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iOS 9: Worth Upgrading?

iOS 9 Update Screen

published by Chand Bellur
September 20, 2015 at 6:13 p.m. PST

Apple’s new mobile operating system promised performance and stability. Unfortunately, the new release has plagued users with problems. This article examines iOS 9, how to install it, and whether it’s worth upgrading.

iOS 9 Has a New Look

iOS 9 has a new and more refined look. The fonts look cleaner, even on my old iPad 2, with a standard, non-Retina display. The changes aren’t as sweeping as with iOS 7. iOS 9 maintains the same flat look, with subtle changes. Spotlight has a smaller input field and more complete results, presented in a cleaner interface.

The new keyboard offers keys that dynamically switch between upper and lower case. This feature has been present on Android for years. This was distracting at first, but provides convenient information. It has already prevented me from typing in the wrong case. The toolbar enables easier selection, formatting and attachments. I find myself tapping the attachment or other toolbar buttons all too often, which disrupts my typing. On a smaller iPhone screen, this could be a bit of a nuisance.

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iOS 9 Keyboard

The new App Switcher is a step backward for me. It resembles an offset stack of “pages”. While the views are bigger, they are obscured by other apps. I can no longer use the App Switcher to preview documents, as they are partially obscured. I now have to open the app, look at the document, and go back to the previous app.

Can't Preview Content with iOS 9 App Switcher

At best, I can try to slide one of the apps up without closing it. Even then, I can’t see a large portion of the app, making previews impossible.

Attempt to Preview Content with iOS 9 App Switcher

As companies grow in size and hire more people, new employees need to make their mark. I see more superfluous and unnecessary changes in Apple products. Some of these modifications are detrimental.

For more information about what iOS 9 has to offer, please read “iOS 9 Features“.

Browsers are Buggy on iOS 9

I had high hopes for iOS 9, after iOS 8 rendered my iPad 2 virtually unusable. After a lengthy installation, I was delighted by improved performance. Even the GeekBench 3 score showed a significant improvement in processing speed.

iOS 9 vs iOS 8 GeekBench

After a few more hours of use, the defects became more obvious. Safari and any browser using WebKit (which is every iOS browser) is hopelessly buggy. Websites I use every day are caught in an endless loop of “A problem occurred with this webpage so it was reloaded”.

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Web Browsers Buggy in iOS 9

I updated Chrome to the new version supporting iOS 9. It also had similar problems. This seems to indicate an issue with WebKit and not Chrome.

Apps Crash After Upgrading

Users are reporting an increase in app crashes after upgrading to iOS 9. I have experienced several crashes, where the app closes unexpectedly. Apps that I have updated and claim to be iOS 9 compatible are crashing. This is to be expected with a “.0” release.

Users Experiencing Crashes During Update Process

According to Reuters, a significant number of users are experiencing crashes during the update process. I thought my iPad crashed, but it just took a long time to update. The progress bar seemed frozen for a while. Unfortunately, some users experience a real crash and need to fully restore their devices. Apple is aware of the problem and a solution is imminent. It seems to affect older devices, but I had no problems with my iPad 2.

This is a real problem, acknowledged by Apple, and not another “Applegate”. The Apple support website offers a fix for this issue. This will be fixed in the next release of iOS 9 — iOS 9.0.1. If you haven’t installed iOS 9 yet, I recommend waiting for 9.0.1.

There is rage and indignation on social media. These people probably shouldn’t be upgrading to a “.0” operating system the day it is released. If your device is mission critical, wait.

Apple Music Still Buggy in iOS 9

Apple Music Still Buggy

I use Apple Music every day and hoped iOS 9 would improve the music streaming app. There are small improvements. I can now see my correct listening history on the Up Next list.

iOS 9 Fixes Apple Music Up Next History

Unfortunately, when I try to add an album to My Music, it no longer works. I made several attempts over a few days, but it is not being added. This used to work. It seems as though they fixed some issues and introduced new or regressive bugs in the process.

I also experienced several long audio dropouts while listening last night. Apple Music can no longer play music reliably. I closed the app and watched TV instead. I tested my Internet connection, and the speeds were fast. I had no problem watching HBO NOW on my Apple TV. I tried again later, and experienced even worse audio dropouts.

This is bad timing, as early Apple Music adopters are deciding whether to continue with paid subscriptions. I am going with Spotify. It was never this buggy. I prefer the design and Siri integration with Apple Music, but the app fails at playing music.

I gave Apple Music a chance and hoped for the best. Only Apple can offer Siri integration with their Music app. If Apple Music can’t play music without audio dropouts, it is unusable. I turned off auto-renewals so I won’t be charged for Apple Music. I gave Apple a chance, but they seem incapable of developing a stable music streaming app.

