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Later a few months of testing, Apple tree has finally released iOS ix.3 to the public. Historically, the company has been deadening to gyre out user-facing features, merely it seems that the folks at Cupertino are moving a scrap faster these days. And not only does this point-release deliver a handful of meaningful tweaks to existing apps, merely there are 2 new major features that could modify how many of us utilize our phones and tablets.

Outset and foremost, Apple is introducing a new characteristic chosen Night Shift. Much like the third-party app Flux on OS X, this new feature changes the overall colour temperature of your brandish depending on the time of solar day. Looking at warmer colors at nighttime may help some people sleep better, and many others prefer it simply to reduce centre strain. It could besides requite voracious readers another reason to skip E Ink-based Kindles in favor of their phones and tablets, although the distraction factor is all the same in that location. Of course, if you lot don't want anything to do with Night Shift, Apple most certainly won't strength information technology on you.


iOS-9.3I've been using Night Shift for a while now, and I've found it incredibly useful. Not only does it brand reading in a nighttime room significantly less obnoxious, but it'southward as well less jarring for your loved ones. I'm typically awake and browsing on my iPad every bit my girlfriend tries to sleep, and Night Shift has made that process much easier — the dim orange light has proven less likely to disturb her sleep. Information technology may not fit anybody's lifestyle, but it gets a big thumbs-up from me.

The other major change, and easily the biggest new feature in iOS 9.3 for schools, is a preview of the upcoming digital education suite. This allows teachers to create special Apple IDs for students, view the screens of any iPad in the classroom, dynamically launch and lock apps, and distribute educational cloth as needed. Fifty-fifty better, this system finer turns school-owned iPads into multi-user devices. Students tin log into any school iPad, and all of their relevant data will exist downloaded automatically. And if a student uses the same device frequently, his or her data volition be buried locally for instant access.

This focus on the classroom is largely consistent with Apple'due south decades-long campaign to boss the education market. In recent years, Google'south Chromebooks accept been rising in popularity cheers to their affordability and ease of use, but these new tools and the cheaper iPad Air 2 might be able to turn the tables in Apple's favor over again. It'south just a shame that Apple isn't giving home users similar control over their devices. But since this is still labeled every bit a "preview," it's possible that this modify could exist in the works for united states of america likewise.

Additionally, a few of the congenital-in apps have been given some long-needed TLC. The Notes app now allows specific notes to be locked behind TouchID or a password, the Health app makes it easier to find new relevant apps, and the News app is getting a improve algorithm for surfacing relevant articles. As for CarPlay, the Music and Maps app have received a few small-scale additions, but nothing drastic has changed. After all, this is nonetheless just a mid-bicycle update. I'd be surprised to come across many more than major improvements before September rolls around.