iOS 13 predictions
What we expect in the next version of iOS
What could be coming in the next version of iOS.
Ass uming that Apple sticks to its usual upgrade cycle, the next iOS version, iOS 13, should be previewed at Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference on June 3. A number of websites, such as 9to5Mac.com, have published details of what’s expected, based on what they say are informed sources. Here are some of the highlights (all, at this stage, unconfirmed)...
Rumored interface changes include a new Home Screen design, though no details are available. Sources say there will be a system–wide Dark Mode, including a high–contrast version, for more comfortable nighttime use. Also expected is a redesigned, more unobtrusive volume display.
Apps on iPad will gain the ability to open multiple windows. Each window will be capable of opening sheets as at present, but although these will initially be docked, it will be possible to tear them off with a swipe to become “cards”, which can then be moved around freely and even stacked on top of each other.
Other new features coming to iPad include a new standard undo gesture for text input — reportedly a three–finger swipe left to undo, or swipe right to redo. (It’s not clear whether this gesture will be iPad–only, and whether it will apply to text entry only.) Recognizing the tablet’s larger screen, Safari on iPad will by default request the desktop version of websites rather than load the iPhone site (as YouTube does, for one).
App changes include a smarter Mail app able to organize messages into categories, which will be searchable. It will also become possible to mark a message to “read later.” A redesigned Reminders
app is also expected, across macOS as well as iOS. In the Camera app, the duration of Live Photos is expected to double to six seconds. Word is that Find My Friends and Find My iPhone are to be combined into a single “tracker” service.
Productivity apps will be enhanced by system–wide support for collaborative working in third–party document–based apps, similar to the options available in Pages, Numbers, and Keynote. It will also become possible to select multiple items in table and collection views, in a way analogous to clicking and dragging: simply drag with multiple fingers on a list or collection of items to draw a selection around them. For more control over document fonts, there will be a new font management panel in Settings; you’ll see an alert when you open a document with missing fonts. For developers, a standard font picker component will become available.
Expectations are that “Hey Siri” will include improved recognition of sounds such as laughter and crying babies, reducing mistakes. Better multilingual support is expected for keyboard entry and dictation, and there are said to be expanded in–app printing controls.
Separately, there are rumors of a new feature, codenamed “Sidecar”, to be included in the forthcoming macOS 10.15, designed to make it possible to use an iPad as an external display for your Mac. Which is pretty neat.