The occasion we've all been waiting for is almost here. In just a few more days on Friday Sept. 21 Apple will release its new iPhone 5. But, until then, here's some good news to tide you over: iOS 6 will be available for download tomorrow.

With its huge range of apps, and slick new features, the iPhone 5 is definitely hype-worthy, but folks are just as excited for the release of iOS 6. iOS 6 is Apple's next mobile operating system, and judging from the first reviews it is incredible and worth the download.

You will be able to download iOS 6 on Sept. 19, just two days before you get your hands on the new iPhone 5. iOS 6 will be publicly available tomorrow for the iPhone 3GS and newer, the iPad 2, iPad 3, and the fourth-generation iPod touch, and will ship on the iPhone 5 this Friday as well as with the upcoming fifth-generation iPod touch in October. 

iOS 6 Release Date:

iOS 6 was announced last week, and now we have a confirmed release date Sept. 19. Apple announced iOS 6 at Apple's Word Wide Developers conference. However, it has only been available for developers since then.  iOS 6 will also be supported on the iPhone 4S, iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, iPad 2, new iPad, and fourth generation iPod touch.

No YouTube or Google Maps

As the battle between Apple and Google heats up, Apple has dropped the preloaded YouTube and Google Maps applications. Not much word yet on the quality of the apps Apple has implemented on its phone instead. We'll just have to wait and test for ourselves. If Apple's new Maps feature can at least figure out which direction is "left" color us impressed.   

Major upgrade for Siri:

You can now get sports game updates, make restaurant reservations on OpenTable, watch movie trailers and more on Rotten Tomatoes, launch apps, and even tweet by voice. Siri is now also available for the iPad.

App Store

According to a report today, the App store is getting a one touch download for free apps. Fantastic news for everyone sick of the three clicks it currently takes.

Facebook Integration:

Facebook will integrate with iOS 6 in a similar way Twitter currently integrates with iOS 5.

New Phone App Features:

You can now set reminders to call people back, send messages instead of calling, apply a "DO NOT DISTURB" feature that does not alert you with notifications.

iCloud Tabs:

iCloud Tabs will integrate Safari across all  iCloud-connected devices, allowing users to go from device to device with the same internet browsing tabs remaining open on each.

Mail VIPs:

iOS 6 Mail VIPs will enable to users to mark certain contacts as important, and in turn, all their messages will be starred.

FaceTime over 3G:

Once reserved for Wi-Fi only, you can now FaceTime over your cellular network.

Photo Stream:

Photo Stream will allow you to easily share photos in real-time with your friends. Sounds familiar to us ... cough Samsung Galaxy S 3 cough.

Maps:

Apple will say goodbye to Google Maps and reveal a new Maps made completely in-house. 3-D maps are another possibility, with geographical features interlaid on traditional maps.

Guided Access:

Guided Access allows you to lock an app when it's in use so that other controls won't be accessible.

Passbook:

We've already discussed the great potential of Apple's new Passbook app, and there's a lot to get excited about here. The app is one of only a few technologies poised to bring us the next big tech innovation crown: making your phone a digital wallet.

Passbook is an app that will put all your digital coupons, tickets and loyalty cards in one place, and potentially, be a way one day to use the iPhone as a digital wallet. There has been much talk in the past few years about turning phones into digital wallets -- letting people use their phones to surf the Internet, make calls and pay for lattes and muffins.

"Every opportunity I have to get in front of a client, it's the first thing I talk about," says David Reeves, vice president of the 22squared advertising agency. "This is huge. Apple doesn't do anything halfway. This is a tremendous opportunity to revolutionize the way we use our wallets."

The iPhone 5 is choosing Passbook over NFC, partly because many analysts, like Shaw Wu, an analyst at Sterne Agee, argue the technology just isn't there yet, and that the chip hogs too much battery power.

But Wu does expect Passbook to pave the way for mobile payments eventually. Apple just has to get a critical mass of consumers using it. At that point, Apple will be able to persuade retailers to modernize their payment equipment to work with the iPhone.

Visa, MasterCard, Starbucks, Google, Square, PayPal, Intuit and others have been working feverishly to make mobile payments a way of life, but the practice has yet catch on in the mainstream, because businesses are waiting for it to become more widespread.

"With Passbook, you can scan your iPhone or iPod Touch to check in for a flight, get into a movie and redeem a coupon," Apple says on its website. "You can also see when your coupons expire, where your concert seats are, and the balance left on that all-important coffee bar card."

"Your mobile device will become your wallet. Whether it's in a few months, a year from now or longer, it's going to happen," Daniel Delshad developer of a new app, Loyaldash, says.

According to Wu, the long-range game plan for Apple is to have the smartphone do everything -- start the car, lock it, open the house and garage, turn on the air conditioner and heater -- and, of course, become the vehicle to pay for goods with a swift swipe of the phone.

"(Passbook) is just the beginning," Delshad says.