iOS 9 uses new tricks to squeeze more battery life out of the phone you already own

Apple touted a number of flagship features of iOS 9 during its WWDC keynote, but the company is quietly focusing on squeezing more battery life out of the phone already in your pocket.

A session for developers titled “achieving all-day battery life” pushed that app builders need to be more conscious of how their code is draining the user’s battery and introduced new features to help catch battery thirsty apps.

One significant feature of iOS 9 that Apple hadn’t mentioned previously stops your iPhone’s screen from lighting up when it’s face down on a table. Until now, the iPhone would light up for every notification, regardless whether the screen was actually viewable or not.

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With iOS 9, Apple lets developers cutoff support for older iOS devices without 64-bit CPUs

With iOS 9, developers can cutoff younger devices in a way that was not previously possible. Although iOS 9 runs on every device that runs iOS 8, app developers are free to specify more restrictive compatibility requirements.

In fact, with iOS 9, developers can choose to make their apps exclude any non-64 bit architecture. This means all iPod touch models, all iPhones before the iPhone 5s and all iPads before the iPad Air will not be able to install apps where developers have required 64-bit CPUs.

Apple started using 64-bit CPUs with the A7 in the iPhone 5s, a 2013 device. Developers often complain about supporting older hardware platforms (such as the A5 which is very slow by modern standards) and so this option will offer a quick-and-easy way to simplify development.

If a developer enables this option, customers browsing the App Store with older devices will simply not see that app in the Store and won’t be able to download or install it.

The limit has little to do with the 64-bit support itself — binaries can be built that support both platforms. However, the processors are simply much more powerful than their predecessors which puts a lot of strain on developers to support both platforms well. Apple showed how GPU performance increased dramatically in the last two years with the 64-bit processors (above).

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Apple WWDC 2015: How to stream keynote live to iOS 9, OS X rumours

Apple WWDC conference opens on Monday, June 8 and and this is where the company will reveal iOS 9 for iPhones and iPad and OS X 10.11 for Macs. Here’s our quick look at everything that Apple is expected to release at WWDC 2015.

How to watch: Like with all Apple events, you will need an Apple device (an Apple TV, Mac, iPhone or iPad) to watch the live-stream of the Apple WWDC keynote. As Apple’s website, says users will need Safari 6.0.5 or later on OS X v10.8.5 or later; Safari on iOS 6.0 or later. Streaming via Apple TV requires second-or third-generation Apple TV with software 6.2 or later.

In addition to this, in a rare first, Apple has allowed AltConf to live-stream WWDC keynote and Platforms State of the Union sessions. Check out AltConf’s website here for more details.

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Apple iOS 9 Has Master Plan To Cut Out Google

With over $100BN in the bank right now Apple AAPL -0.4% is doing what it does best: fighting for independence. For years the Cupertino-based company has battled to secure its own exclusive hardware deals, software patents and proactively do away with dependence on key rivals.

Perhaps the most famous instance of this is Apple Maps, which (jokes aside) was designed purely to stop Apple being beholden to Google GOOGL -0.18%. Well now Apple looks set to kick another key Google service to the curb…

Goodbye Google Now

According to 9to5Mac (which has been on a roll), next week Apple will unveil ‘Proactive’ as a key new service built into iOS 9. Proactive will aggregate information across Siri, Contacts, Calendar, Passbook, and third-party apps to create contextually aware information.

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Over 1,000 iMac aquariums sold: Fish screensavers are still in style

In fond memory of those aquarium screensavers, people have been building aquariums inside old Macs for years. However, you usually have to assemble them yourself. Nebraska resident Jake Harms, on the other hand, sells his creations to people around the globe.

"As far as I know I'm the only weirdo in the world building iMacAquariums for sale," he says on his website. In addition to turning old G3s into fish tanks, Harms repurposes the domelike bases of iMac G4s into lamps and the disc tray covers from eMacs into desk clocks.

He's built over 1,000 aquariums from old iMac G3 computers, according to a story on Omaha.com.

To make an "iMacAquarium," Harms basically guts an old G3 and inserts a custom-made 3.5-gallon acrylic box inside that holds the water and fish. (It's still important to choose a fish that will thrive in a tank this size.) He equips the box with a filter and runs rope lights around it, then places it all back inside the Mac and puts the outer casing back on. He then buffs the outer shell to get it nice and shiny. The result is a home for fish that would make a great gift for any techie.

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iOS 9 preview: Looking ahead to Apple's next operating system for iPad, iPhone and iPod touch

Apple iOS 9 preview
iOS 9, the next version of Apple's software operating system for iPad, iPhone and iPod touch, is expected to be unveiled at WWDC 2015 next month. Our iOS 9 preview looks ahead to the announcement and subsequent launch, and considers the ways in which iOS 9 will change the way we interact with our Apple devices.

See also: iOS 9 release date rumours

iOS 9 preview: Visual design & interface
Most of the time, the look of iOS evolves at a glacial pace: there has been just one really radical visual overhaul in the past eight versions. (This was the controversial redesign of iOS 7 that annoyed quite a lot of users, although most of us have grown used to it by now.)

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iOS 8.3 Jailbreak Release Could Be Delayed Until iOS 8.4

Now that iOS 8.3 is out, many iPhone and iPad users are looking forward to an iOS 8.3 jailbreak, but it’s possible that jailbreak developers may wait until iOS 8.4 is released, as an iOS 8.4 jailbreak has already been achieved.

Well-known jailbreak developer Stefan Esser (also known as i0n1c) recently uploaded a video to YouTube that shows off a working jailbreak that appears to be running on iOS 8.4 beta 1. Esser says that this is merely just a “proof of concept” and like his past jailbreak teases, he most likely won’t release it anytime soon, but it gives a chance for other devs to swoop in and release it.

In the video, which is embedded below, Esser shows off his iOS 8.4 jailbreak and plays around with the Apple Watch app and then the new Music app that will be included with the upcoming update. He clearly shows that Cydia is running on iOS 8.4, which is a clear sign that this is pretty legit.

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