Our favorite new iPhone feature Apple added in iOS 9.2

Better late than never, as the saying goes, and this time we’re talking about the iPhone getting a feature you’d think it should have had from the get-go. iOS 9.2 has added support for SD cards to all iPhone models with which the software is compatible (you can find the full list right here). That means you can connect a Lightning to SD Card Reader adapter or even a digital camera to the iPhone and transfer pictures directly to the iPhone, completely eliminating the need for an intermediary PC.

 

The new feature is buried in the iOS 9.2 official change log, and it’s definitely a feature that many of us will appreciate. As PetaPixel reports, all you need to do to take advantage of the new feature is connect a Lightning to USB Camera Adapter or a Lightning to SD Card Camera Reader to the iPhone. Once that’s done, the Photos app will open on the iPhone, at which point you can import the photos and videos you want.

In addition to releasing iOS 9.2 to compatible iOS devices, Apple also confirmed that the iPad Pro supports USB 3.0 download speeds over its Lightning port, releasing a new Lightning to SD Card Reader Adapter to take advantage of the new speeds. Best of all, the new adapter is still priced at $29, just like its predecessor.

When unveiling the iPad Pro, Apple did not mention that its Lightning port would support USB 3.0 data speeds, though some teardowns noticed that Apple had quietly upgraded the port.