Apple devices with the sixth generation iOS platform. (Photo : Apple)
There are plenty of rumors around the internet as to what the iPhone 5 will be. Apple hasn't even officially announced the smartphone, but industry insiders and tech websites seem to be able to get their hands on details anyways. One thing is for sure - the new iPhone will come with the revamped Apple iOS 6 which is queued for an autumn launch (around the same time the iPhone 5 is expected to come out). Here's what Apple's next operating system will offer.
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One of the major new features of iOS 6 will be Passbook. Essentially a digital loyalty card, Passbook will allow you to make purchases as well as be able to earn rewards points. The Passbook app is hint that the iPhone 5 could come with NFC chip.
NFC, or near field communication, chips would allow the iPhone to make wireless data transfers by simply being around another NFC-enabled device. This could potentially make the next iPhone a digital wallet, and allow for scenarios like downloading movie times from a 'smart' movie poster embedded with an NFC chip. This would allow Apple devices to compete with the similar Android Beam technology.
The iOS 6 will also end the era of Google Maps as an Apple standard. Instead, Apple will introduce its own GPS/map app that will replace Google Maps. The new Apple maps will feature 3-D views and a more interactive map experience than the simple arrow/vector-based Google Maps.
Siri will also receive an upgrade. Apple claims that "Siri understands more languages and works in more countries" in iOS 6.
Facebook will also be integrated into the new iOS 6. The social-networking giant has come under fire for a botched IPO due to doubts that the company could keep growing. One of the major concerns was that Facebook did not have a proper mobile presence. The decision to integrate the world's most popular social networking site into the world's most popular smartphone/mobile operating system should prove beneficial to Facebook's 900 million plus users.
The iOS 6 will also come with performance enhancements and other featuers designed to make the mobile experience more flushed out.
