Apple held its annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) on June 7th, 2021. It was a two-hour conference which showcased latest updates for Apple’s top products as well and a few announcements.
Here are 7 announcements we took particular interest in
- iOS 15 for iPhones: It’s latest version was announced by Apple’s senior vice president in charge of software, Craig Federighi. The software alongside the new iPhone will be released in the fall but for an exception of developers and early adopters who will have access in the summer.
Some of its key features include:
- Improved camera with a new feature called Live Text for scanning text in photos.
- Elements in photos can now be Identified such as locations, pets.
- A new feature called Memories has the ability to group photos into various categories according to similarities as well as add music.
- FaceTime improvements like 3D audio, portrait mode, grid view to converse with multiple people at once, ability to send links to schedule individual FaceTime calls, share screen and music through ShareTime software.
- Supported FaceTime calls on Windows and Android through a browser.
- If “Do not disturb” is turned on, it will be shared as a status with other users.
- Users can save shared links in one folder with the help of a new feature called “shared with you”.
2. iPadOS 15 for iPadwatch: This software includes varying new ways such as;
- New ways to rearrange iPad apps.
- Widgets placement on home screen and the App Library.
- New multitasking interface that enables users to place two apps side by side easily on the iPad screen.
3. OS 8 for Apple Watch: The newest version of its Apple Watch software comes with the following:
- A new watch face that enables photos taken in portrait mode to be used as background.
- Text writing with fingers to send direct messages using the watch.
- Updated Breathe app for exercising.
- New app called Mindfulness which displays inspirational quotes called “Reflections”.
4. MacOS Monterey for Macs: The newest version is coined ‘Monetery’, after the scenic beach town in California’s central coast.
Its new features are;
- Users can use the same mouse and keyboard across a Mac or an iPad.
- With the help of the Universal Control feature, the mouse cursor can work between Mac Computers. It can also move back and forth between the iPad an a Mac laptop or desktop, making the iPad a functionally second screen.
- Safari browser redesigned to have tab grouping and tab.
- Through the AirPlay feature, iOS devices can beam their screen to a Mac computer.
5. Big changes to Apple Maps: The maps software is updated with new 3D data that enables turning lanes as well as flexibility with other road conditions. This feature will be first launched in Spain, Portugal, Italy and Australia later in the year.
6. Privacy Updates: To toughen its privacy protection, Apple will be implementing the following;
- Akin to a VPN’s feature, track-blockers in Apple’s Mail app will now hide users IP address, location and prevent senders from seeing if and when an email is open. Users IP addresses will also be hidden from trackers in Safari.
- Adding an app Tracker Report section for users to access how often apps utilize info and see third party domains app contacted in the last seven days.
- Siri is now more private and faster to support offline speech recognition. Users can place commands like “Hey Siri, start a timer for 10 minutes” and it’ll start the timer right away.
7. iCloud+: This is a new feature to be of use in the following ways;
- Additional features for online privacy.
- Private Relay, which routes web traffic through two separate servers to mask who is using the internet and what they are browsing, like a VPN.
- Hide My Email feature for users to use a placeholder email address when signing up for new features.
Having showcased their latest software and newbies, Apple announced that developers will have access to Beta versions by Monday for testing while the public can test from July. However, everyone will have access to the final versions this fall.