Some Features of the New iOS 9.3

 

Apple's given its next iOS update to developers to test; here's what's new and noteworthy. 

A new iOS update is coming soon to your iPhone/iPad. iOS 9.3 is now available for developers and includes some welcome upgrades that will help you sleep better and stay organized.

The iOS 9.3 is available as a developer preview, meaning it's not completely finished. There's no word on when it will arrive on your iPhone or iPad just yet, but Apple typically releases a preview just a few months before the final version. In the meantime, read up on the top new features below before they arrive.  

Stay up late with your iPad

You may have heard that your phone's screen is ruining your sleep quality and yet you still fall asleep with it every night. Apple's trying to help you get a better night's rest with Night Shift, a setting that changes the colors on the screen at night. 

Researchers believe that blue light emitted by LED screens halts the production of melatonin, the hormone that tells our brains to sleep. Switching from bright white and blue undertones to warmer colors (like red, orange and yellow) is said to be easier on your eyes and allow your body to fall asleep naturally.

Apps like Flux and Twilight can already do this for your computer and Android phone. Before 9.3, you will need to jailbreak your iOS device in order to alter the screen colors. Night Shift will be built into iOS 9.3 and let you customize the feature by changing the color temperature (cooler or warmer) and schedule it to run until sunrise.

Lock up your notes

The Notes app gets some love with 9.3. You can now password protect your notes to keep important info safe from prying eyes. You will also be able to finally sort notes by date or title. Hardly revolutionary stuff, but it does make this simple app much more useful.  

Apple Health app 

Apple will now highlight third-party apps you can connect to. This will show a wellness dashboard to keep tabs on your workouts, weight and sleep quality. And if you have an Apple Watch, you will be able to see the movement data it collects from the Health app.

CarPlay gets better tunes

Apple's in-car entertainment and navigation system CarPlay gets upgrades courtesy of Apple Music and Maps. You will get to browse suggested songs and artists in Apple Music before you head out. While you're on the road, a new Nearby feature uses Maps to find food, fuel and other services.

Smart tools for teachers 

iPads can be an incredible teaching tools and now got extra features to help them better fit into a classroom. The Classroom app helps teachers deliver lesson plans and track their student's progress. Students can share a single iPad by logging in with different accounts to personalize what they see. Apple is also introducing Apple IDs for education that are created and managed by school administrators.

Lastly, 

iOS 9.3 adds many more smaller new features and improvements. On the iPhone 6S and 6S Plus, there are new 3D Touch shortcuts for the Weather, Settings, Health, App Store, iTunes Store and Compass apps. You can also duplicate photos in the Photos app, if you want to edit one copy and keep the original. Siri now supports Hebrew, Finish and Malay.

Keep checking this blog for Apple coverage and the latest rumors on the next iPhone.