Apple's iOS 5: Revolutionizing computing?

The new operating system for iPhones and iPads may dramatically change our lives — or at least make digital life less annoying

Apple's iPhone operating system iOS 5, presented by software VP Scott Forstall in June, may officially usher in the post-PC era.
(Image credit: REUTERS/Beck Diefenbach)

Last March, in his second-to-last Apple keynote address, Steve Jobs uttered the phrase "post-PC world." Many snickered. But now, after the release Wednesday of iOS 5 — Apple's new operating system for the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch — the post-PC world might really be here. That's because this new software allows us to update, sync, and back up our mobile devices without ever plugging them into a computer. Does iOS 5 really signal the dawn of a new era in computing, or is this just another upgrade?

It's revolutionary... but imperfect: This latest update alters almost every aspect of Apple's mobile operating system, says Dan Moren at Macworld. "With iOS 5, it's possible, for the first time, to use your iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad as your one and only device" — there's no need for a personal computer as an anchor. Things that would have formerly required users to hook up to a PC — like, say, making a photo album or a playlist — can now be done directly on your iPhone or iPad. But it's not "all sunshine and daisies." The buggy new software is actually "the least polished major iOS update in quite some time."

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