Apple released the third beta version of iOS 5 to developers on Monday, a sign that the company is moving closer to finishing the software for its public release later this year.

The new version replaces beta 2, which was delivered to developers on 24 June. Unlike that version, which added the Wi-Fi sync feature, the new beta of the system software for iPhones, iPads and the iPod Touch appears to contain bug fixes and slight tweaks.

Among the changes, It's All Tech (via Macrumors) has studied the new software and unearthed a more granular location-services settings pane where users can turn on and off specific location features. This means users can turn off things like location-based advertisements, while keeping traffic tools on. Apple has also included an option to enable or disable location services when first setting up an iOS device.

iOS 5 beta 3 is compatible with the iPhone 3GS and iPhone 4, both iPads, and the third and fourth gen iPod touches. That’ll be the case with the final version too, when it’s released later this year.

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