With iOS 7, it's time to send photos to strangers.
I'm Bridget Carey, and this is you CNET Update.
If you don't want to upgrade to the latest operating system on your iPhone or iPad, you will not be blocked from downloading new apps anymore.
Before, some apps required the latest version of iOS and if you didn't upgrade, you were out of luck, but now, if you have all their software, Apple will let you download an older version of the app that's
compatible.
This flexibility helps people with older devices like the iPhone 3GS which cannot get the new iOS 7, and it helps people who don't want to upgrade by choice.
Remember last year when many people didn't want to upgrade to iOS 6 right away to avoid using Apple Maps?
This time, the new iOS 7 will have a dramatic new look along with new shortcuts and menus.
iOS 7 will roll out to devices on Wednesday, and there are a few noteworthy new tricks in
iOS 7.
A swipe from the bottom of the screen
pulls up a Control Center shortcut for different settings, which is something Android devices already could do.
Siri can now be a man and can understand English, French, and German.
It can store your online passwords securely and even your credit card info if you're shopping online and you don't wanna pull out your credit card to type it all in manually.
FaceTime can now be done with just audio over Wi-Fi.
iTunes radio for streaming music is making its debut, but perhaps the most interesting is AirDrop, which can share files wirelessly
with other nearby iPhones and iPads.
So if a complete stranger near you wants to send you a photo, you'll get a prompt on your phone that someone nearby is trying to send you a message.
So instead of buying girls a drink, will guys in bars send photos to get a stranger's attention?
It seems like an easy way to harass a stranger or get advertisements on your phone while walking through the mall.
This could get interesting.
iOS 7 will work with iPhone 4 and later, the latest iPod touch, and the iPad 2 and later, but not every feature will be
coming to every device.
Like AirDrop, for example, it's only on the iPhone 5 and this year's new iPhones along with the newest iPads and iPod touch.
If you have an older device, you may wanna wait a day or two before upgrading to see if there are any bugs that need to be worked out, and be sure to back up your files before upgrading to make sure it all goes smoothly.
Android users, there's some love for you too this week.
The Google Wallet app is rolling out to all Android users in the US.
It doesn't mean everyone gets that tap-to-pay ability,
but it does let people securely send money to any US resident with an email address.
And if your real wallet is full of those plastic loyalty and rewards cards from retailers, the app will store those bar codes digitally.
That's your tech news update, but you can get more details on these stories at CNET.com/update or follow along on Twitter.
From our studios in New York, I'm Bridget Carey.
