I recently wrote a blog post about possible features that I would like to see Apple incorporate into iOS7.
When the new OS is made available towards the end of this year, most of the features on my wish list may not actually be there, but here are some that iOS users can indeed look forward to. But if you have a developer account, you can actually gain access to the beta version of iOS7 immediately.
Some of the more interesting features that I am looking forward to, include:
Very different visual appearance
When you upgrade to iOS7, you will immediately notice the visual difference compared to iOS6. This is because iOS7 makes use of onscreen textures like leather and wood to produce translucent, flat colours that give the iDevice a very minimal and elegant feel to it. This is achieved, because the iPhone sensors and software work together in unison to create an illusion of depth.
Quick access to settings
This is a feature that many have been clamouring for Apple to introduce into the stock OS system. Now, it seems as though Apple is finally listening to its customers. With iOS7, if you drag up from the bottom of the home screen, you will find yourself able to quickly toggle on and off settings such as brightness, Bluetooth, Airplane Mode, Wi-Fi and Do Not Disturb. Moreover, you can also change music tracks, or fast forward, pause or rewind your music without having to actually open up the Music app.
Activation Lock
This is a very useful anti-theft feature and many iPhone users would probably welcome it with open arms. This is because the feature prevents thieves from simply wiping your iPhone and using it themselves. When you remote-wipe your iPhone and Activation Lock is in place, the would-be thief who tries to use your iPhone after a wipe, would be forced to enter your iCloud username and password before being able to do so.
One drawback of this is that the “Forgot my password” feature is still present, but this can be easily solved by implementing a two-step authorisation system into your iCloud account whereby you will be sent an activation code to one of your other iOS devices after keying in the correct password. This is because the potential thief would need to have access to one of your other iOS devices in order to be able to use your iPhone, be it another iPhone, an iPad or a Macbook.
Automatic app updates
As soon as you are connected to a Wi-Fi network, your downloaded apps will automatically update themselves. So this means you won’t see the annoying red “1” on your Settings app any longer. As well, it’ll also completely eliminate those “mass update” sessions where you have to spend ages waiting for your apps to be updated – a current predicament for those with tons of apps on their iOS devices.
Audio Facetime calls
Currently, Apple’s Facetime is a video chatting software, whereby you can both see the person you’re talking to, as well as hear them speak. But with the new iOS7, you will be able to make purely audio calls through Facetime – thereby completely eliminating the need to pay large amounts of money on expensive toll calls to your loved ones.
Currently, the only drawback is that such a service is only available when your phone is connected to Wi-Fi, but in the near future, it may be possible on 4G and LTE networks too. Mobile phone service providers won’t be very happy by such a feature, though, as they are already losing money on text messages.
Updates to Apple Maps
Since its infamous release in iOS6, Apple Maps has been getting a lot of stigma for incorrect directions and leading users to the wrong places. This software is going to get a complete overhaul in iOS7 and that does not just mean a brand new physical interface. Apple hopes that by implanting these updates to Maps, it will re-ignite users’ interest in their maps software – rather than using the more reliable Google Maps.
For those who are heavily reliant on Apple Maps to walk to places, a very useful feature will definitely be the turn-by-turn walking directions, so that you won’t need to keep taking out your iPhone to check if you’re heading in the right way.
Night mode will be made available too, so this will eliminate the need to constantly adjust your iPhone screen. This is especially so if you are using Apple Maps to give you the directions for a long drive and the sky begins to get dark before you have reached your final destination.
Another Apple Maps feature includes syncing to users Safari bookmarks. This means you can check up on the directions to your favourite place on Google, and bookmark this page. When you want to go there, you don’t need to copy and paste the address into Apple Maps – the software will automatically do so for you.
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