An iPhone 15 Pro on a purple and white background. The screen is blank other than the number 19 in a black and green box

iOS 19: News and Expected Price (Free), Release Date, Specs; and More Rumors

The 2025 edition of the iOS is still taking shape, but expect lots of AI

By
Sam Costello
Sam Costello
Writer
  • Ithaca College
Sam Costello has been writing about tech since 2000. His writing has appeared in publications such as CNN.com, PC World, InfoWord, and many others.
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Published on April 16, 2024

When iOS 19 arrives in 2025, expect that it will pack a lot of new Artificial Intelligence and Apple Vision Pro features. Of course, with iOS 18 not announced yet, it's hard to say exactly what iOS 19 will hold. Still, here's an early look at what iOS 19 could deliver, which we'll update as rumors and news develop.

When Will iOS 19 Be Released?

The iOS 19 release date isn't known yet, but Apple is pretty consistent in releasing new versions of iOS. By looking at when the last few versions were released, we can make some educated guesses about the iOS 19 release date. The last three versions of the iOS were released on:

  • iOS 17: Sept. 28, 2023
  • iOS 16: Sept. 12, 2022
  • iOS 15: Sept. 20, 2021

Given that, it's a pretty fair bet that iOS 19 will be available to the public in mid-to-late Sept. 2025.

Lifewire's Release Date Estimate

New versions of the iOS tend to debut along with new versions of the iPhone, so expect to see iOS 19 in Sept. 2025 around the debut of the iPhone 17.

iOS 19 Price Rumors

There's only one thing to say when it comes to the price of iOS 19: It's going to be free.

Every iOS upgrade that Apple has ever released has been free. There's no reason to think that will change with iOS 19.

iOS 19 Features

With iOS 18 not yet announced (we're tracking iOS 18 rumors), there's no news, and few rumors, about iOS 19. It's too soon.

Rest assured, iOS 19 rumors are coming and, when they do, we'll update this article. In the meantime, here's some informed speculation as to what kinds of features iOS 19 might include:

  • AI Everywhere. Integrating Artificial Intelligence is going to be one of the big themes in the next few years in tech. Expect to see new AI features every place in iOS 19 that Apple can think of them.
  • AI Enhancements to Photos, Videos, Siri, Messages, and Music. Some of the most obvious places to see AI will be in pre-loaded apps like Photos, Videos, Siri, Messages, and Music. Exactly what those features will be is hard to say, but expect further optimizations to already-great apps.
  • Generative AI in Photos and Videos. One way AI could show up in iOS 19 is the integration of Generative AI photo and video tools into Apple's native apps. It might be a little soon for those features on the iPhone (they require a huge amount of processor horsepower, which not even the iPhone may be able to deliver), but it's not totally out of the question.
  • AI Chatbot. Rumors have it that a chatbot interface on the iPhone won't be how Apple delivers AI in iOS 18, but we might see something like that in iOS 19. Whether that's a revamped version of Siri or a totally new way to interact with the iPhone remains to be seen.
  • AI on iPhone, Not in the Cloud. In keeping with its commitment to customer privacy, Apple likes to do as much data processing on the iPhone as it can, rather than sending data to the cloud. The iPhone might not yet have the processing power to do a lot of AI locally, but expect Apple to tout its AI privacy features.
  • Apple Vision Pro Integrations. The Apple Vision Pro headset is Apple's newest major new piece of hardware. Integration with the iPhone—both using the phone for creating Apple Vision Pro content and features migrating from the headset to the phone—will be a theme in coming years, likely including with iOS 19.

How big a step forward iOS 19 is will depend on what iOS 18 delivers. If iOS 18 is a major advancement, as rumored, iOS 19 may be more focused on polishing and optimizing iOS 18's features. But, if iOS 18 doesn't jump ahead as much as some think, then those advancements will likely come with iOS 19.

iOS 19 Supported Devices

While Apple hasn't said anything about device support for iOS 19, a look at the company's recent track record gives us some hints.

When iOS 17 debuted (alongside the iPhone 15), it supported models going back 5 years from its release date: iOS 17 debuted in 2023 and the oldest iPhone model it supported was the iPhone XS/XR series, which debuted in 2018. That's fairly consistent with other recent versions of the iOS.

If that pattern holds, when iOS 19 is released in 2025, it should support models from as far back as 2020. That means it would likely support the iPhone 12 series and newer, but would drop support for the iPhone XS/XR series and iPhone 11 series.

The Latest News About iOS 19

There's lots more of the latest smartphone news from Lifewire. Here are some articles that could be relevant to iOS 19: