The Same Old Look

Apples iOS 5 doesnt come with many basic design changes. But then again, why should Apple want to fix something that isnt broken? Both new and old iPhone customers will feel right at home in Apples latest mobile OS.

One of the nice things about iOS 5 is that it can be updated over the air. The operating system alerts the user to an OS update, and within a few taps on the screen, the installation process is started. It takes just a few minutes to complete.

Apples iOS has been criticized in the past for a poor notification system that was too intrusive. With Notification Center, users can swipe from the top of the iPhones display and quickly see everything from text messages to missed calls. The best part is the notifications dont interrupt the user when theyre in other applications.

Twitter has made its way to a host of built-in applications in iOS 5, including Safari. If a Web page is worth tweeting, users can click the forwarding option and choose tweet to send it out to their friends.

One of the nice things about iOS 5s Twitter integration is that its made to be simple. Users can input a tweet and send it out to friends on the social network. In order to set up Twitter integration, users need to turn it on in the Settings menu.

Safari also comes with a new Reader option. Rather than scrolling across the page on larger Websites, users can click Reader and see the same content simplified to fit the iPhones display. Its a great way to read long articles, like this one from The New York Times.

Aside from allowing users to update their applications, Apples App Store program now lets those same folks see all the programs theyve purchased that might not be running on the respective device or could be on other products they own. A quick tap of the iCloud button brings them back.

Apple is trying to make it easy for users to keep up with what they need to do with its new Reminders feature. Its a nice option for those who need a simple solution, but the App Store has better reminder applications available.

MobileMe customers will feel right at home with iCloud, which features a Find My iPhone option. As one might expect, the feature helps folks quickly find where their smartphone is. And if its lost, users can opt to remotely wipe or lock the device.

Although iCloud appears to be a winner, Apple does give users the ability to turn it off. That said, iCloud is free and, so far, works quite well. So it might not make much sense to take Apple up on that offer.

In iOS 5, users can decide to synchronize everything from email messages to contacts and calendar appointments. Best of all, the synchronization is instantaneous, allowing users to access content anywhere with no delay.

Apples iCloud service is currently available to developers. By the look of things, its still not full-featured. But expect that to change as Apple launches iCloud this fall.

When Apple said that iCloud would offer a hands-off approach to content-sharing across multiple platforms, it wasnt kidding. If users want to add information to an application from their iPhone, its immediately synchronized to the Web, and vice versa. Once iCloud is turned on, it does all the heavy lifting.