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Apple releases iPadOS 13.1, iOS 13.1, and tvOS 13

iOS 13.1 completes the initial iOS 13 release, but iPadOS is the big story here.

Samuel Axon – | 59
2019 iPad home screen
iPadOS on the new iPad. Credit: Samuel Axon
iPadOS on the new iPad. Credit: Samuel Axon

Apple released three major new operating system updates today, following the release of iOS 13 for iPhones and iPods last week. iPadOS brings the changes and features of iOS 13 to the iPad, plus a plethora of new tablet-specific functionality as the iPad's operating system officially branches away from the iPhone for the first time. iOS 13.1 fixes numerous bugs and brings a few features to iPhones that were originally planned for iOS 13. And tvOS 13 adds Apple Arcade, new game controller support, multi-user functionality, and more to supported Apple TV devices.

Table of Contents

Major changes in iOS 13.1

Share ETA in Maps

There's now a "Share ETA" button in Apple Maps while you're navigating with directions. Tapping it will bring up a share sheet so you can send your status to a friend, partner, family member—whoever needs to know your ETA.

The recipient will get a text that includes your destination and your estimated time of arrival. If your ETA slips due to traffic, a route change, or some other circumstance, the recipient will also get an automated text letting them know your updated arrival time.

Audio Sharing

Multiple headphones featuring Apple's H1 or W2 chip may now be connected to your iPhone at the same time. So for example, you and your spouse can each connect your own individual pairs of AirPods to one iPhone simultaneously to watch a movie together when sitting next to each other on a long flight.

Shortcuts automatons

Apple has implemented the ability to create personal and home automations in Shortcuts. You can define an action and a trigger, as well as tasks that are performed when that trigger occurs. For example, you could make music begin playing on your home speaker when you open a certain app on your phone—or something, y'know, more useful than that.

AirDrop with the U1

Apple introduced a new silicon component called the U1 in this year's iPhones. It's an ultra-wideband chip that grants a sort of spatial awareness to the iPhones. When the iPhones and iOS 13 launched last week, the U1 was not used. But iOS 13.1 adds the first application of the technology.

When you opt to share something with someone via AirDrop, you may now physically point your iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, or iPhone 11 Pro Max at another one of those same phones to select that device as the sharing target.

iOS 13 bug fixes

iOS 13 launched with quite a few bugs. iOS 13.1 addresses some of them, but not all, while promising greater overall stability. For a complete list of what has been fixed in iOS 13.1 according to Apple, see the update notes below.

Major changes in iPadOS

A separation from iOS

iPads skipped the launch of iOS 13 in anticipation of iPadOS, which has been given the 13.1 version number to coincide with the iOS update that also went live today.

iPadOS is a branch from iOS 13 that is specific to the iPad—something we've called for in prior iPad reviews when we found iOS lacking as a robust tablet operating system.

In practice, there have been distinct branches under the hood for some time. But Apple wants to signal a commitment to expanding iPad functionality by making it official, and this launch brings numerous major user-interface overhauls and new features for iPads that are not available on iPhones.

That said, almost everything we wrote in both our iOS 13 review and in the notes here on iOS 13.1 also applies to iPadOS 13.1.

Expanded multitasking

In iPadOS, you can now put multiple windows from the same app in view at the same time with Slide Over or Split View—or you can put the same app in multiple Spaces. Additionally, Apple has added an App Exposé view for surveying every window for a single app.

Widgets on the Home Screen

Apple has made a few changes to the home screen in iPadOS. They're not as dramatic as we'd like to see, but they essentially come down to two things: the layout has been changed to allow more apps per page, and you can put some widgets on the home screen Android-style.

Apple Pencil improvements

iPadOS 13.1 brings an overhauled tool palette for the Pencil, more mark-up features, and improvements to Pencil responsiveness.

Other additions

This is all in addition to numerous major improvements seen in iOS 13, including greatly expanded file-management capabilities and external storage support, Dark Mode, a font manager, and big updates to apps like Reminders and Maps. There's even mouse support of a sort via accessibility settings. Also, Safari defaults to desktop versions of webpages now.

