Apple Developer Program members can now download the developer preview of iOS 15 on developer.apple.com, beta.apple.com and will release a public beta to iOS users next month. New software features for iPhone 6s and later will be offered as a free software update this fall. In the meantime, Apple gives away some details.
Apple has revamped the Weather feature with full-screen maps and better graphical displays of data. Wallet has added support for house keys and ID cards. Navigating the internet with Safari has been made easier with a new tab bar design and Tab Groups. Siri, Mail, and Messages all have additional privacy controls in iOS 15.
Let’s look at each part of the upgrade one at a time, starting with FaceTime and SharePlay.
FaceTime and SharePlay in detail
According to Apple, with SharePlay, you can have more natural FaceTime calls and shared experiences. FaceTime allows customers to quickly connect with the people that mean the most to them, and discussions with friends and family are even more natural now that iOS 15 is available.
Voices in a FaceTime call sound like they’re coming directly from the person on the screen. By using spatial audio technology and new microphone modes, here the user’s voice is separate from noise created in the background.
Revamped portrait mode is available for FaceTime, and it’s created exclusively for video conversations, so users can blur their background and bring themselves in focus. Apple took inspiration from the fantastic portrait images shot on the iPhone. Also, a new grid view in Group FaceTime allows participants to see more information.
Because of SharePlay, users may now share experiences with friends on FaceTime. Just as it sounds, SharePlay includes the listening to music together feature in collaboration with Apple Music. Watching TV shows or movies in sync from Apple TV+ and other streaming services, or sharing their screen to view apps together.
Anyone in a SharePlay session can press play, pause, or leap forward thanks to shared playback controls. SharePlay is also compatible with Apple TV, allowing users to enjoy television or movies on a larger screen.
Focus is better, but what exactly is Focus?
iOS 15 has several valuable tools that can assist users in focusing and reducing distractions. Focus is a new design feature that allows users to filter notifications, cancel distractions, and silence apps based on their wish to concentrate.
Customers can customize their smartphone to help them be more present and live in the moment by using a custom setting or picking a suggested Focus, which leverages on-device intelligence to advise which category should be notified, including people and apps.
Focus suggestions are dependent on the user’s context, such as while they’re at work or getting ready for bed, and once Focus is set on one Apple device, it applies to all of their other Apple devices.
Experience with Notifications
Notifications have been changed to include contact images for friends or family and larger app icons for quicker identification. A new notification summary aggregates non-time-critical notifications for transmission at a more convenient time, such as in the morning and evening, to prevent distraction.
Priority orders Notifications, with the most relevant notifications coming to the top, and based on a user’s interactions with apps, using on-device intelligence. Essential conversations will not be lost in the summary since iOS 15 will deliver urgent messages promptly, and it’s simple to temporarily silence any app or messaging thread for the next hour or even an entire day, allowing the user to concentrate on the job at hand.
Safari offers a new and updated browsing experience
Safari gets a new look that puts content front and center while making controls easier to access with one hand. The new tab bar is small and light, and it floats at the bottom of the screen, allowing users to switch between tabs quickly.
Users can keep tabs in Tab Groups and access them at any time from their iPhone, iPad, or Mac. Because of new features like the customizable start page and web extensions for iOS, Safari has grown even more personal and powerful.
Apple Maps allows you to travel light
Apple dedicates itself to creating the most refined map globally, and iOS 15 expands on that commitment with revolutionary new ways to navigate and explore.
Users will notice dramatically improved cities, including new road colors and labels, custom-designed landmarks, and a new night-time mode with a moonlight glow. Apple says this is an entirely new way to view the world.
Apple updates Weather and Notes apps
More graphical displays of meteorological data, full-screen maps, and dynamic layouts that alter dependent on conditions are all available in Weather.
Revamped animated backdrops more precisely depict the location of the sun and precipitation, and notifications indicate when rain or snow begins and ends.
User-created tags make it easier to organize Notes fast, while notifications allow members of shared notes to communicate important updates to one another. A brand-new Activity view displays a shared note’s recent history.
