Now that we officially know the dates ofWWDC 2018 , we can start the countdown to iOS 12 . blockade a massive change in its departure schedule , Apple will unveil the next rendering of iOS during the send-off keynote at 10 a.m. PST on June 4 , with several round of developer and public Beta to follow .
But this year ’s release might be a little dissimilar . For the retiring month we ’ve been read hearsay that Apple is scaling back some ofiOS 12 ’s planned featuresto nidus on the thing that matter most , namely performance and stableness . Apple had a rocky scratch line with iOS 11 , as severalhigh - profilebugscaused iPhones to typewrite random digits , reboot without warning , and just straight up crash . Consequently , Io 12 needs to do as much work behind the scenes as it does in front of them .
WWDC 2018 will surely include a snitch peek at the next version of iOS .
WWDC 2018 will surely include a sneak peek at the next version of iOS.
But while bug fixes and optimizations are arguably more important than new features , iPhone users are accostomed to major iOS freeing bringing a flurry of front - present feature film that make it a must - download . A maintenance release does n’t exactly instill excitement in users , and Apple needs Io 12 to be just as authoritative as the next iPhone to continue its dominance . Part of the appeal of have an iPhone is the hope that your earphone will evolve each year , bring in new features and apps each fall that make our aging handsets feel young again .
Apple can still bring that level of excitement with iOS 12 . It just might require to slip a Sir Frederick Handley Page from Google to do it .
Android P’s charges are short and sweet
You might have overleap it , but a couple hebdomad ago , Google take the wrap off thenext version of Android , which will finally be list for a dessert beginning with the alphabetic character “ P. ” Like Apple , Google ready a big tidy sum out of its annual Android upgrades , but this twelvemonth the most of import change in Android P is its financial support for notched screens and a Modern positioning for the digital clock . That ’s because its expectant enhancements will be single that amend the experience seamlessly and automatically , such as IEEE 802.11mc support for better indoor placement .
Indoor mapping ( left ) and richer response to message inside notification are among the changes in Android P.
That ’s a much different strategy than Apple ’s . New Android flavors focus on system - layer changes rather than app - centric unity , and the result is a lot of fiddling pinch that lend up to a heavy improvement in speed , responsiveness , and overall usability . Apple on the other mitt focuses more on wholesale changes to core apps and services rather than refining the way we use iOS . Suffice to say , if iOS 12 is as light on consumer feature as Android P , it believably wo n’t go over well .
Indoor mapping (left) and richer replies to messages inside notifications are among the changes in Android P.
It ’s not that there are n’t under - the - hood enhancements , but each new iOS freeing brings hundreds of change that we can see , enough for tight - talking Craig Federighi to fill 30 minutes or so of a keynote . That ’s an enormous labor each yr and a lot to fork over all at once . So perhaps Google has it correct . Major iOS update should be about bushel and improving the instauration rather than piling on new features . And there are three simple-minded , prosperous ways Apple can shift its focus without sacrificing characteristic .
1. Update apps throughout the year
The biggest affair you ’ll note about Android P is that there are n’t any update to live apps . Compare that with iOS 11 , which includes major changes to Messages , Apple Pay , Camera , Maps , CarPlay , and the App Store , while also introducing half - bake change to the Control Center and Notification Panel . A major alteration to the Quick options panel ( Android ’s version of the Control Center ) would be top billion in Android P , but in iOS 11 , it was the quaternary or fifth detail in the keynote .
The Control Center should have been the biggest change in iOS 11 .
That ’s because Google updates its apps all throughout the yr rather than all at once , unveil features when they are ready and not on a predictable timeline . There was a sentence when Apple would n’t have been able-bodied to do this , but now many apps are available as individual downloads in the App Store instead of being connect to iOS . And to begin with this year , Apple bear on out a Safari update to turn to the Spectre bug that was n’t tied to an iOS point update . So Apple could update Mail , Messages , and Safari at a later appointment and focus on core changes and sweetening with the iOS 12 launch .
The Control Center should have been the biggest change in iOS 11.
This alone would free up Apple to focalize on the underlying technology in Io like Google does with Android : improvements to notifications , enhanced APIs , gesture , speed , power efficiency , etc . It ’s not that Apple does n’t address any of these things with each Io update , but by salve the pressure of update every major system all at once , changes to the core institution of iOS 12 would be the star of the show , with the apps getting a hazard to shine later .
2. Refine the user experience
Neither iOS nor Android have overhauled the overall look of their user interface in several years , but if you foot up a earpiece running Android Marshmallow , the difference between it and Android Nougat or Android Oreo is consummate . That ’s because Google is constantly refining the user experience in pernicious but meaningful ways .
Picture in flick is gracious on the iPad but Apple could bring it to the iPhone too .
Apple does n’t ignore UX by any means , but the most meaningful changes to Io , specially on the iPhone , are more often than not fuel by computer hardware changes , not initiation at the package degree . thing like 3D Touch and the home indicator are nice improvements , but there ’s a dispute between hardware - based modification and thoughtful computer software - establish ones . If Apple were to stringently focalize on how it can improve iOS from a usability standpoint rather than a functionality one , iOS 12 would be a massive waiver , even without any major front - look feature of speech .
Picture in picture is nice on the iPad but Apple could bring it to the iPhone too.
We ’ve take in what Apple can do when it turn its attention to UX enhancements , and the result are stellar . For example , iOS 10 and 11 brought transformative changes to Apple ’s iPad with thing like Slide Over , Picture in Picture , and Drag and Drop , but the iPhone is delinquent for meaningful UX alteration . On Android , Google turn in multi - window view in Nougat , and Oreo expanded on the concept with icon - in - picture for picture and apps . That ’s the variety of think Apple should be bring to iOS 12 . It does n’t have to even be as major as that , but a series of system - small changes to the mode to apply our phones would go a long manner .
3. Underpromise and overdeliver
Perhaps the most important matter Google manages good than Apple is expectations . With iOS 11 , Apple missed the deadline to present Apple Pay Cash and we ’re still waiting for AirPlay 2 .
It ’s hunky-dory if Apple spreads out features over future iOS updates .
The bountiful thing Apple call for to do with iOS 12 is to make first moment manageable . It ’s better to be let down with the beta than with the press release , so Apple need to verify it only announces feature that it ’s sure to deliver on . Some six calendar month after its button , Apple is still cleaning up the bugs and scrambling to secrete features before the next rendering of iOS lands . With iOS 12 , a slower , simpler approach will be revalue , with a focus on smaller , gradual update rather than its usual all - at - once strategy .
It’s OK if Apple spreads out features over future iOS updates.
Even if that entail iOS 12 is a whole bunch like Android P.
