iOS 13 adds a striking new look to iPhone, as well as new ways to search and edit photographs and a secure new approach to log in to apps and websites with just a swipe. iOS 13 is faster and more responsive due to system-wide enhancements that improve app startup, lower app download size, and speed up Face ID.
Is iOS 13 compatible with the iPhone 6? Scroll down to find out.
Can iPhone 6 Get iOS 13?
Your iPhone 6 is not compatible with the iOS 13 system update. Only iPhone 6s and later models can be upgraded to iOS 13. iOS 12 is the latest release that your iPhone 6 is compatible with. Although iOS 13 and subsequent iOS releases cannot be installed on iPhone 6, this does not mean Apple has abandoned the device. The iPhone 6 and 6 + received an upgrade on January 11, 2021.
The most recent iOS version for the Apple iPhone 6 was 12.5.1. iOS 12 has received frequent security upgrades since it was shifted to long-term support in September 2019. The past two releases saw the introduction of COVID- 19 exposure alarms and bug fixes.
The iPhone 6 will not be utterly obsolete when Apple stops updating it. Many of the App Store’s apps will continue to function normally. On the other hand, the lack of security upgrades makes the system more vulnerable, and it is recommended that users consider upgrading to a newer model at that point.
Features of iOS 13
Here’s a comprehensive list of features that were upgraded or added with the new iOS 13 update. The data has been cited from the official Apple Support article.
This update introduces:
Dark Theme
- A stunning new dark colour scheme that provides an excellent viewing experience, particularly in low-light situations.
- It can be configured to turn on routinely at sunset or at a specific time, or it can be turned on manually from the Control Center.
- Four new system backgrounds with Light and Dark Modes that automatically change appearances
Camera and Photos Updates
- A new Photos tab with a tailored view of your library that makes it simple to search, revisit, and share your pictures and videos.
New image editing tools that make it much easier to quickly edit, modify, and analyze photos. - More than 30 new tools for video editing.
- On the iPhone XR, iPhone XS, and iPhone XS Max, you can adjust the intensity of Portrait Lighting.
- On the iPhone XR, iPhone XS, and iPhone XS Max, use High-Key Light Monochrome, a new Portrait Illumination effect, to create a monochromatic photograph with a white backdrop.
Signing In With Apple
- A secure way to login to apps and sites using your existing Apple ID.
- Just your username and email address are required to create an account.
- Hide My Email allows users to share a unique email address that is forwarded to you automatically.
- Two-factor authentication is built-in to protect your account.
- Apple will not track or profile you while you use your favourite apps.
App Store
- With just one subscription, you’ll get unlimited access to innovative new games with no commercials or additional purchases.
- The App Store now has a new Arcade page where you can browse the latest games, tailored suggestions, and exclusive editorial content. It’s available for your iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac, and Apple TV.
- You may use your cellular connection to download huge apps.
- From the Account page, you can view available app updates and remove apps.
Added support for Arabic and Hebrew languages.
Map
- A brand-new map is being launched in the United States, with expanded road coverage, greater address precision, improved pedestrian support, and more precise land coverage.
- Explore cities in high-resolution, interactive 3D with Look Around.Collections for your favourite destinations that you can quickly share with your friends and family.
- Favorites for quick access to the places you frequent on a regular basisReal-time transportation, flight updates in real-time, and much more pleasant sounding turn-by-turn directions
Reminders
- All-new design with more powerful and intelligent ways to create and organize reminders
- Quick toolbar to add dates, locations, flags, attachments and more to reminders
- New smart lists—Today, Scheduled, Flagged and All—to easily keep track of upcoming reminders
- Subtasks and grouped lists to organize your reminders
Siri
- More natural Siri voice, particularly while speaking longer phrases
- Personalized Siri Suggestions in Apple Podcasts, Safari, and Maps
- Over 100,000 live radio stations from around the world available with Siri
- Shortcuts app now built-in
Memoji and Messages
- New Memoji customization options including new hairstyles, headwear, makeup, and piercings
- Memoji sticker packs in Messages, Mail, and third‑party apps and available on all iPhone models
- Your name and photo, or even Memoji, now optionally shared with your friends
- Search enhancements to easily find messages with intelligent suggestions and categorization of results
CarPlay
- All-new CarPlay Dashboard with your tunes, turns, and smart Siri suggestions on one screen
- All-new Calendar app with a view of your day, option to drive to or dial in to meetings, and contact meeting organizers
- Apple Maps redesign with Favorites, Collections, and Junction View for China mainland
- Apple Music album art to easily find your favorite song
- Do Not Disturb while driving now available in CarPlay
Augmented Reality
- People Occlusion for apps to place virtual objects naturally in front or behind people using iPhone XR, iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max
- Motion Capture for apps to understand the body position and movement of a person so you can animate a character or interact with virtual objects using iPhone XR, iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max
- Multiple face tracking for AR content on up to 3 faces at a time so you can have fun with your friends using iPhone XR, iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max
- AR Quick Look to view and interact with multiple AR objects at the same time
- Block sender to move all email messages from a blocked sender directly to the trash
- Mute thread to stop notifications from an overly active email thread
- Format bar with easy access to rich text formatting tools and attachments of all kinds
- Font support for all system fonts, as well as new fonts you download from the App Store
Notes
- Gallery view with your notes as visual thumbnails helping you find the note you need
- Shared folders to collaborate with others giving them access to entire folders of notes
- More powerful search for visual recognition of images inside your notes and text in items you’ve scanned
- New checklist options to easily reorder checklist items, indent them, or move checked items to the bottom of the list automatically
Safari
