iOS 9.1 enables Apple's News app, new content sources for users in UK, Australia

Posted:
in iPhone edited November 2015
The iOS 9.1 update activates the News app for users in the U.K. and Australia, users and Apple itself confirmed on Thursday.




Content for the U.K. launch includes the BBC, The Times, The Sun, The Telegraph, The Guardian, and the Financial Times, as well as magazines from publishers like Haymarket and Conde Nast, Apple told TechCrunch. This is on top of the material already present for U.S. readers.

It was not immediately clear which Australian publications were on board.

The News app is a replacement for the Newsstand feature in iOS 8 and earlier, which simply gathered together select apps in a shelf motif, with behind-the-scenes work done to allow background downloads and notification of new issues.

By contrast, News is essentially a Flipboard-style RSS reader, allowing users to browse through multiple sources at once and see stories presented in a magazine-like format. The app will also let users track stories on specific topics, such as space exploration.

iOS 9.1 is otherwise a relatively modest update, mainly adding new emoji, and compatibility with the iPad Pro and fourth-generation Apple TV. When shooting Live Photos on an iPhone 6s or 6s Plus, the OS will now detect when an iPhone is being raised or lowered and skip recording those motions.

Recently it was revealed that Apple is actively blocking News within China, even for readers simply visiting the country.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 18
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,718member
    I would like News for OS X.
  • Reply 2 of 18
    richlrichl Posts: 2,213member

    Anyone know how I change the news sources that show on the search screen? It's still showing nonsense from The Telegraph despite me not selecting it as a source.

  • Reply 3 of 18
    cgjcgj Posts: 276member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by AAPLfanboy View Post



    In the UK and made my preferences today. The hideous pink colour of the News app was a surprise and not quite Applesque. The source of the news story should be highlighted more prominently under each headline, and it all has quite a boring look about it at the moment. Surely the Apple designers can do better than this.



    How is it not obvious?

     

  • Reply 4 of 18
    mobiusmobius Posts: 380member
    The news preference setup was tedious and could have been simplified in the same way Newsify and Flipboard does it. Why can I not just select the general news topics like technology, science, film etc. Then all the topics I do not select here could be filtered out of the more detailed selections. Poorly thought out. I'm surprised at you Apple.

    Once I got past this longwinded setup I was happy. So far my post setup experience is a positive one.
  • Reply 5 of 18
    richl wrote: »
    Anyone know how I change the news sources that show on the search screen? It's still showing nonsense from The Telegraph despite me not selecting it as a source.

    Yeah go to setting >Lang and region. Then down at the bottom change your country to USA or Australia and Uk which ever you like Hope it helps
  • Reply 6 of 18
    sockrolidsockrolid Posts: 2,789member

    Not sure if it is related to iOS 9.1, but AT&T Wi-Fi calling now works for me.

    Just FYI.

  • Reply 7 of 18
    I would like News for OS X.
    There are many apps I wish I could run on OS X. It's sad that, so often, I have to turn away from my powerful computer and pick up my handheld device, merely because all those simple single-purpose programs are quicker to use than navigating to some website.
  • Reply 8 of 18
    tokyojimu wrote: »
    There are many apps I wish I could run on OS X. It's sad that, so often, I have to turn away from my powerful computer and pick up my handheld device, merely because all those simple single-purpose programs are quicker to use than navigating to some website.

    You need to consider the number of iOS devices vs OSX. Apps on laptops haven't fully caught on yet, even though on a Mac it's pretty organic. Not Apple's fault. The 3rd parties need to commit.
  • Reply 9 of 18
    slurpyslurpy Posts: 5,382member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AAPLfanboy View Post



    In the UK and made my preferences today. The hideous pink colour of the News app was a surprise and not quite Applesque. The source of the news story should be highlighted more prominently under each headline, and it all has quite a boring look about it at the moment. Surely the Apple designers can do better than this.


    • The app color is nowhere close to "pink". 

    • The source is extremely prominent

     

    Thanks for coming out though. If these are the best complaints you can muster (which are invalid), I guess Apple did a pretty damn good job. 

  • Reply 10 of 18
    crowleycrowley Posts: 10,453member
    Has the Apple News format been released yet? Until then Apple News isn't much more than an RSS reader.
  • Reply 11 of 18
    Hey
    I'm in canada and when i got my new iphone 6s the news app was on it. But after I added some feeds to it it erased itself.
    Is news available in canada if not why was it there the firstt few days.
  • Reply 12 of 18
    19831983 Posts: 1,225member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by AAPLfanboy View Post



    The app is PINK. End of.



    More Coral than pink I think. Anyway so far I'm liking this app...certainly more interesting than many of Apple's other pre-installed ones.

  • Reply 13 of 18
    timbittimbit Posts: 331member
    Open the News app for Canadians!!!! I want this so I can stop using all these other apps
  • Reply 14 of 18
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,718member
    tommy0guns wrote: »
    You need to consider the number of iOS devices vs OSX. Apps on laptops haven't fully caught on yet, even though on a Mac it's pretty organic. Not Apple's fault. The 3rd parties need to commit.

    The News app is from Apple, that's the one I would like on OS X. But to your point, one wonders why some bright spark hasn't simply made an OS X app able to wrap iOS apps so they run on OS X.
  • Reply 15 of 18
    The News app is from Apple, that's the one I would like on OS X. But to your point, one wonders why some bright spark hasn't simply made an OS X app able to wrap iOS apps so they run on OS X.

    The app skeleton is from Apple, but the content is 3rd party. They have plenty of news sources on board to deliver in the news app format. It's similar to Apple TV. It has the skeleton, but the media devs need to cater to the format.

    Now add a news app to a Mac and you need those 3rd parties to format for that. It'll happen eventually. Just like HBO GO will eventually be natives to ALL smart TVs. For now they must develop for the largest market and work down.
  • Reply 16 of 18
    paxmanpaxman Posts: 4,729member
    mrfish wrote: »
    Hey
    I'm in canada and when i got my new iphone 6s the news app was on it. But after I added some feeds to it it erased itself.
    Is news available in canada if not why was it there the firstt few days.
    timbit wrote: »
    Open the News app for Canadians!!!! I want this so I can stop using all these other apps

    Go to Settings / Language & Region and set Region to USA, and Voilà!

    Edit - just noticed caribbea_mac's post above. So...yeah, that.
  • Reply 17 of 18
    I just released an iPhone/iPad app to avoid traffic and plan trips called FastTrip https://appsto.re/us/i20n9.i I developed it to help me with my daily commute.
    It gives me a quick clean glance at estimated travel times.

    It is free to try with an in-app purchase to remove ads and enable some features.
    Please check it out and thanks for your support.
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