Apple’s Game-Changing Mobile OS, iOS
IOS (formerly iPhone OS) is a mobile operating system created and developed by Apple Inc. Introduced in the wake of the first-generation iPhone, announced June 2007, it took smartphones a long way down a path towards ubiquity. Built on a rock-solid UNIX foundation, iOS delivered an elegant and easy-to-use interface that was familiar to iPhone users, but unique as well.
Originally for iPhone only, the OS was also available to iPod Touch consumers by 2010 having introduced onto the iPad ifelt the following12 months. The change was a recognition of its increasing prominence on Apple platforms. More and more, however, the iPad’s own capabilities diverged from the iPhone and with 2019’s iOS 13, Apple introduced iPadOS to better suit those changes in use cases.Best Android tablets of 2020.
As iOS matured, it became the underpinning for a growing family of operating systems across devices which included watchOS (for Apple Watch), tvOS (for Apple TV), and over time placed many architectural similarities with macOS, an operating system to power Mac computers.
Apple releases updates to iOS in an annual cycle, unveiling major new versions at its Worldwide Developers Conference in June, then pushing changes live for the general public around the same time its newest iPhone models go on sale. For much of its earlier history — from 2007 through to 2010 — releases were in June or July, except iOS 5 which was released in October 2011.
To date, Apple has released eighteen major versions of iOS, the latest being iOS 18 on September 16, 2024. Every new version involves a blend of visible improvements, security updates, and newer features with the goal of enhancing usability, privacy, and synergy throughout Apple’s ecosystem — maintaining iOS as among the most cutting-edge and user-friendly mobile OSes around.
| Version | Initial release date | Latest version | Latest release date | Device end-of-life | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| iPad | iPhone | iPod Touch | ||||
| iPhone OS 1 | June 29, 2007 | 1.1.5 | July 15, 2008 | — | — | |
| iPhone OS 2 | July 11, 2008 | 2.2.1 | January 27, 2009 | |||
| iPhone OS 3 | June 17, 2009 | 3.2.2 | August 11, 2010 | 1st[a] | 1st[a] | |
| iOS 4 | June 21, 2010 | 4.3.5[b] | July 25, 2011 | 3G[c] | 2nd[c] | |
| iOS 5 | October 12, 2011 | 5.1.1 | May 25, 2012 | 1st | — | 3rd |
| iOS 6 | September 19, 2012 | 6.1.6 | February 21, 2014 | — | 3GS | 4th |
| iOS 7 | September 18, 2013 | 7.1.2 | June 30, 2014 | 4 | — | |
| iOS 8 | September 17, 2014 | 8.4.1 | August 13, 2015 | — | ||
| iOS 9 | September 16, 2015 | 9.3.6 | July 22, 2019 | 2, 3rd, Mini[d] | 4s | 5th[d] |
| iOS 10 | September 13, 2016 | 10.3.4 | 4th[e] | 5, 5c[e] | — | |
| iOS 11 | September 19, 2017 | 11.4.1 | July 9, 2018 | — | ||
| iOS 12 | September 17, 2018 | 12.5.7 | January 23, 2023 | Air (1st), Mini 2, Mini 3 | 5s, 6 | 6th |
| iOS 13[f] | September 19, 2019 | 13.7 | September 1, 2020 | See iPadOS version history | — | |
| iOS 14 | September 16, 2020 | 14.8.1 | October 26, 2021 | |||
| iOS 15 | September 20, 2021 | 15.8.4 | March 31, 2025 | 6s, SE (1st), 7 | 7th | |
| iOS 16 | September 12, 2022 | 16.7.11 | 8, X | Discontinued | ||
| iOS 17 | September 18, 2023 | 17.7.2 | November 19, 2024 | — | ||
| iOS 18 | September 16, 2024 | 18.6 | July 29, 2025 | XS, XR | ||
| iOS 26 | Late 2025 | 26.0 beta 4 | July 25, 2025 | TBA | ||
| Legend:UnsupportedSupportedLatest versionPreview version | ||||||
Pingback: iPhone OS 2: The App Store Revolution Begins - Mobile Updates Hub | New Phones, Software, and Tips
Pingback: iOS 4: Multitasking, Folders, and a New Name - Mobile Updates Hub | New Phones, Software, and Tips
Pingback: iOS 6: More Connected, More Capable — But Not Without Controversy - Mobile Updates Hub | New Phones, Software, and Tips
Pingback: iOS 7: A Radical Redesign and the Modern iOS Foundation - Mobile Updates Hub | New Phones, Software, and Tips
Pingback: iOS 9: Stability, Smarter Siri, and a Better iPad Experience - Mobile Updates Hub | New Phones, Software, and Tips
Pingback: iOS 14: A Transformative Redesign of the Home Screen - Mobile Updates Hub | New Phones, Software, and Tips
Pingback: iOS 18: A Deep Dive into Apple’s Customization and Intelligence-Powered Evolution - Mobile Updates Hub | New Phones, Software, and Tips
Pingback: iPhone OS 3: Filling the Gaps and Powering the iPad - Mobile Updates Hub | New Phones, Software, and Tips