Apple's message at WWDC 2018 that we're too attached to our iPhone seems, for a company the fortunes of which are so closely tied to its smartphone, a strange one. From iOS 12's Screen Time tattling on the apps you're most addicted to, to watchOS 5's increasing independence, you'd almost think Apple was having a change of heart after a decade of making iPhones.
Third party photo and video apps look set to get much more portrait mode and depth-related effects with iOS 12, as Apple hugely refines the data it shares from its iPhone camera arrays. The feature, previewed in a WWDC 2018 session this week in San Jose, CA, is based on iOS 12's new Portrait Matte feature, a dramatic improvement over the current depth data third-party apps are currently able to access.
Apple is using machine learning to make augmented reality objects more realistic in iOS 12, using smart environment texturing that can predict reflections, lighting, and more. The new feature, being added in ARKit 2.0, uses on-device processing to better integrate virtual objects with their real-world counterparts, blurring the lines between what's computer-generated and what's authentic.
Apple's multi-player support for augmented reality experiences will support more than just the two-player games the company showed off during the WWDC 2018 keynote, with ARKit 2.0 in iOS 12 bringing unexpectedly comprehensive - and private - ways to use AR. Debuting on the iPhone and iPad later this year, iOS 12's updated augmented reality system will depend on new, persistent scans of the real world that Apple will allow devices to securely share.
Apple continued their battle for the security of the end user this week at WWDC 2018. They've added a bit of a blocker in iOS 12 that should but a crunch in the mix for law enforcement officials and malicious entities trying to break in to the iPhone using brute force - or any sort long-term attack aimed at breaking down the front door. In iOS 12, users need to unlock their phone every hour if they want to maintain a USB connection.
Users of SOME sorts were given the opportunity to download and run iOS 12 this week during WWDC 2018. The first group of people able to download the beta are Developers: paid developer accounts, that is to say. If you've got an Apple account but not a paid Apple Developer Program Account, you'll just have to wait a little while longer - BUT we've got instructions for when the time comes.
Today we're wrapping up Apple's main WWDC 2018 keynote in as simple a fashion as possible. With what this article explains, I'll touch on the main topics and will offer an expanded look at each topic as it pops up, if you do so wish. For the average user, the announcements Apple made this morning can be summed up in a succinct set of paragraphs.
Apple has given a sneak peak of its attempt to bring iOS apps to the Mac, teasing how iPhone and iPad apps will run on macOS. The news comes amid another denial from Apple that iOS and macOS will ever merge, though it will eventually mean apps currently only available through the App Store will also run on MacBook, iMac, and other Mac hardware.
We've learned all about the new macOS Mojave this morning at WWDC 2018. Now it's time to run down the most important bits right out the gate. This should serve as a sort of "here's why you'll want this update, if for some reason you were wavering on the button-click" feature, too. This includes OS-level updates as well as app updates that'll only come to macOS Mojave.
Apple is declaring a new war on tracking in Safari, ramping up its privacy features in the macOS Mojave and iOS 12 browser. The news follows last year's do-not-follow tracking system for cookies, which Apple promised would stop the same adverts from cropping up on every website you visit, just because you looked at a product on one site somewhere.
Joining the new watchOS 5 features Apple detailed this afternoon comes a band and watch face for the Apple Watch wearable. The new offerings are being made available today just in time for Pride Month. The new watch face previously leaked late last month, and we'll officially get access to it starting at 3PM ET today.
Apple TV 4K is already a pretty capable streaming box, but later this year, it's going to get better. At WWDC 2018 today, Apple announced that Apple TV 4K will soon be getting some much-loved Dolby technology in the form of Dolby Atmos. When combined with Apple TV 4K's support for 4K HDR content, Dolby Atmos should turn this into one impressive streaming device.