Older iPhones to find new life

Apple says iOS9 will go where previous updates haven’t gone before

There’s good news if you’ve got an older iPhone.

At its Worldwide Developers Conference here, Apple updated its mobile operating system, iOS, saying the update will work more efficiently on older phones.

“We will support all the older devices (something previous iOS editions didn’t do),” Apple executive Craig Federighi said.

In last year’s iOS update, many consumers complained that the upgrade made their phones sluggish and the download a monster.

“We want everyone to get to iOS 9,” Federighi said. “We’ve reduced the amount of space you need, from 4.6 gigabytes to 1.3 GBs.”

Apple updates iOS every year, offering new features to keep customers satisfied with their iPhone and discourage them from switching to Google’s rival Android system. But Apple saw more resistance to last year’s edition. The iOS 7 upgrade was accepted by 78% of iPhone and iPad users after just three months; it took Apple nine months to finally get to 82% for iOS 8.

The new iOS, expected to be unveiled in fall — along with the release of the new iPhone — will work with the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch models. Apple also showcased the operating system upgrade for Mac computers, OS X El Capitan, which it said would offer faster operations. The system will be available for free.

Much of the presentation was based on iOS and showcasing a new tool it calls Proactive, which learns about your phone habits and offers reminders and updates. Proactive uses Siri, the personal digital assistant, to work hand-in-hand with apps.

“We’re bringing intelligence throughout the experience to iOS 9, without compromising your privacy,” Federighi said. “We don’t go to your e-mail to learn things about you. It’s all done on the device.”

Apple also will introduce a new font, “San Francisco,” first seen on the Apple Watch, and an upgrade to its Maps product, which debuted here two years ago and was met with poor reviews.