Major changes in tvOS

As always, tvOS is a smaller update than its mobile counterparts—but this is a more substantial upgrade than usual. First of all, it adds the Apple Arcade game subscription service to the mix and support for PlayStation 4 or Xbox One controllers along with it. It adds support for Sign in with Apple for apps that support it, introduces a handful of ocean-themed screen savers, and introduces a picture-in-picture mode that lets you continue to view a video while browsing the interface. Families and roommates might also be happy to learn that Apple has expanded multi-user support on Apple TVs.

Future Ars coverage

We published our review of iOS 13 last week and will update it shortly to acknowledge iOS 13.1's additions and fixes. We are also working on a separate review of iPadOS; it will run late next week.

iOS 13.1 update notes

Here are Apple's complete update notes for iOS 13.1:

iOS 13.1 includes bug fixes and improvements, including AirDrop with Ultra Wideband technology on iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, and iPhone 11 Pro Max, suggested automations in the Shortcuts app, and the ability to share ETA in Maps.

AirDrop

  • Ability to select who you want to AirDrop to by pointing from one iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, or iPhone 11 Pro Max to another using the new U1 chip with Ultra Wideband technology for spatial awareness

Shortcuts

  • Suggested automations in the Gallery personalized to your daily routine
  • Personal and home automations for automatically running shortcuts based on triggers
  • Home app support for shortcuts as advanced actions in the Automation tab

Maps

  • Share ETA to send your estimated time of arrival while your route is in progress

Battery Health

  • Optimized battery charging to slow the rate of battery aging by reducing the time your iPhone spends fully charged
  • Performance management feature for iPhone XR, iPhone XS, and iPhone XS Max to prevent the device from unexpectedly shutting down, including the option to disable this feature if an unexpected shutdown occurs
  • Notifications for when Battery Health is unable to verify if a new, genuine Apple battery is in iPhone XR, iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and later

This update also includes bug fixes and other improvements. This update:

  • Adds a link to the Me tab in Find My to allow a guest to sign in and locate a missing device
  • Includes notifications for when the display on your iPhone is unable to be verified as a new, genuine Apple display in iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, and iPhone 11 Pro Max
  • Addresses issues in Mail that could cause incorrect download counts, missing senders and subjects, difficulty selecting or flagging threads, duplicate notifications or overlapping fields
  • Fixes an issue in Mail that may prevent background downloading of email messages
  • Addresses an issue that could prevent Memoji from correctly tracking facial expressions in Messages
  • Fixes an issue where photos might not display in the Messages details view
  • Fixes an issue in Reminders that prevented some users from sharing iCloud lists
  • Resolves an issue in Notes where Exchange notes may not show up in search results
  • Addresses an issue in Calendar where birthday events could appear multiple times
  • Addresses an issue that could prevent third-party sign-in screens from appearing in the Files app
  • Fixes an issue that could cause Camera orientation to appear rotated when swiping to it from the Lock screen
  • Addresses an issue that could cause the display to sleep while interacting with the Lock screen
  • Resolves issues where app icons could appear as blank or as a different app on the Home screen
  • Resolves an issue that could prevent supported wallpapers from switching appearances when changing between Light and Dark modes
  • Addresses stability issues when signing out of iCloud from Passwords & Accounts in Settings
  • Fixes an issue where signing in to update Apple ID settings could fail repeatedly
  • Fixes an issue that could prevent the device from vibrating when connecting to a charger
  • Addresses an issue that could cause people and groups in the Share Sheet to appear blurred
  • Fixes an issue that could prevent alternate words from displaying when tapping on a misspelled word
  • Resolves an issue where multilingual typing could stop working
  • Addresses an issue that could prevent switching back to the QuickType keyboard after using a third-party keyboard
  • Fixes an issue that could prevent the edit menu from appearing when selecting text
  • Fixes an issue where Siri may not read Messages in CarPlay
  • Addresses an issue that could prevent sending a message using third-party messaging apps in CarPlay

For information on the security content of Apple software updates, please visit this website:
https://support.apple.com/kb/HT201222

iPadOS 13.1 update notes

These are Apple's update notes for the iPadOS release:

iPadOS, the powerful operating system with a new name to recognize the distinctive experience of iPad. iPadOS builds on the same foundation as iOS, adding powerful new capabilities and intuitive features specific to the large display and versatility of iPad. This update features new ways to work with multiple apps, presents more information at a glance on a redesigned Home screen, makes using Apple Pencil feel even more responsive along with a new way to instantly mark up anything, provides a dramatic new Dark Mode, allows a simple way to sign in to websites that protects your privacy, and gives new tools to edit and view your photos. iPadOS is faster and more responsive with optimizations across the system.

