Updates in iOS 15
Many of your favorite apps got new features and improvements in iOS 15.
FaceTime: Connect in New Ways
FaceTime received many updates to make video calls better:
- Grid View: See everyone in a group call in a clear grid.
- Portrait Mode: Blur your background during calls (requires A12 Bionic chip or later).
- Spatial Audio: Sounds like voices come from where people are on your screen.
- Voice Isolation: Your voice is clearer because background noise is removed.
- FaceTime Links: You can create links to FaceTime calls. This lets Android and Microsoft Windows users join calls from their web browsers.
- SharePlay: Share your screen or watch videos and listen to music with friends during a FaceTime call.
Memoji: More Ways to Express Yourself
Your Memoji characters got more options! You can choose new clothes, different eye colors, new glasses, and fun stickers. There are also new ways to customize headwear and accessibility options.
Messages: Better Sharing and Organization
The Messages app got some smart updates:
- Image Stacks: When someone sends you many photos, they now appear in a neat stack. This makes them easier to look through.
- Pinned Content: You can pin important messages, links, or photos from a contact.
- Shared with You: This new section in apps like News or Photos shows you content that friends shared with you through Messages. It makes it easy to find later.
Maps: Explore the World in Detail
Apple Maps got a big upgrade with more details and new ways to navigate:
- Detailed Driving Maps: See 3D models of buildings, bridges, and trees. This helps you understand complex roads better.
- 3D Globe: A new, colorful 3D globe shows mountains, deserts, and forests in more detail.
- Better Traffic Info: See more details like turn lanes, bike lanes, and crosswalks.
- Walking Directions in AR: Get walking directions using augmented reality (on A12 devices or later). This shows you directions right on your camera view.
- Public Transport Info: See public transport routes and times. You can pin your favorite routes. The app can even tell you when to get off a bus or train.
Photos: More Info and Smart Search
The Photos app lets you do more with your pictures:
- You can now manually change the time, date, and location of a photo.
- See details like the camera used and the file size.
- On devices with an A12 chip or later, you can search for places that appear inside your images.
Safari: A New Look and More Power
Safari was redesigned with the tab bar and address bar at the bottom. You can switch back to the old layout if you prefer.
- Tab Groups: Organize your tabs into groups and share them with others.
- Pull to Refresh: Just pull down on a webpage to refresh it.
- Browser Extensions: For the first time, you can use browser extensions in Safari on iOS.
- Safari now automatically upgrades website links from HTTP to the more secure HTTPS.
Weather: Beautiful Animations and Alerts
The Weather app got a complete makeover. It has new animations and full-screen weather maps. The app can also send you notifications when rain or snow is about to start or stop in your area.
Siri can now do more without an internet connection on newer iPhones (A12 Bionic chip or later). This means it responds faster to common requests.
- Share with Siri: You can say "Hey Siri, share this with [name]" to send screen content. Siri can share images, web pages, music, news stories, and map locations.
- Announce Notifications: Siri can read your incoming notifications aloud. You can also speak your response to them.
The Health app now lets you share your health data with trusted people. It also added a new feature called "Walking Steadiness." This uses sensors to measure your balance and coordination. It helps determine your risk of falling.
Files: Better PDF Tools
The Files app now has a new view mode called "Groups" to organize files by type. The built-in PDF editor is also improved. You can add pages, remove pages, rotate pages, and even lock PDFs with a password.
Reminders: Use Tags to Organize
You can now add #tags to your reminders. This helps you classify and find them more easily.
Voice Memos: New Playback Options
The Voice Memos app added new options to adjust playback speed and skip silent parts of a recording.
Security and Privacy Features
iOS 15 brought important new tools to help keep your information safe and private.
App Privacy Report
This feature lets you see a 7-day summary of how apps access your data. It shows when apps use your location, photos, or microphone. It also shows which websites they connect to. This helps you understand what your apps are doing.
