In addition to a smart home display-like interface coming to iPhones, iOS 17 is slated to introduce enhancements across the board for Apple’s first-party apps and services, according to a reliable source this week. Bloomberg‘s Mark Gurman revealed tidbits of the next iOS release in a report less than two weeks away from this year’s WWDC.
iOS 17’s announcement will come just one year after Apple previewed iOS 16 to the public. That update, released in September, introduced a redesigned iPhone Lock Screen and improvements to Messages. Hype and excitement around iOS 17 has been palpable since the company announced its annual Worldwide Developers Conference, where it’s expected to preview the next version of the iPhone operating system alongside other major updates.
In the weeks leading up to the conference, set to kick off on June 5, new details surrounding iOS 17 have come out. In his report this week, Gurman reports that the Wallet app could receive “significant changes” as part of iOS 17. Details of the improvements have been scant so far, but a redesign with a navigation bar should make it easier for users to navigate the app, as well as bring it more in line with the design language of other first-party iOS apps.
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Apple is also working on improvements for its Find My location services. As part of the company’s strategy to bring a “stronger social element” to the iPhone, a new journaling app is expected to come preloaded with iOS 17. Apple’s goal with the new app is to add more social networking capabilities for its users, allowing them to share daily activities with friends and family.
The Health app is expected to add new health-tracking features that include manual logging and tracking of mood and emotions, as well as tools to manage eyesight complications and conditions. Apple is also planning a version of the Health app for the iPad as part of iPadOS 17 that will allow users to view their health data in a bigger format on the iPad’s larger display.
Apple is actively developing enhancements for its SharePlay feature, which enables users to watch content together with friends and family during FaceTime calls. Additionally, the company is working to improve its wireless streaming protocol, AirPlay. According to Gurman, Apple has been engaging in conversations with hotels and other establishments to simplify the process of streaming content via AirPlay to televisions and devices that are not owned by the users.
In a more drastic design change, iOS 17 will reportedly also include a redesign of the iPhone Control Center. The rumor lacks details on what a potential redesign could look like, but concepts have imagined a more compact design that makes better use of the iPhone’s screen real estate.
WWDC 2023 is less than two weeks away, and in addition to iOS 17, Apple will also announce new versions of iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, and tvOS. The star of the show will undoubtedly be the company’s mixed-reality headset and its accompanying “xrOS” software platform. Be sure to check out Supercharged’s recap of everything expected to be unveiled at WWDC.