Home Screen

  • Today Widgets on the Home screen for at-a-glance information
  • A new layout to put even more apps on each page

Multitasking

  • Slide Over with support for multiple apps to access your favorite apps from anywhere in iPadOS and quickly switch between them
  • Multiple windows from a single app in Split View to work with two documents, notes, or emails, side by side
  • Enhanced Spaces to open the same app across multiple spaces
  • App Exposé to quickly see all of the open windows for an app

Apple Pencil

  • Lower latency with Apple Pencil, making it feel more responsive than ever
  • Redesigned tool palette, with a fresh new look, new tools, and the ability to drag to any side of the screen
  • A new gesture to mark up anything with a swipe from the bottom right or left corner of the screen with Apple Pencil
  • A new full-page option to mark up entire webpages, Mail messages, iWork documents, and Maps

Text Editing

  • Scrollbar scrubbing to directly drag the scrollbar for quickly navigating long documents, webpages, and email conversations
  • Faster and more precise cursor navigation—just pick it up and move it to where you want
  • Text selection improvements for easier selection by just tapping and swiping on the text
  • New gestures for cut, copy, paste—pinch in once with three fingers to copy, twice to cut, and pinch out with three fingers to paste
  • Undo across iPadOS by just double tapping with three fingers

QuickType

  • New floating keyboard leaving more room for your content—drag it anywhere you like
  • QuickPath on the floating keyboard lets you slide to type for easy one-handed typing

Fonts

  • Custom fonts are available from the App Store for use in your favorite apps
  • Font management in Settings

Files

  • External drives supported in Files to access and manage files on a USB drive, SD card, or hard drive
  • SMB support to connect to a server at work or a home PC
  • Local storage for creating folders on the local drive and adding your favorite files
  • Column to drill down into nested folders
  • Preview pane with high-resolution file previews, rich metadata, and Quick Actions
  • Zip and Unzip support for creating and expanding Zip files
  • New keyboard shortcuts to manage your files even faster with an external keyboard

Safari

  • Desktop-class browsing in Safari with websites automatically optimized for the large Multi-Touch iPad display
  • Web platforms like Squarespace, WordPress, and Google Docs now supported
  • Download manager to access downloads quickly and check the status of a file you're downloading
  • Over 30 new keyboard shortcuts to navigate the Web even faster with an external keyboard
  • Updated start page with favorites, frequently visited, most recently visited websites, and Siri suggestions
  • View options in the Smart Search field for quick access to text size controls, Reader view, and per‑site settings
  • Per‑site settings to choose Reader view and enable content blockers, camera, microphone, and location access for individual websites
  • Option to resize when uploading photos

Dark Mode

  • A beautiful new dark color scheme that delivers a great viewing experience, especially in low-light environments
  • Can be scheduled to turn on automatically at sunset, at a certain time, or turned on from Control Center
  • Four new system wallpapers that automatically switch appearances with Light and Dark Mode

Photos

  • An all-new Photos tab with a curated view of your library, making it easy to find, relive, and share your photos and videos
  • Powerful new photo editing tools that make it easier to edit, adjust, and review photos at a glance
  • Video editing with over 30 new tools, including Rotate, Crop, and Enhance

Sign in with Apple

  • A private way to sign in to participating apps and websites with the Apple ID you already have
  • Simple account setup with only your name and email address
  • Hide My Email to share a unique email address that is automatically forwarded to you
  • Built-in two-factor authentication to protect your account
  • No tracking or profiling by Apple as you use your favorite apps

