The belle of the ball at the 2023 Worldwide Developers Conference in California was, beyond a shadow of a doubt, the Apple Vision Pro. But alongside this sci-fi-esque mixed reality headset that our favourite maker of shiny, expensive things has been lovingly crafting for nearly a decade, we were treated to a new Mac Pro and Mac Studio, both bristling with Apple’s newest speed demon, the M2 Ultra Chip. Oh, and a first-time-ever 15-inch MacBook Air too because why not? Yet, at the end of the grand spectacle that was the WWDC, it was a humble software conference that quietly stole the limelight.
So, while everyone and their dog is talking about the Vision Pro, let’s not forget the unsung heroes: the subtle but excellent software updates that promise to make your iPhone, Apple Watch, AirPods Pro, iPad, and Mac even more of a delight to use.
I’m not just wagging my tongue here based on the slick demos Apple rolled out. I’ve had a first-hand taste of these updates, having bravely installed the developer previews of iOS 17 on my iPhone, watchOS 10 on my Apple Watch, and iPadOS 17 on my iPad, which I’m using right now to pen this very column. I wasn’t quite daring enough to install macOS Sonoma, a major software update for Mac computers, largely due to constraints of time. But from what I’ve sampled so far, I can tell you it’s quite an impressive spread. And it’s all done in Apple’s typical understated style, probably so as not to steal the thunder from their new headset.
Diving into iOS and iPadOS 17
Let’s talk about Apple’s two main mobile platforms: iOS and iPadOS, the lifeblood of the iPhone and iPad.
Starting with iOS 17, it might not appear a showstopper at first glance, mostly because Apple whizzed through the updates faster than a rat up a drainpipe. But there’s a boatload of changes that I reckon will make the iPhone even more gratifying to use, and might just convince more folks to join the iPhone club. For starters, Apple’s phone app has been spruced up for the first time in a decade. Your call history can now remember more recent calls, and there’s a voicemail transcription feature, which, outside of the US, will be as useful as a chocolate teapot. iMessage also gets a bit of a facelift with live stickers, a better search interface, and live check-ins, so you can let your loved ones know you’ve arrived safe and sound at your destination – a godsend for anxious parents and spouses. You can also show your phone’s cellular signal levels and battery life to selected contacts.
Then, there are the contact posters. Talk about cool. You can design a poster featuring a photo or Memeoji of yourself against a nifty background, complete with beautifully formatted text. There’s also Namedrop, a feature that lets you use AirDrop to send your contact details to other iPhone users. No more fiddling around entering details manually.
SharePlay has been extended to CarPlay, which means other iPhones in the car can control the music and not just the one paired up with the vehicle. Remember when Apple killed the headphone jack and, by extension, the auxiliary cable in the car? Well, this is their wireless solution to that ever-so-persistent problem.
The iPad also gets some interesting new goodies. The latest keyboard, for one, is the bee’s knees. It’s about 30-40 per cent more accurate, even at the developer beta stage. Thanks to Apple’s use of advanced transformer language models, which can efficiently decipher languages and generate human-like text, the keyboard’s accuracy is through the roof. And it learns the way you type – so if you’re one to punctuate your sentences with a colourful array of expletives, it will adjust accordingly and not autocorrect your “what the duck”. The keyboard looks the same, though, and you still can’t change its size. But never mind, eh?
Siri’s had a bit of a makeover too. Now you can just say “Siri” instead of “Hey Siri”, which is a bit of a relief. The voice dictation is better, presumably due to those clever transformer models.
On the topic of iPadOS, we now have adaptive and reactive widgets. There’s a spiffing new PDF tool that’s so advanced it’ll probably put many of those pricey apps in the App Store out of business. The lock screen system has been revamped based on the update Apple introduced for iOS last year.
In addition, there’s a new Health app on the iOS 17 that offers more detailed and contextual information on your personal fitness. The new Wallets app supports third-party credit cards as well as the Apple Card, though it’s not much use for Indian users. Soon, there’ll be a ‘Journal’ app that will use artificial intelligence to suggest when you should jot down the day’s events, gradually working out your mood and mental health. Apple has also announced some significant improvements in accessibility, enabling people with speech issues to train their voice on the iPhone and iPad so it can generate speech in their own tone.
Also read: Steve Jobs’ TV dream died with him – until Apple revived it with the futuristic Vision Pro
WatchOS 10, macOS Sonoma
The updates to watchOS 10 are truly transformative. Apps now appear as scrollable stacks of widgets, saving you the hassle of using the tiny digital crown to navigate through tiny iOS icons floating around like planets in a solar system.
We’re treated to new watch faces, including one for fans of Snoopy and Woodstock. Core apps have been updated, and the cycling app has more detailed cycling features. Apps such as Maps and Compass have also received a boost. They now allow users to see where they last had a good cellular signal to very precise levels. Handy for those hiking trips when you struggle to see bars on your phone.
macOS Sonoma largely brings in the same new features as iOS 17, but it also heralds the triumphant return of widgets to the desktop. With Safari, any website can be turned into a web app with no extra coding. The website then behaves like a ‘native app’ – an app specifically designed for a particular operating system, which in this case is iOS. The website, thus, has its own toolbar and a spot in the macOS dock. This is a boon for small developers who may not have the resources to develop a dedicated Mac app.
With Sonoma, Apple is also getting dead serious about gaming on the Mac. They’re offering a game porting tool for developers who can now easily adapt their Windows game code for macOS, and tune it for the M-series processors. Apple claims this will unlock the Mac’s potential as a gaming platform. It’s a promising move, but I’ll believe it when I see more triple-A game titles debuting on the platform.
AirPods Pro also get an upgrade in the form of ‘adaptive mode’, which intelligently switches between transparency and noise cancellation modes. This feature ensures unneeded sounds are distilled out and you don’t miss out on anything when someone speaks or a loud horn blares in the background. Moving on to tvOS, it now supports FaceTime via continuity camera on the iPhone.
None of these updates will set your world on fire, but they bring real, tangible benefits to users. I can vouch for this, having already experienced these surprisingly stable developer previews. And the best part? They’re now being given away for free, even to users who don’t have a paid Apple developer account. Now, isn’t that a fabulous turn of events?
Sahil Mohan Gupta is Editor, Technology at Acko Drive. Views are personal.
(Edited by Zoya Bhatti)