iOS 13.5 is here – this is why you should download it right away

[Karlston]

iOS 13.5 is here – this is why you should download it right away

Apple's iOS 13.5 update includes contact tracing and face-mask-aiding features

(Image credit: Shutterstock)

 

Apple just launched its all-important iOS 13.5 update for the iPhone, and its features are so relevant to our times that we strongly suggest downloading it right away.

 

The official iOS 13.5 release notes indicate that this update will remove the delay before showing the passcode field on iPhones with Face ID when it detects you're wearing a face mask, allowing you to type your PIN instantly. The notes also detail the contact tracing apps framework or 'Exposure Notification API'.

 

Face mask recognition is a relief for something that's been bugging us for the last two months. While Face ID, on everything from the iPhone X to the iPhone 11 Pro, is widely advanced and secure, it doesn't deal with face masks well at all. That's been frustrating when you own one of the priciest of the best phones in the world.

 

Now, the ability to enter the traditional passcode from the start helps avoid having to awkwardly fail out of Face ID twice just to get to the passcode screen when unlocking your phone or buying something with Apple Pay. 

 

iOS 13.5 will make life with a face mask a little easier.

iOS 13.5 launches contact tracing apps

Officially called 'Exposure Notifications' in the iOS 13.5 update, Apple (along with Google doing the same with Android) has baked in an API for contact tracing apps. 

 

 

This framework will allow governments and public health agencies to develop apps that alert you if you've come into contact with someone who later tests positive for Covid-19 and that person anonymously logs their positive result into a database.

 

 

 

No, the actual contact tracing apps aren't here yet in iOS 13.5, but Apple and Google note that 22 countries across five continents have requested and received access to the API, while stressing that everything is being done to protect user privacy. 

 

 

In addition to being contacted anonymously, the Exposure Notifications API uses Bluetooth Low Energy, not WiFi or other, more potentially identifiable means. The companies are working to make it impossible to create a digital paper trail, though privacy advocates still have concerns.

 

Apple and Google have also said that there are no plans to use this framework beyond the current pandemic.

 

 

Source: iOS 13.5 is here – this is why you should download it right away (TechRadar)

[Karlston]

Apple releases iOS 13.5 with Exposure Notification API

 

Apple has been testing iOS 13.4.5 with developers since March 31, although with beta 3, it became iOS 13.5. After offering up the GM seed earlier this week, the update is now available.

 

The reason that the version number changed is because it includes the new Exposure Notification API, which is used for contact tracing. An update like iOS 13.4.5 would still use the iOS 13.4 SDK, and since there's a new API, a new SDK is needed. With that in mind, it was changed to iOS 13.5. The new API works by letting you report to official health apps that you've contracted COVID-19, and then it can see who you've come in contact with, assuming that you've both opted in.

 

Another new feature is that Face ID should be slightly easier to use while wearing a mask. No, it won't actually work, but it will be a bis less of a painful experience. Normally, your iPhone will try to recognize you for a few seconds before failing and showing the PIN screen. Now, you just won't have to wait those few seconds anymore.

 

Finally, you can now share Apple Music songs, albums, and playlists to Facebook and Instagram. This was the only feature that was listed as slated to arrive in iOS 13.4.5 before all of the COVID-related featured showed up.

 

After this, it would seem that the next stop will be iOS 14, iPadOS 14, watchOS 7, macOS 10.16, and tvOS 14. Apple will announce these major updates at WWDC, which is slated to start on June 22.

 

 

Source: Apple releases iOS 13.5 with Exposure Notification API (Neowin)