What is an iOS device?

An iOS mobile device is any electronic gadget that runs on Apple's iOS operating system, primarily including iPhones and iPads. Designed for seamless integration with Apple's ecosystem, iOS devices offer a rich multitouch interface and access to millions of apps via the App Store.

An operating system (OS) is a type of software that's key to a computer's working because it manages all aspects of a device. The iOS operating system powers Apple's mobile devices, including the iPhone and iPod Touch. The iPad also used it until 2019.

When the iPhone debuted in 2007, its operating system was called "iPhone OS." The iPod Touch (launched later that year) also ran iPhone OS. In 2010, Apple introduced the iPad, which ran the same OS. Later that year, Apple rebranded the operating system's name as "iOS" since it wasn't used on the iPhone anymore.

Thus, with the launch of iOS 13 in 2019, Apple changed the name of its tablet operating system to iPadOS. Apple split off iPadOS from iOS to create a dedicated operating system for tablets, and it began with version 13 because the popular iOS had just reached that number.

Apple announced iOS 16 and iPadOS 16 in September 2022 at its yearly WWDC event. The most recent update is iOS 16, which dropped in September 2022.