iPhone Updates

The latest slew of improvements, bug fixes, and new features was delivered to users this week. Apple rolled out iOS 16.1 to compatible devices, which can be installed directly on the iPhone using Settings -> General -> Software Update. There must be enough free storage on your iPhone to update, and the iPhone should be charging with over 50 percent battery power to start the process.

iOS 16.1 offers several reasons to update, besides the bug fixes and security patches normally found in iOS updates. Here are some of the highlights of iOS 16.1:

Most of the focus lately has been on iOS 16, Apple's latest iPhone operating system. Apple has also provided an important security update to iOS 15. This means that Apple has released two updates side-by-side, iOS 15.7 and iOS 16. iPhone owners can elect to install the iOS 15.7 patch or do a full upgrade to iOS 16.

Not running iOS 15? Apple has released an important security update for all devices with iOS 14 installed. There are many performance improvements and bug fixes included as well. While the update does not bring any new features to the table, it keeps iOS 14 secure by patching a number of security vulnerabilities. Whether your device is older or you've decided to postpone installing iOS 15, it's a good idea to keep iOS current.

Apple offers a new option to iOS 14 users this fall with the release of iOS 15. Instead of pushing all compatible iOS devices to upgrade to the latest firmware, Apple will let users decide whether to upgrade to iOS 15 or stay with the current version. Fans of iOS 14 still get ongoing security updates and bug fixes.

Apple continues to improve Siri's capabilities and with iOS 14.5 the voice assistant gets brand new voice options. The revamped voices are in the English language, with both a female and male addition. These updated voices are recorded from live speakers, then processed using Apple's Neural text to speech engine. The engine helps spontaneously generated phrases sound more realistic, delivering smoother speech that flows naturally.