iOS 5 Release: What You Need To Know About Apple's Latest

The iPhone 5 isn't surfacing anytime soon, but Apple is offering another "5" fix with the release of its latest mobile operating system, iOS 5.

iOS 5, which will be available starting October 12, was unveiled back in June at the Worldwide Developers Conference and offers a slew of new features and updates, including deeper integration with Twitter, over-the-air updates, iMessages (a potential text message-killer and Apple's take on BBM), streamlined access to the phone's camera, and much more. According to Apple, iOS 5 comes with "over 200 new features."

"If the hardware is the brain and the sinew of our products, the software is their soul," said former Apple CEO Steve Jobs when he unveiled iOS 5, according to All Things D.

We've outlined a dozen things you need to know about iOS 5 in the slideshow below, which initially appeared here.

Excited for the new iOS, which will be available on iPhones, iPod touch devices, and iPads? Keep in mind that before you can download it, you'll need to update iTunes to iTunes 5.0 (read more about that here). Also check our guide to iOS 4 vs. iOS 5 for more on what's new.

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Over-The-Air Updates

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If you buy a brand new iOS 5 device, you no longer have to immediately synch it using a PC. "You can now setup and activate your device right on the device and you are ready to go. It's that easy," said Forstall, according to Engadget. When it comes time for a software update, users can download the new software releases over-the-air without a PC. Users will also be able to backup and restore their iDevices via Apple's iCloud.

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If you buy a brand new iOS 5 device, you no longer have to immediately synch it using a PC. "You can now setup and activate your device right on the device and you are ready to go. It's that easy," said Forstall, according to Engadget. When it comes time for a software update, users can download the new software releases over-the-air without a PC. Users will also be able to backup and restore their iDevices via Apple's iCloud.

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Comments

[Bruins97]

09:07 PM on 10/13/2011

Ahh I thought this was about Android...since those phones have had all this stuff for a long while.

[jflorish]

07:15 PM on 10/13/2011

3. 5. 7, and 12 are the options I really want.

[Strza]

05:08 PM on 10/13/2011

"If you buy a brand new iOS 5 device, you no longer have to immediately synch it using a PC."

"Excited for the new iOS, which will be available on iPhones, iPod touch devices, and iPads?"

How is this not a product push? Is there any question that this is a ploy to sell more product? Great that they have updates for their product, but this article is simply an advertisement for Iphone/Ipad.

The entire reason for this article is to push product. Must buy, must buy, must buy. My gadget is better than yours. That's the bottom line. You want to read an Apple press release? Go to the Apple website.

[Michael Burz]

09:03 AM on 10/13/2011

The upgrade for us was a disaster. I have an iPhone4. My wife has an3GS. It took me five hours and five tries (the dreaded 3200 error). My wife started last night. Failed multiple times. The upgrade hosed her phone. Received error -50. Restore process failed multiple times. Finally got a restore but limited. Wiped out all music and videos. Limited contacts. Apps scattered. Full mail. Phone works. Not a good start to Mr. Cook's tenure.

[cuoi]

07:19 PM on 10/12/2011

DON'T DO IT! IT MAY BRICK YOUR PHONE LIKE WHAT HAPPENED TO ME. WENT IN APPLE STORE AND PEOPLE WERE FLOODING IN. NOT JUST A RARE EVENT. AND IN 2 DAYS, THEY ARE RELEASING THE NEW PHONE AND THE SERVER WILL REALLY BE SCREWED UP. DON'T DO ANYTHING WITH ANY PHONE IN ITUNES UNTIL THIS IS RESOLVED. YEAH, I KNOW I'M SHOUTING. DAMN STRAIGHT I AM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Storyhill]

09:47 PM on 10/12/2011

Agree- the server is crashing.

[cuoi]

10:19 PM on 10/12/2011

As of 10:15, seems back to normal. I restored my phone and when I opened it, OS 5 was there waiting for me, going "heh, heh"...

[cuoi]

10:17 PM on 10/12/2011

Update 10:15 pm...what a difference a few hours makes! I tried one more time to update. It said it was doing a restore. Then it loaded all my apps and tunes. Then nothing. I opened the phone and answered a bunch of questions and now I'm on OS 5. Whew, feeling calmer...no more caps.

[HunterHikes]

03:14 PM on 10/15/2011

Yeah, the lesson is ... breathe, don't panic. The sky isn't falling. :)

[Strza]

06:58 PM on 10/12/2011

The only thing you need to know - it's new so it must be better.

Buy it, buy it, buy it!

I live to consume, and consume to live!

[screwedrus]

07:06 PM on 10/12/2011

It's free.

[Strza]

01:59 AM on 10/13/2011

They are giving out free IPhones now?