Siri's Improved Privacy
On devices with an Apple A12 chip or later, Siri now processes your voice on your device. This means your audio doesn't need to be sent to Apple's servers.
Hide Your IP Address
- Safari: Safari now helps prevent trackers from seeing your real IP address.
- Mail: In the Mail app, you can hide your IP address when downloading external content in emails. This stops spammers from tracking you.
Hide My Email
This feature creates random, unique email addresses that forward to your real inbox. This way, you can sign up for things without giving out your actual email address.
iCloud Private Relay
Private Relay helps protect your privacy when you browse the web in Safari. It hides your IP address while still letting websites know your general region. It also protects your internet traffic from being easily tracked.
Built-in One-Time Password Authenticator
Your iOS device can now create verification codes for extra security when you sign in to accounts. You don't need a separate app. These codes automatically fill in when you log in.
Supported Devices
iOS 15 works on all iPhones and iPod Touches that supported iOS 13 and iOS 14. However, some older devices have limited support for certain features. iPhones with an A12 Bionic chip or newer are fully supported.
iPhones that Support iOS 15
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iPod Touches that Support iOS 15
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More About iOS 15 Updates
The first test version of iOS 15 for developers came out on June 7, 2021. A public test version was released on June 30, 2021. The final version of iOS 15 was released to everyone on September 20, 2021.
Over time, Apple released smaller updates to iOS 15, fixing issues and adding minor features. For example:
- iOS 15.1: Officially released SharePlay, which was a big feature for FaceTime.
- iOS 15.2: Improved Emergency SOS and fixed an issue with Face ID on iPhone 13 after screen repairs.
- iOS 15.4: Added new Emojis, support for Face ID with masks and glasses, and more game controller support.
- iOS 15.5: Updated the Weather app, renamed Apple Pay in Messages to "Apple Cash," and improved Podcasts settings.
Version | Release date | Notes |
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15.0 | September 20, 2021 | New widgets for Mail, Contacts, and Find My. "Other" storage renamed to "System Data". |
15.0.1 | October 1, 2021 | Bug fixes. |
15.0.2 | October 11, 2021 | Bug fixes. |
15.1 | October 25, 2021 | SharePlay officially released. |
15.1.1 | November 17, 2021 | Bug fixes. |
15.2 | December 13, 2021 | Emergency SOS improved. Face ID fixed for iPhone 13 after screen replacement. |
15.2.1 | January 12, 2022 | Bug fixes. |
15.3 | January 26, 2022 | Security updates. |
15.3.1 | February 10, 2022 | Security updates. |
15.4 | March 14, 2022 | New Emojis. Face ID with mask and glasses support. SharePlay support. |
15.4.1 | March 31, 2022 | Bug fixes. |
15.5 | May 16, 2022 | Weather app updates. Apple Pay in Messages renamed to "Apple Cash". |
15.6 | July 20, 2022 | Bug fixes and security updates. |
15.6.1 | August 17, 2022 | Security updates. |
15.7 | September 12, 2022 | Security updates. |
15.7.1 | October 27, 2022 | Security updates. |
15.7.2 | December 13, 2022 | Security updates. |
15.7.3 | January 23, 2023 | Security updates. |
15.7.4 | March 27, 2023 | Security updates. |
15.7.5 | April 10, 2023 | Security updates. |
15.7.6 | May 18, 2023 | Security updates. |
15.7.7 | June 21, 2023 | Security updates. |
15.7.8 | July 24, 2023 | Security updates. |
15.7.9 | September 11, 2023 | Security updates. |
15.8 | October 25, 2023 | Security updates. |
15.8.1 | January 22, 2024 | Security updates. |
15.8.2 | March 5, 2024 | Security updates. |
Images for kids
See also
Template:KIDDLE XL START In Spanish: IOS 15 para niños Template:KIDDLE XL END
- iPadOS 15
- macOS Monterey
- tvOS 15
- watchOS 8