I can’t cut Apple slack because iOS 9 is a “.0” release. Apple Music was buggy through all versions of iOS 8. This isn’t rocket science. It’s a music streaming app and something Spotify has been able to deliver with quality and without the “revolutionary” marketing hubris. There’s nothing revolutionary about Apple Music. They copied Spotify, Rhapsody, Deezer and Rdio and did it poorly, with little innovation and too many defects.

iOS 9 Lags

iOS 9 is supposed to offer better performance than its predecessor. In many ways, this is true. It gets better GeekBench 3 benchmarks. Scrolling is smoother. You should experience better gaming. Overall, it is faster than iOS 8.4.1, with some notable exceptions.

Multitasking seems to have deteriorated in iOS 9. Whenever there is background network activity, such as sending an email, Spotlight and the App Switcher are extremely slow. I am often unable to close apps. The App Switcher seems to freeze, but after several seconds it comes back to life. It takes several seconds for the Spotlight search field to appear, and many more seconds to display results. If you have an older device, you have to accept that multitasking doesn’t work. Just let your email send and then move on to the next task.

By default Spotlight for iOS 9 is extremely slow. I use Spotlight to launch apps. I even cleared off my first home screen so I could enjoy an unobstructed background. Spotlight must be fast, or it will encumber my entire iOS experience.

Fortunately, there is a way to speed up Spotlight. Tap on Settings > General > Spotlight Search to refine searching capabilities. You will notice that Spotlight Search options are different now. You have no ability to configure broader search functionality. You can only toggle search for individual apps. Do people really want to search Angry Birds? Really?

Turn off Intra-App Searches in Spotlight for iOS 9

I turned off searching on every app, and returned to see it activated on a few apps. On the second attempt, search was turned off on all apps.

I just want to launch apps with Spotlight. I don’t need to search within apps. For so many apps, it doesn’t even make sense. Every time I install a new app, I will need to remember to turn off Spotlight search. Finding apps with Spotlight still works if you turn off intra-app search. The Spotlight settings are about searching content within apps, which often doesn’t make sense.

iOS 9 Battery Life

Unlike most iOS releases, users aren’t complaining about diminished battery life with iOS 9. My iPad 2 has about the same battery life. Apple’s engineers improved battery life with this release. iPhone users will also be able to launch Low Power Mode to squeeze an extra hour from their device. Tap on Settings > Battery to enable Low Power Mode. This feature will slow down your iPhone. It seems to under clock the processor, in addition to activating other battery-saving settings.

Installing iOS 9

If the aforementioned bugs haven’t scared you off, let’s look at how to install iOS 9. Keep in mind, this is a “.0” release. Do not install this on a mission critical device. If you require a working iOS device for work, school or life, wait for the next release and research it before upgrading.

The iOS 9 update size varies depending on your device. It was only 740 MB on my iPad 2. At most, iOS 9 will take up 1.3 GB of free space. Make sure to leave 1 GB of free space available to keep your device running quickly and smoothly. The extra free space is needed for virtual memory swap space.

Before you install, make sure to backup any critical information. You can do this using iTunes or iCloud backups. For more information on best practices for upgrading iOS, please read “How to Upgrade iOS“.

You can start the iOS 9 upgrade by tapping Settings > General > Software Update. Next, tap on Download and Install. You are presented with the legal agreements. Read and accept the legal agreements to proceed. iOS 9 will begin downloading and installation will start automatically if you leave your device unattended.

The installation process took about 90 minutes on my iPad 2. This is because I upgraded on the first day and Apple’s servers were overwhelmed. The actual download took a long time. The install is also a lengthy process on older devices. Unlike previous iOS releases, the installation process seems to re-indexing Spotlight before iOS 9 is up and running. I didn’t experience the abnormally slow performance that occurs after most major iOS updates. Typically, iOS updates run a re-indexing process for Spotlight and iCloud syncs after the installation process, resulting in slow performance for a few hours.

After the installation process, users are greeted with a multi-lingual welcome. There is a small, one-time configuration process. Users are prompted to turn on Location Services, create a Passcode, login to iCloud and activate sending data to Apple. I don’t recommend the latter, unless you have a fast internet connection. I have found that sending data to Apple can slow down a device significantly. They rely on this data to fix defects. If you have a fast device and Internet connection, go for it.

Make sure to turn off Bluetooth after upgrading, if you don’t use it. iOS updates always turn on Bluetooth. They should persist the Bluetooth setting between updates. I think this is why so many people report poor battery life after upgrading iOS.

iOS 9: Worth Upgrading

iOS 9 is a “.0” release — the first version of a major operating system. Despite notorious problems, this is one of the best initial releases in years. It is still a “.0” release and will have more defects than upcoming iOS 9 releases. I would only recommend iOS 9 to people with nothing to lose. If you upgrade, expect app crashes, buggy browsers and an even worse Apple Music experience. At worst, it could render your device unusable. If you absolutely need your device, do not upgrade to iOS 9. The defects are a little disappointing, given the smaller scope of changes. iOS 9 is more robust and stable than previous iOS major releases, but it is still a buggy “.0” release.

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