[ExtraO]

06:12 PM on 10/12/2011

The main thing you need to know about iOS 5 is that you can't get it. Apple has screwed the pooch big time with this roll-out. I'm seeing all over the web that users worldwide can't get the upgrade to complete. They either get an "unknown error" or an "internal error" or various other errors with a specific numeric code and the upgrade doesn't work. Many have reported their devices are now non-functioning. That hasn't happened to me, but I can't get the installation to work either, even after multiple re-trys. Some users are still stuck after trying to upgrade over 50 times.

[screwedrus]

07:08 PM on 10/12/2011

I upgraded my iPhone a couple of hours ago and I'm in the process of updating my iPad right now. No problems whatsoever.

I believe (possibly) if you don't have the latest version of iTunes that could create those problems. Might be wrong about that, though.

[ExtraO]

07:15 PM on 10/12/2011

If you don't have the latest version of iTunes installed you can't even download it.

[Smirk]

07:17 PM on 10/12/2011

I have the latest version of iTunes (10) and can't install iOS on my iPad 2. After reading ExtraO's post, I'm going to wait before trying to install it on my iPhone. Whatever it is, it'll work out in a day or so. ( And, yes, I tried the remedies Apple's online support suggests, but they didn't work.)

[cuoi]

07:17 PM on 10/12/2011

Got the download part, then the error messages. My phone is bricked. iTunes won't even recognize my phone now.

[jgeurian21]

05:59 PM on 10/12/2011

Just found out that location based reminders is not for the 3GS. I thought it was odd until I started searching around and found out that the 3GS has a different chip that doesn't not allow location based reminders. Pretty sad as this one was one the features I was looking for.

[No Yards]

04:58 PM on 10/12/2011

Seems people getting their phones, pads, and computers bricked all over the world .. the iOS5 upgrade is not going so well.

Apple should spend more of its money on provisioning servers and less on suing others.

[screwedrus]

07:08 PM on 10/12/2011

Mine upgraded without a hitch. Smooth sailing with my brick.

[plasmaborne4rel]

09:15 PM on 10/12/2011

Mine upgrade went well but I couldn't connect to iCloud as the software said my AppleID was invalid. I had just used my AppleID in iTunes to download some software. and so it is..

[cuoi]

07:20 PM on 10/12/2011

Mine is a paperweight. DON'T UPGRADE YET.

[Sy4east]

04:58 PM on 10/12/2011

The Good:
1. Your phone doesn't go into a suspended la-la land to synch
2. The notifications are cool, no more jarring blue pop up boxes
3. New icon for music that doesn't look like a 2005 iPod
The Bad:
1. It takes about 3 or 4 hours to install(on computer, then phone) BEFORE it updates and reloads your music and apps
2. Almost every single app you've ever downloaded will be requiring an update
3. There's not much difference at all in how it looks and feels
4. To get the cool camera icon on your lock screen you have to click the front home button twice every time. Kind of defeats the purpose of the "instant access" to your camera

[screwedrus]

07:10 PM on 10/12/2011

Total time spent upgrading my iTunes (plus some other updates that I'd been putting off) on my computer plus updating my iPhone was significantly less than 2 hours. It wasn't fast by any means, but it wasn't that bad.

[CT Independent]

04:55 PM on 10/12/2011

A big Yawn.

[jgeurian21]

04:49 PM on 10/12/2011

Well it took about 30 minutes to download the update and then another 45 minutes to apply it to my 3GS. Quite a long time just to update a phone; however I must say I have been quite unimpressed. For one you now have 2 more locked apps. Personally I will never use them and it is a shame Apple forces its bloatware on your phone with no ability to delete it. The notification thing is kind of cool, but honestly having the same tired UI for the past 4 years has broke me of Apple.

[stageplay]

04:46 PM on 10/12/2011

Tried to update my iPad 2 to IOS 5. As is the case with thousands of other folks, I am getting an "unknown error (3200)". On discussion forums at Apple website lots of people are complaining that they are getting the same error. So, we are unable to update our iPad 2 devices. I don't know if it is a server problem with Apple or what, but I would say this is a major embarrassment for Apple's new CEO and is certainly frustrating for thousands of people with Apple devices...not a good IOS launch by any estimation.

[girlsparky]

04:45 PM on 10/12/2011

The notification bar is what I have missed the most since switching to iPhone 4 from Motorola Droid.

[screwedrus]

07:10 PM on 10/12/2011

That bar and the "scenes" options on my HTC Eris were the only things I miss about the Droid.

[Bebop210]

04:22 PM on 10/12/2011

If you don;t have the camera on your lock screen when after you update press the home button twice and it will appear..