App Store with Arcade

  • Unlimited access to groundbreaking new games with one subscription, no ads or additional purchases
  • An all-new Arcade tab in the App Store to browse the latest games, personalized recommendations, and exclusive editorial content
  • Available to play across iPhone, iPod touch, iPad, Mac, and Apple TV
  • Option to download large apps over your cellular connection
  • Ability to view available app updates or delete apps from the Account page
  • Support for Arabic and Hebrew

Maps

  • An all-new map rolling out in the US featuring broader road coverage, improved address precision, better support for pedestrians, and more detailed land cover
  • Look Around to explore cities in a high-resolution, interactive 3D experience
  • Collections for the lists of places you love and can easily share with friends and family
  • Favorites for quick and easy navigation to the places you visit daily

Reminders

  • All-new design with more powerful and intelligent ways to create and organize reminders
  • Quick toolbar to add dates, locations, flags, attachments and more to reminders
  • New smart lists—Today, Scheduled, Flagged and All—to easily keep track of upcoming reminders
  • Subtasks and grouped lists to organize your reminders

Siri

  • More natural Siri voice, particularly while speaking longer phrases
  • Personalized Siri Suggestions in Apple Podcasts, Safari, and Maps
  • Over 100,000 live radio stations from around the world available with Siri

Shortcuts

  • Shortcuts app now built-in
  • Suggested automations in the Gallery personalized to your daily routine
  • Personal and home automations for automatically running shortcuts based on triggers
  • Home app support for shortcuts as advanced actions in the Automation tab

Memoji and Messages

  • New Memoji customization options including new hairstyles, headwear, makeup, and piercings
  • Memoji sticker packs in Messages, Mail, and third‑party apps and available on iPad mini 5, iPad (5th generation and later), iPad Air (3rd generation), and all iPad Pro models
  • Your name and photo, or even Memoji, now optionally shared with your friends
  • Search enhancements to easily find messages with intelligent suggestions and categorization of results

Augmented Reality

  • People Occlusion for apps to place virtual objects naturally in front or behind people using iPad Pro (2018), iPad Air (2018), iPad mini 5
  • Motion Capture for apps to understand the body position and movement of a person so you can animate a character or interact with virtual objects using iPad Pro (2018), iPad Air (2018), iPad mini 5
  • Multiple face tracking for AR content on up to 3 faces at a time so you can have fun with your friends using iPad Pro (2018)
  • AR Quick Look to view and interact with multiple AR objects at the same time

Mail

  • Block sender to move all email messages from a blocked sender directly to the trash
  • Mute thread to stop notifications from an overly active email thread
  • Format bar with easy access to rich text formatting tools and attachments of all kinds
  • Font support for all system fonts, as well as new fonts you download from the App Store

Notes

  • Gallery view with your notes as visual thumbnails helping you find the note you need
  • Shared folders to collaborate with others giving them access to entire folders of notes
  • More powerful search for visual recognition of images inside your notes and text in items you've scanned
  • New checklist options to easily reorder checklist items, indent them, or move checked items to the bottom of the list automatically

Apple Music

  • Time-synced lyrics make listening more fun with perfectly timed lyrics
  • Over 100,000 live radio stations from around the world

Screen Time

  • 30-day usage data to compare Screen Time numbers over the previous weeks
  • Combined limits to include multiple app categories, specific apps, or websites in one limit
  • "One more minute" option to quickly save your work or log out of a game when a Screen Time limit is met

Privacy and Security

  • Allow Once location permission with the option to share your locations with apps only once
  • Background tracking alerts now notify you when an app is using your location in the background
  • Wi-Fi and Bluetooth enhancements help prevent apps from accessing your location without your consent
  • Location sharing controls give you the option to easily omit location data when sharing photos

System Experience

  • Wi‑Fi networks and Bluetooth accessories selection in Control Center
  • A redesigned, unobtrusive volume control in the top-middle
  • Full-page screenshots for webpages, Mail messages, iWork documents, and Maps
  • Redesigned share sheet with intelligent suggestions to share content with just a few taps
  • Audio Sharing for two sets of AirPods, Powerbeats Pro, Beats Solo3, BeatsX and Powerbeats3 to share a single stream of audio
  • Dolby Atmos playback for a thrilling surround sound experience from content with Dolby Atmos, Dolby Digital, or Dolby Digital Plus soundtracks on iPad Pro (2018)