- Updated start page with favorites, frequently visited, most recently visited websites, and Siri suggestions
- View options in the Smart Search field for quick access to text size controls, Reader view, and per‑site settings
- Per‑site settings to choose Reader view, and enable content blockers, camera, microphone, and location access for individual websites
- Download manager
QuickPath
- Slide to type on the keyboard for easier one-handed typing when you’re on the go
- Slide or tap to type interchangeably, even mid‑sentence
- Alternate word options in the predictive bar
Text Editing
- Scrollbar scrubbing to directly drag the scrollbar for quickly navigating long documents, web pages, and email conversations
- Faster and more precise cursor navigation—just pick it up and move it to where you want
- Text selection improvements for easier selection by just tapping and swiping on the text
Fonts
- Custom fonts are available from the App Store for use in your favorite apps
- Font management in Settings
Files
- External drives supported in Files to access and manage files on a USB drive, SD card, or hard drive
- SMB support to connect to a server at work or a home PC
- Local storage for creating folders on the local drive and adding your favorite files
- Zip and Unzip support for creating and expanding Zip files
Health
- New Summary view of personalized data, including alerts, favorites, and relevant highlights from frequently used apps and devices
- Highlights of health data from frequently used apps and devices showing trends over time in helpful charts and graphs
- Cycle Tracking feature to log information about your menstrual cycle including flow level, symptoms, and fertility metrics
- Hearing health data types for environmental audio levels from the Noise app on Apple Watch, headphone audio levels, and audiograms from hearing tests
Apple Music
- Time-synced lyrics make listening more fun with perfectly timed lyrics
- Over 100,000 live radio stations from around the world
Screen Time
- 30-day usage data to compare Screen Time numbers over the previous weeks
- Combined limits to include multiple app categories, specific apps, or websites in one limit
- “One more minute” option to quickly save your work or log out of a game when a Screen Time limit is met
Privacy and Security
- Allow Once location permission with the option to share your locations with apps only once
- Background tracking alerts now notify you when an app is using your location in the background
- Wi-Fi and Bluetooth enhancements help prevent apps from accessing your location without your consent
- Location sharing controls give you the option to easily omit location data when sharing photos
System Experience
- Wi‑Fi networks and Bluetooth accessories selection in Control Center
- A redesigned, unobtrusive volume control in the upper-left corner
- Full-page screenshots for web pages, Mail messages, iWork documents, and Maps
- Redesigned share sheet with intelligent suggestions to share content with just a few taps
- Dolby Atmos playback for a thrilling surround sound experience from content with Dolby Atmos, Dolby Digital, or Dolby Digital Plus soundtracks on iPhone XR, iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max
Language support
- Support for 38 new keyboard languages
- Predictive input in Cantonese, Dutch, Hindi (Devanagari), Hindi (Latin), Najdi Arabic, Swedish, and Vietnamese keyboards
- Separate emoji and globe keys make it easier to quickly switch between languages and select emoji on iPhone X and later
- Automatic language detection for dictation
- Bilingual dictionary support in Thai and English and Vietnamese and English
China mainland
- A dedicated QR code mode in Camera, accessible from the Control Center, for improved QR code performance, a flashlight option, and enhanced privacy
- Junction View in Maps for drivers in China mainland to more easily navigate complex roadways
- Adjustable handwriting area on the Chinese keyboard
- Cantonese predictions on the Cangjie, Sucheng, Stroke, and Handwriting keyboards
India
- All‑new Indian English male and female Siri voices
- Support for all 22 official Indian languages with the addition of 15 new keyboard languages
- Bilingual keyboard for Hindi (Latin) and English keyboard, including typing predictions
- Typing predictions on the Hindi (Devanagari) keyboard
- New Indian language system fonts for Gujarati, Gurmukhi, Kannada, and Odia for greater clarity and ease when reading in apps
- 30 new document fonts for Assamese, Bangla, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Nepali, Odia, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Tamil, Telugu, and Urdu
- Contacts with hundreds of new relationship labels to help more accurately label your contacts
Voice Control
- A new way to control your iOS devices, entirely with your voice
- Comprehensive navigation with just your voice to open apps, search the web, tap, swipe, pinch, zoom, press the Home button and more
- Accurate dictation using the Siri speech recognition engine
- Rich text editing to make corrections using just your voice, or select from word and emoji suggestions
- Custom words, such as legal or medical terms, to ensure Voice Control recognizes words you commonly use
- Seamless transitions from text dictation to voice commands
- Attention Awareness to keep Voice Control off when you turn your head away from True Depth camera on supported iPhone models
- On‑device processing so your personal data is kept private
Performance
- Up to 2x faster app launch*
- Up to 30 percent faster Face ID unlocking on iPhone X, iPhone XR, iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max**
- 60 percent smaller app updates on average*
- Up to 50 percent smaller apps from the App Store*
Other features and improvements
- Silence unknown callers to get calls from known numbers in Contacts, Mail, and Messages, while sending all other calls to voicemail
- Optimized battery charging to slow the rate of battery aging by reducing the time your iPhone spends fully charged
- Low Data Mode to reduce your data usage over your cellular network or specific Wi-Fi networks you select
- PlayStation 4 and Xbox Wireless Controller support
- Find My iPhone and Find My Friends combined into a single app with the ability to locate a missing device even if it can’t connect to a Wi-Fi or cellular network
- Apple Books reading goals help make reading a daily habit
- Apple News+ options to remove downloaded issues, follow a title, or browse the back catalog from the More button in the My Magazines section
- Stocks app with business stories from Apple News+
- Calendar supports adding attachments to events
- Family sharing hotspot for your family’s devices to automatically connect to your nearby iPhone personal hotspot
- Home app redesigned controls for HomeKit accessories with a combined view for ones with multiple services