4 things to know about Apple's iOS 11 software update

Holding off on upgrading your trusty old iPhone? You won't need a spiffy iPhone 8 in order to get new maps, photos and other features with a free software update Apple began rolling out Tuesday.

In this Sept. 15, 2017, photo, the iOS 11 control center is displayed on the iPhone 8 Plus in New York. The control center offers easy access to the flashlight and other tools with a swipe up from the bottom. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)

The iOS 11 update brings a variety of enhancements, including a new voice and functionality for the Siri virtual assistant and a new photo format to reduce file sizes.

Consider waiting a few days in case unexpected problems emerge. The update will work with iPhones and iPads going back a few years, but older models won't get all the new features.

Once you get iOS 11, here are four things to look for.

LOOK AND FEEL

The Control Center offers easy access to the flashlight and other tools with a swipe up from the bottom. It got separated into multiple pages last year to increase the options available, but the extra swipes got annoying. With iOS 11, it's back to a single page. The extra options remain available, and Apple now lets you customize further, such as by adding an Apple TV remote or one-touch access to the voice recorder.

After taking a screenshot, you'll now see a thumbnail in a corner. Tap on it for the ability to quickly annotate and share it. Need to remember where you parked your car? Just screenshot a map and draw an arrow.

The update brings additional camera filters to tweak your photos. To find them, you can now swipe up as you're taking the shot; swipe down when you're done. With camera improvements, the iPhone 8 models automatically use an exposure-balancing technology called HDR and no longer save unadjusted versions. You can restore that in the settings, though it'll use more storage.

Apple Maps now offers speed limits and lane guidance on highways and indoor maps for some airports and shopping malls.

And a new feature detects when you're driving and keeps notifications from appearing on your lock screen, so you're not tempted to check. You can override that if you're in the passenger's seat - or traveling by plane or train, both of which can make the phone think you're driving.

NEW TYPES OF APPS

Remember last year's gaming sensation "Pokemon Go "? For many people, it was their first taste of augmented reality , the blending of virtual images with real-life settings. More augmented reality apps are coming with new tools Apple is including with iOS 11 . Among other things, you'll be able to see how furniture will look in your real living room before you buy it.

Apple already has had artificial-intelligence software for cataloging photos and other internal features. It's now making those tools available to third-party developers. Such apps might now automatically identify food in an image and offer nutrition information.

Speaking of apps, Apple has also redesigned its app store to separate games from other apps and make recommendations more prominent.

FOR THE IPAD

As Apple tries to market its iPad Pro tablets as a laptop alternative, the iPad's software takes on characteristics resembling the Mac computer.

A Dock at the bottom offers quick access to recent and frequently used apps. The iPad gets new drag and drop capabilities to make it easier to move text and other content between apps. For instance, you can drag a location on a map into an email. Recent iPad models can now run three apps side by side, rather than just two.

COMING SOON

Apple's payment system, Apple Pay, already lets people buy items at a retail store with a tap of the phone. It also enables web orders and charity donations. Coming soon is the ability to pay friends back for dinner or drinks, much the way PayPal and Venmo work.

Money you receive will go into an Apple Pay Cash account, automatically created if you don't already have one. Apple is hoping you'll use the balance to buy things with Apple Pay, though you can move money to a bank account. There's no fee when using a debit card or an existing balance. To encourage its use, the Apple Pay option will appear when texting about owing money.

Also coming later is the ability to sync Apple's Messages app between devices. Such syncing was previously inconsistent. Apple says that while syncing will now use its iCloud servers, it will keep all data encrypted and won't have access to the keys.

Tuesday's update brings new sharing and smart home capabilities designed for speakers. Much of this appears to prepare Apple for the December release of HomePod, a $349 smart speaker rivaling Amazon's Echo and Google Home.

Apple on Thursday disclosed its steepest quarterly decline in iPhone sales since the pandemic’s outset, deepening a slump that’s increasing the pressure on the trendsetting company to spruce up its products with more artificial intelligence.

The 10% drop in year-over-year iPhone sales for the January-March period is latest sign of weakness in a product that generates most of Apple’s revenue. It marked the biggest drop in iPhone sales since July-September period in 2020, when production bottlenecks caused by factory closures during the pandemic resulted in a delayed release of that year's model.

The current iPhone downturn was the main reason Apple’s revenue for the latest quarter decreased 4% from last year to $90.8 billion. It marked the fifth consecutive quarter that Apple’s revenue dipped from the previous year. Apple’s profit in the past quarter totaled $23.64 billion, or $1.53 per share, a 2% dip from last year.

But both Apple's revenue and earnings per share came in slightly above analysts projections, according to FactSet Research. Apple also predicted its revenue for the April-June quarter will rise modestly from a year ago, which would end the recent streak of erosion.

Part of the iPhone deterioration during the first three months of the year stemmed from a big boost in sales during the same period last year when Apple said it was filling pent-up demand caused by pandemic-driven shipment delays.

Even as it stumbles slightly, Apple remains one of the world’s most prosperous companies. The Cupertino, California, company hammered home that point by announcing a 4% increase in its quarterly dividend to 25 cents per share. The company also committed to spending $110 billion buying back its own stock, a move that investors cheered but may fuel criticism that Apple is spending more money catering to Wall Street than creating more innovative products.

Bolstered by the increased dividend and stock repurchase commitment, Apple's shares rose nearly 7% in extended trading after the news came out. The stock price has fallen 10% so far this year, erasing about $300 billion in stockholder wealth.

Although investors have been dismayed by the weakening iPhone sales, they are also concerned Apple may be losing its edge as other tech giants such as Microsoft and Google sprint out to the early lead in artificial intelligence technology that is expected to reshape the industry and technology.

The latest quarterly report “leaves no margin for doubt about Apple’s current state of affairs,” said Investing.com analyst Thomas Monteiro. “More than ever in the past decade, the company needs new products and solutions.”

Apple is widely expected to unveil more AI services in June during an annual conference showcasing the next version of its software for the iPhone and Mac computers.

“We believe in the transformative power and promise of AI and we believe we have advantages that will differentiate us in this new era,” Apple CEO Tim Cook assured analysts during a Thursday conference while promising more details will be announced soon.

Weak sales in China were again a factor in the latest quarter, with revenue in that region falling 8% from last year to $16.37 billion as rival smartphone makers gained ground in one of the company’s largest markets. Even so, analysts had been anticipating an even bigger sales decline in the results, providing investors with a measure of relief.

Apple had a few bright spots in the past quarter too, most notably in its service division, which saw its revenue rise 14% from the year before to $23.87 billion.

The division reaps a significant portion of its revenue from a lucrative deal that locks in Google as the search engine that automatically answers queries on the iPhone — an arrangement that is a focal point of an antitrust trial currently wrapping up with closing arguments in Washington this week.

Commissions collected on digital transactions within iPhone apps are also a major revenue source within Apple’s services division, an area being targeted in a U.S. Justice Department lawsuit alleging the company is running an illegal monopoly that locks out competition to the detriment of consumers.

That case is expected to take several years to resolve, but European regulators already are forcing Apple to allow more alternatives to its proprietary iPhone app store as part of the Digital Markets Act.

FILE - In this June 16, 2020 file photo, the sun is reflected on Apple's Fifth Avenue store in New York. Apple will reports earnings on Thursday May 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File)