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The extra iOS 9 goodies Apple didn't show at WWDC

Check out the iOS 9 tools for developers that Apple didn't divulge on stage during its annual developers keynote.

Lynn La Senior Editor / Reviews - Phones
Lynn La covers mobile reviews and news. She previously wrote for The Sacramento Bee, Macworld and The Global Post.
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Lynn La
2 min read

ios-9-features.jpg
Apple's Craig Federighi introducing iOS 9 to developers during the WWDC presser. Screenshot taken by Lynn La/CNET

This story is part of WWDC 2022, CNET's complete coverage from and about Apple's annual developers conference.

At Apple's developers' conference keynote in San Francisco, the company's senior vice president of software engineering, Craig Federighi, highlighted a number of new tools coming to Apple's iOS 9 update.

Some of these features include a native news aggregator (aptly called News ); a refreshed user interface for the more "proactive" digital voice assistant Siri, and split-screen capabilities for the iPad.

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But Apple also quickly included a slide that listed 30 developer tools that will be available for iOS 9. While some of these features will appeal only to software professionals, others will have a direct impact on how consumers will experience their iOS devices after the update. Below are the features Apple briefly displayed during the keynote:

  • OCR accessory setup
  • Search extensibility
  • Audio unit extension
  • VPN plug-in extension
  • Swift 2
  • Map customization
  • Direct document
  • UI testing in Xcode
  • Notification actions
  • Third-party notifications
  • Sensor profile
  • App thinning
  • Motorized windows profile
  • Flyover and walk-through
  • New Health data types
  • Code coverage
  • Gaming APIs
  • Automated shades profile
  • Layout guide
  • Shortcut bar
  • Object-oriented contacts
  • New multitasking APIs
  • New HomeKit profiles
  • iCloud open in place
  • Home security profile
  • Storyboard references
  • App transport security API
  • Stack view
  • Wireless CarPlay
  • HomeKit iCloud remote access

Watch this: iOS 9 brings real multitasking to the iPad

One notable item on the list is "app thinning," which lets users download apps that are tailored to their iOS device. Because these apps are optimized, they should take up less memory and launch faster.

Another advancement to iOS 9 is the rollout of Swift 2, which is also listed above. According to CNET's Tim Stevens, as Apple's programming language for iOS and OS X, Swift 2 will have "more comprehensive error handling," and most significantly, will be available as an open-source platform. That means there will be even more apps coming to users as new developers take advantage of the language's support on multiple platforms.

For more on iOS 9, read our First Take here , and be sure to check out CNET's complete coverage of WWDC 2015.

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