iOS 10, the new version of the operating system for iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch, is expected to get its full, public release later today – and the first reviews suggest that you should be excited.
The Messages app is arguably the iOS feature getting the most significant enhancements with iOS 10. Mashable‘s Raymond Wong indeed declares that “it’s all about Messages“, adding that the new Messages abilities – including sending handwritten messages, using “invisible ink” and producing predictive emoji, make this app’s revamp “the primary reason everyone should update”.
Another “great improvement” hailed by PC Advisor‘s Jim Martin is the new raise-to-wake feature, whereby owners of the iPhone 7, 7 Plus, 6S, 6S Plus or SE can wake their phones simply by lifting them – ideal for checking the time and the new “rich notifications” without pressing any buttons.
You’ll also be able to see Widgets and information about other devices on that lock screen – and Pocket-lint‘s Stuart Miles observes that this screen can now be so informative that “at times there is no reason to even go beyond it”, making it “great for glancing without digging deep.”
While the complete gamut of new features will not be available on every single device supporting iOS 10, it could evidently still excite even many users of the oldest compatible devices. Judging from tradition, it will be at 10am Pacific Time that iOS 10 becomes available as a free update. The iPhone 4S and later, fourth generation iPad and later, iPad Mini 2 and later and sixth generation iPod Touch are all supported.