iOS 18 releases new icon customization capabilities and privacy features to lock and hide apps

June 10 (Portaltic/EP) –

Apple has announced the new features that it will introduce in the next version of its operating systems, among which is the one dedicated to smartphones, iOS 18, which will release new icon and widget customization capabilities, as well as privacy features. to block and hide services installed on the device.

The executive director of the firm, Tim Cook, has been in charge of starting the keynote of the World Developers Conference (WWDC) of 2024, which will last until next Thursday and where he has announced the latest news at the level of ‘software’ that you have been working on.

Part of this presentation event has had to do with the new capabilities of the operating systems with which it works on smartphones (iOS 18), tablets (iPadOS 18) and Mac computers, with the new MacOS Sequoia. Likewise, new features have been discussed for Apple Vision Pro and Apple TVs with tvOS.

For its part, iOS 18 launches a new look for applications, which will stand out from the background when dark mode is implemented and whose icons can also be colored according to the user’s tastes, in order to homogenize them with the background image or highlight them from this one.

Apple has also introduced a continuous ‘swipe’ for navigation in the App Control Center, to prevent users from swiping across the iPhone screen at different times when they are using it and speed up the experience. Likewise, you can add controls for third-party ‘apps’ compatible with this manager to have everything in the same place.

The firm has also commented that the new version of the OS puts greater control in the hands of users, with tools such as ‘Locked Apps’ – for which access a password or FaceID is requested – and ‘Hidden Apps’, which hide desired applications in a external folder.

The Messages app is also updated to incorporate new ways to express yourself and stay connected, with more reactions. Now you can program messages to later send them, underline and cross out text, introduce effects on the text, so that the letters move, vibrate, sway or disappear. Likewise, Apple has commented that this service offers the possibility of sending messages when you do not have good coverage.

While the Mail inbox now introduces new ways to sort messages with a built-in categorization that organizes and classifies messages according to their importance or urgency, Wallet will soon have the ‘tap to cash’ option, to pay other users of iPhone without having to make a bizum.

One of the sections that has the biggest new features in iOS 18 is the Photos application, which has been redesigned to improve the organization of images, in order to spend “less time searching and more time enjoying”, as the firm explained in the event.

New buttons have been introduced to filter by ‘All’, ‘Months’ and ‘Years’, as well as a window with Collections, such as ‘Recently’, ‘Travel’, ‘People and Pets’. Within each section, which presents the images as a Collage, you can ‘swipe’ to move between the days in which photos have been taken.

On the other hand, the brand has commented that with the new version of the OS, the 2nd generation AirPods Pro will have better interaction with Siri and will be able to understand certain user gestures. In this way, if there is a phone call that cannot be answered at a specific time, it will detect if the user moves their head from one side to the other to hang up. If, on the other hand, you do it from top to bottom, it will enable the call.

Another novelty aimed at improving calling experiences is Voice Isolation, which manages to offer a clearer and sharper voice in situations of high noise or wind that can interrupt communication.

IPADOS RELEASES THE CALCULATOR

Craig Federighi has commented that everything that has been presented for iOS will also be available in the new version of the operating system for tablets, iPadOS, which incorporates the redesign of the Photos application and the introduction of the long-awaited Calculator function.

This service, which has the same look as the iPhone calculator, has been optimized for large screens with new options, such as the results history display function, which is located on the left of the interface. In addition, it can be used with Apple Pencil and does the calculations automatically thanks to the new Math Notes option, which supports variables and graphs.

All calculations and annotations can be transferred to Notes, an application that also comes with new features, since it now selects the writing to place it straight if it deviates at a specific point and improves its appearance and legibility simultaneously. Likewise, you can paste text into a note and generate the same text with the user’s style.

CONTINUITY OF THE IPHONE ON THE COMPUTER

The functionalities that come to the new operating system for Mac computers, called macOS Sequoia, are also part of the features released by the OS for the brand’s smartphones.

One of the notable features is iPhone Mirroring, which can bring the iPhone experience to the computer without having to use the iPhone, that is, just by ‘clicking’ on the doc on the computer. So much so that you can interact with each of its applications even offline.

Apple has said that the Mac’s keyboard, trackpad and mouse allow users to interact with the iPhone and even listen to audio, and that they can drag and drop content between the iPhone and the Mac with the iPhone still locked. You can also check iPhone notifications on your Mac, which appear alongside alerts from the computer itself.

This version of the operating system, which proposes an organization of the windows if there are several open, will also have the new Passwords application, which allows you to organize credentials and security codes in one place and which can also be used on iPad, iPhone, Vision Pro and Windows with iCloud app.

For its part, Safari: introduces ‘machine learning’ to extract the most notable information from web pages with the ‘Highlights’ tool, which makes it easier to find information on the website, such as directions, summaries or urls. Likewise, if the browser detects that there is a video on a web page, it separates it from the text and places it in the foreground and displays the system’s multimedia playback controls.

The last section of MacOS Sequoia has focused on the ‘gaming’ section to remember that, as was known a few days ago, Assassin’s Creed: Mirage will also arrive on Mac on November 15, taking advantage of all the power of Apple Silicon.

All betas of these operating systems are now available for those who wish to try them, but the official versions will reach users globally in the fall, although no date has been specified. Likewise, the firm has commented that both iOS 18, iPadOS 18 and macOS Sequoia will debut Apple Intelligence, the personal intelligence system that combines the power of generative models with personal context to offer a useful experience for each user.