shubhamLike every year, Apple introduced the new version of its OS- iOS 14 in the WWDC event, but it’s hosted online in the wake of the current pandemic. The latest OS includes the addition of new features, interface-level tweaks, and gala changes made to existing apps, Siri, home screen design, and pretty more.
The new features and improvements are announced in the public beta version, and the final version expected to release in September 2020, which has a lot in the bucket for the developers and presumed to enhance the existing and future apps.
Here’s the review of iOS 14 and the changes it’s bringing to the iPhone app development space:
- IOS 14 Widgets
The redesigned widgets allow the users to place the widgets anywhere on the home screen to improve the accessibility and utility of the apps. Widget gallery introduced to keep all the widgets from Apple and third parties in one place. Additionally, the widgets come in different sizes that users can select and create the widget stacks to make the optimal use of screen space. Smart stack feature is eye candy, which allows users to create a set of widgets that gets automatically displayed on the screen using on-device intelligence.
- Apple OS App library
The interface at the bottom of the home screen organizes all the iPhone apps in easy-to-navigate categories that are reorganized based on the app’s usage. The app library makes suggestions for apps that are highly used by users. The search bar just above the app library interface allows the users to quickly search the app.
- Compact UI for iOS 14 User
The interference that phone calls or facetime calls make when the users are doing something on mobile eliminated with compact UI support. Both types of calls would appear as banner rather than covering the entire screen so that users won’t lose the track of what they were doing. A simple swipe up gesture helps them to dismiss the call and swipe down enables them to pick up the call. The picture in picture mode is also facilitated with the Picture in Picture window resizing and moving feature, wherein the users can attend the call while checking the emails or other tasks.
- Easy Search for App User
Getting relevant results has now become a work of an average Joe. The smart search feature showcases the search suggestions as the users start typing and search in apps can also be done. Besides, the users can quickly launch the apps and websites just by typing a few characters.
- Message
The users can pin their favorite conversations (Maximum nine) to keep them conversations at the top of the list for easy access. In a group conversation, the users can directly reply to a particular message or send a message to an individual by typing their name as mentions. The users can change settings for receiving notifications, where they receive notifications only when their name mentioned.
- Memojis
The new hairstyles, new memoji stickers, memojis with age options, face coverings, and new headwear styles added to make the conversation more interesting. Also, the users are allowed to customize the memojis to add a creative twist to the chat and make it great fun.
- Apple iOS 14 Maps
Apple map complemented with a couple of things that make navigation effortless and efficient. The map provides recommendations for the new places to visit, eat, shop, and explore through detailed maps or guides; provide optimized routes to cyclists and electric vehicles that are time and fuel-efficient; the congestion zones are shown to not waste the time and re-route the vehicle; inform the users about the speed cameras and red-light cameras to manage the vehicle speed accordingly; the urban areas with poor GPS signals are precisely tracked with location refinement.
- Translate
The translate app can translate the audio and text of 11 languages using on-device intelligence. The translations saved as a favorite are easier access at the later stage. The on-device mode enables the translation from one language to another without the internet connection and without needing to download the keyboard for every language separately.
- Siri
The voice assistant also received new compact design support where Siri pops-up at the bottom when the request initiated, and it shows results at the top as notifications. With enhancements, Siri can answer a large number of questions at once, send audio messages to the CarPlay, display cycling directions to cyclists, share ETA with a contact, and the support for translation languages and voice recognition languages increased.
- Car keys
It allows the users to unlock the car as they tap the door through the NFC chip. The car keys added to the wallet are easy to share with friends for easier access and equally effortless to remove when the users want to take the keys back. The users can start the vehicle by placing the iPhone on a reader. That’s why the users can set the key types- unlock or drive to give access to the car to someone else accordingly.
- CarPlay
The new-look is added to the dashboard with a new wallpaper to give a unique experience to the users. The support for Chinese and Japanese keyboard extended for easier access. The horizontal status bar is a boon for cars with portrait screens as the status bar will be at the bottom that provides the wider app views.
- AirPods
Spatial audio complemented with dynamic head tracking that tracks the motion of both- head and device to compare the motion data, and remap the sound field accordingly so that users get theatre experience straight through AirPods. The headphone accommodation feature designed to adjust frequencies and intensify soft sounds that make sounds crisp and clear to the people with hearing needs.
- App clips
It’s a part of the app that becomes available at the moment to perform a specific task without requiring the users to install the complete app. The app clips are usable for the businesses in the sense creating app clips for QR code scanning, NFC tags, a link in the message, or Safari that go away once the user done with using them.
- Camera
The shot-to-shot performance is improved by 90% as the users can capture up to 4 frames per second. The users can toggle the video resolutions and the frame rate anytime to improve the image quality. The ability to lock exposure compensation control, capture mirrored selfies, QR code reading enhancements, and updated night mode capture experience is the add-ons.
Conclusion
IOS 14 is jam-packed with impressive features and notable improvements that will make things easier to do on the iPhone. With access to iOS 14 beta, the developers can start exploring and experimenting with updates before the new version available in a complete form in the coming fall. Let’s see what changes the developers are going to introduce with the assimilation of new additions in the development.
Himanshu Patel