Language support

  • Support for 38 new keyboard languages
  • Predictive input in Cantonese, Dutch, Hindi (Devanagari), Hindi (Latin), Najdi Arabic, Swedish, and Vietnamese keyboards
  • Separate emoji and globe keys make it easier to quickly switch between languages and select emoji
  • Automatic language detection for dictation
  • Bilingual dictionary support in Thai and English and Vietnamese and English

China

  • A dedicated QR code mode in Camera, accessible from the Control Center, for improved QR code performance, a flashlight option, and enhanced privacy
  • Junction View in Maps for drivers in China to more easily navigate complex roadways
  • Adjustable handwriting area on the Chinese keyboard
  • Cantonese predictions on the Cangjie, Sucheng, Stroke, and Handwriting keyboards

India

  • All‑new Indian English male and female Siri voices
  • Support for all 22 official Indian languages with the addition of 15 new keyboard languages
  • Bilingual keyboard for Hindi (Latin) and English keyboard, including typing predictions
  • Typing predictions on the Hindi (Devanagari) keyboard
  • New Indian language system fonts for Gujarati, Gurmukhi, Kannada, and Odia for greater clarity and ease when reading in apps
  • 30 new document fonts for Assamese, Bangla, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Nepali, Odia, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Tamil, Telugu, and Urdu
  • Contacts with hundreds of new relationship labels to help more accurately label your contacts

Voice Control

  • A new way to control your iOS devices, entirely with your voice
  • Comprehensive navigation with just your voice to open apps, search the Web, tap, swipe, pinch, zoom, press the Home button and more
  • Accurate dictation using the Siri speech recognition engine
  • Rich text editing to make corrections using just your voice, or select from word and emoji suggestions
  • Custom words, such as legal or medical terms, to ensure Voice Control recognizes words you commonly use
  • Seamless transitions from text dictation to voice commands
  • Attention Awareness to keep Voice Control off when you turn your head away from True Depth camera on supported iPhone models
  • On‑device processing so your personal data is kept private

Performance

  • Up to 2x faster app launch
  • Up to 30% faster Face ID unlocking on iPad Pro 11-inch, iPad Pro 12.9-inch (3rd generation)
  • 60% smaller app updates on average
  • Up to 50% smaller apps from the App Store

Other features and improvements

  • Low Data Mode to reduce your data usage over your cellular network or specific Wi-Fi networks you select
  • PlayStation 4 and Xbox Wireless Controller support
  • Find My iPhone and Find My Friends combined into a single app with the ability to locate a missing device even if it can't connect to a Wi-Fi or cellular network
  • Apple Books reading goals help make reading a daily habit
  • Apple News+ options to remove downloaded issues, follow a title, or browse the back catalog from the More button in the My Magazines section
  • Stocks app with business stories from Apple News+
  • Calendar supports adding attachments to events
  • Home app redesigned controls for HomeKit accessories with a combined view for ones with multiple services
  • Pinch-to-zoom for more precision when editing recordings in Voice Memos

Some features may not be available for all regions, or on all Apple devices, for more information visit:
https://www.apple.com/ios/feature-availability and https://www.apple.com/ipados

Listing image: Samuel Axon

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Samuel Axon Senior Editor
Samuel Axon is a senior editor at Ars Technica, where he is the editorial director for tech and gaming coverage. He covers AI, software development, gaming, entertainment, and mixed reality. He has been writing about gaming and technology for nearly two decades at Engadget, PC World, Mashable, Vice, Polygon, Wired, and others. He previously ran a marketing and PR agency in the gaming industry, led editorial for the TV network CBS, and worked on social media marketing strategy for Samsung Mobile at the creative agency SPCSHP. He also is an independent software and game developer for iOS, Windows, and other platforms, and he is a graduate of DePaul University, where he studied interactive media and software development.
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