Apple announced today its revamped mobile operating system, iOS 6, will be available starting Sept. 19.
That's two days before Cupertino's new flagship smartphone, the iPhone 5, hits store shelves. Apple's iOS 6 will work on the iPhone 3GS and above, the iPad 2 and up, and fourth-generation iPod touch and beyond.
Apple unveiled iOS 6 at its Worldwide Developer Conference in June. It will include a revamped Maps app, Siri on the iPad, as well as Facebook integration, and FaceTime video chat over cellular.
There's also Passbook, which allows users to collect all passes - movie tickets, airline boarding passes, coupons from Target, store card from Starbucks - in one place. It will integrate with the lock screen, Apple said, so when you arrive at the airport, the boarding pass will automatically appear on your lock screen.
On the photo front, iOS 6 supports shared photo streams. Friends will receive push notifications with their photos on the iPhone, and those photos will support comments and "likes."
The revamped OS will also support voice commands for apps; tell the iPhone to "launch Yelp," for example. The same goes for Facebook and Siri; users can post Facebook statuses from Siri by voice.
The updated mobile operating system will be missing two well-known features: the pre-loaded Google Maps and YouTube apps. Instead, Apple will replace Google Maps with its own in-house 3D mapping solution, while the YouTube app will be available in the App Store, not pre-loaded on the iOS home screen.
In recent months, there have been reports that iOS 6 does not require passwords for free apps, while Apple confirmed that iOS 6 fixes a glitch that allows for free access to in-app purchases. Recently, it was reported that iOS 6 will include a redesigned app-searching layout thanks to its acquisition of Chomp.
For more, see PCMag's live blog of today's Apple event. Also check out Apple iOS 6: The 5 Most Anticipated Features as well as Singing the Apple iOS 6 Blues.