With less than two months left until the Worldwide Developers Conference, rumors have swirled about Apple releasing the next generation of iOS. iOS 17 isn’t expected to have a major flagship feature like the lock screen in iOS 16, but there are some notable improvements in the works.
In reality, bloombergMark Gurman, who often gives credible details of Apple’s plans, says that iOS 17 will include “many of the most requested features by users,” which sounds very tempting. We’ve since been hearing hints about what might be coming from a file Mac rumors The forum source has been reliable in the past, so we thought we’d highlight some additions we might see.
Control Center revamp
We’ve had a dedicated Control Center since iOS 7, but it hasn’t seen noticeable updates since iOS 11. That could change in iOS 17, as Apple is rumored to be planning an overhaul of the Control Center.
Control Center could get a new look, and could be more customizable, so users can more precisely select what is displayed and choose where controls are located for a streamlined interface tailored to each person’s needs.
The island’s most dynamic jobs
Apple introduced the Dynamic Island with the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max, and with this year’s iPhone 15 lineup, all models are expected to feature the Dynamic Island instead of the notch.
For now, Dynamic Island can display timers, sports scores, incoming phone calls, low battery alerts, Apple Pay confirmations, charging status, map directions, and more, but it’s still limited in what it can do, especially for third-party apps. .
While we don’t have many details, Apple is allegedly planning to add more functionality to Dynamic Island to make it even more useful. Siri, for example, might switch to the “dynamic island.” When Siri is activated, the Siri icon can be displayed in the Dynamic Island instead of at the bottom of the screen, making Siri less cluttered.
Much needed performance improvements
Before there was a bunch of quality-of-life features planned for iOS 17, Gurman claimed it would be a “tuning” update focused on bug fixes and performance improvements. Apple remains focused on enhancing performance, efficiency, and stability.
Apple is said to be focusing on long-term support for older devices, which indicates that work is underway to make iOS 17 a bug-free update even on iPhones that don’t have the latest hardware.
Active widgets
Apple is “testing” an active widget experience for the Home screen and Today view on iPhone, but it seems that this feature is not confirmed for iOS 17.
Active widgets will be more interactive widgets, doing more than just displaying information or letting you click on an app. Active UI elements can include one-click buttons, sliders, and more, making widgets more dynamic.
Better search
New versions of iOS often come with improvements to Search and Spotlight, and it looks like iOS 17 will be no exception. There’s been a lot of interest on ChatGPT and other chatbot experiments that use AI trained on web content, but we wouldn’t expect anything this advanced from Apple.
Rumors of an improved search weren’t specific, but in the past, Apple has simplified search results, locating text in images and videos, and allowing users to search for specific topics in images. Improvements may be made to all of these features, along with new search capabilities.
One area that really needs improvement is Apple’s in-app search, such as the search function of the Settings app. The Settings app often does not provide reliable results for the desired setting, so hopefully this is under the umbrella of search optimization.
Alternative app stores
European regulations will soon require Apple to support sideloading and alternative app stores, giving customers in Europe a way to access apps outside of the App Store.
Apple is working to include this functionality in iOS 17, but unfortunately, it is only expected to be available to customers who live in the European Union. If laws change in other countries, these capabilities may eventually expand, so it will be interesting to see how Apple eventually handles sideloading.
We can expect Apple to have security checks for sideloaded apps similar to the Mac Gatekeeper function that prevents installation of untrusted software, and it wouldn’t be a way for developers to sidestep the fee. Apple still plans to charge developers for access to iOS, though the fee may be less than the 15 to 30 percent that Apple collects now.
Apple has until March 2024 to comply with the new European laws, so while sideloading does not have to be in the first versions of iOS 17 that are released to the public, it must be implemented at some point during the development of iOS 17.
A new CarPlay experience
At WWDC 2022, Apple showed off a next-generation version of CarPlay that’s expected in 2023. It includes support for multiple displays in the car, so the CarPlay experience can be implemented on the infotainment system, instrument cluster, and more.
Instrument cluster integration is a new feature that will give Vehicle Operation more control over vehicle functions, and will integrate with the speedometer, odometer, fuel gauge, and more. The car’s climate controls can be accessed directly through CarPlay, so you won’t have to exit CarPlay to adjust the heat or air conditioning, and Apple also plans to add a series of useful widgets that will display information such as trip duration, fuel economy weather, HomeKit devices, and other details you might want while driving.
Read more
There are more features rumored for iOS 17, including changes to the always-on display, upcoming AR/VR headset support, improvements to the Health app, and additional focus mode filters. We’re keeping track of all the rumored changes to iOS 17 in We have a dedicated iOS 17 tourso it pays to bookmark and check in every now and then to see the latest.
release date
Apple will make iOS 17 available to developers after its WWDC keynote event on June 5, and that will give us our first look at the new features. Public beta testers will likely get access after a month or so in July, after which the program will launch in September alongside new iPhone models.
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