Thread: iOS 6 new features...

iOS 6 features you might have missed | Macworld

iOS 6 features you might have missed

by Lex Friedman, Macworld.com Jun 12, 2012 2:48 pm


On Monday, Apple offered the first glimpse of iOS 6 during the Worldwide Developers Conference keynote. Though the updated mobile operating system won’t arrive until sometime this fall, it’s never too early to start drooling over the new features. We already covered the flagship features of iOS 6—like seriously updated Siri, majorly overhauled Maps, and systemwide Facebook integration—so here’s a look at some cool features coming in iOS 6 that you may have missed.


A new Share screen



In iOS 5, when you tap to share a photo, you get a long list of sharing actions to choose from—whether it’s posting to Twitter, sending an email or iMessage, or some other option. iOS 6 adds Facebook sharing as an option, along with sharing to various Chinese social networks. (That’s a nod to how important the Chinese market has become to Apple.) But Apple decided against cramming more buttons into that panel.
Instead, iOS 6 presents you with a new, icon-based sharing screen. It uses icons to represent the apps and services that you can share your content with and looks quite a bit like the iPhone’s home screen.


New Siri functionality

Flagship features added to Siri include the voice-driven personal assistant’s arrival on the third-generation iPad. Siri also gains the ability to answer questions about sports and movies in iOS 6, and it will be integrated with turn-by-turn directions in Maps. But the virtual assistant gains several other new features as well that might have escaped your attention.



In iOS 6, you’ll be able to compose new tweets and Facebook status updates with Siri—and both capabilities appear to be implemented smartly: If you link your friends’ Twitter usernames to their Contacts entries, Siri automatically translates their real names as you dictate. That is, if I say, “Tweet ‘Excellent dinner last night with Jason Snell, Dan Moren, and Serenity Caldwell,’” Siri will automatically compose a tweet like “Excellent dinner last night with @jsnell, @dmoren, and @settern.”

On the new iPad, Siri can answer questions about weather and stocks, even though Apple hasn’t (yet) ported its Weather and Stocks apps to the iPad. Apple did show a glimpse of a new default Clock app for the iPad, so we won’t be shocked if Stocks and Weather finally make the leap to the big screen before iOS 6’s official release, too.


Spotlight tweak

If you have lots of apps, sometimes it’s hard to figure out precisely which homescreen they’re located on. In iOS 6, Spotlight makes that at least a smidgen easier, by listing the name of the folder a particular app is nestled inside when it appears in the search results.


Reminders improvements

Apple introduced the Reminders app in iOS 5, and it looks to score some helpful updates in iOS 6. Apple says that you’ll be able to set location-based reminders from the iPad. Even better, you’ll be able to tap in addresses where you’d like to be reminded manually, a feature currently missing from Reminders; at present, you can only set reminders for locations linked to addresses for your existing contacts.

Also new in Reminders will be the ability to reorder your tasks as desired. And Apple told developers that iOS 6 includes a new Reminders API, which should make it possible for third-party apps to integrate with the Reminders database. That means that you could use Siri to set Reminders which would in turn be visible in your third-party task management app of choice.


Call rejection



Sometimes, you can’t take a call when your iPhone starts ringing. You can already quickly send a call to voicemail by tapping the Ignore button, but iOS 6 adds more powerful options for when you’re too busy to answer. When your phone rings, you’ll see a button on the screen akin to the new camera shortcut on the lock screen in iOS 5.1—a switch that you slide up to trigger.
When you do so, you’ll see options to send the caller a message, or to remind yourself to call the person back later. If you choose to send a message, iOS offers several default options; you can also save custom responses. Your iPhone will then attempt to iMessage or SMS the caller with your note, while also sending them straight to your voicemail.


Other features

Near the end of the iOS portion of the keynote, Apple showed a slide listing a host of other features included in the iOS 6 update. Among those were Game Center challenges, the ability to connect Game Center friends from Facebook, VoiceOver improvements, personal dictionary in iCloud (for adding your own terms to the dictionary, which can sync between devices), and per-account signatures in Mail. Also on the list was improved privacy, which—as a new option in Settings—will let you control which apps can access which bits of personal data, like your Contacts, Calendar, or Photos. Other features on the list included autocorrection for every keyboard, Bluetooth MAP support (which is commonly used to help cars better offer hands-free communication with Bluetooth devices), kernel ASLR (which aims to make data even more impervious to snooping from malicious attackers), custom vibrations for alerts, redesigned stores (for the App and iTunes stores), IPv6 support for Wi-Fi and LTE, word highlights for speak selection, improved keyboard layouts, alarms with songs, and faster JavaScript in Safari. Apple also says iOS 6 includes a global HTTP proxy option, which would supplant the current approach, limited as it is to per-connection proxy settings.

Other features for developers include audio and video sampling during playback, Pass Kit (for interacting with Passbook), VoiceOver gestures, the ability to control camera focus and exposure, a Web Audio API, Game Center in-app experience, game groups, video stabilization, frame drop data, pull-to-refresh on Table views, a means of supporting in-app purchases of iTunes Store-hosted content, in-app Bluetooth pairing, remote Web Inspector, rich text on label fields and text views, CSS filters, crossfade with CSS animations, and a face detection API.


Lex Friedman is a Macworld staff writer.

: wank :

But just remember: Not *every* new toy works on *every* device!

Which apparently on Android is a bad thing, but on iCrap is a "new product feature" I suppose.

iOS 6 will not work on the original iPad so I won't be installing it.

Still, maybe getting a new one in a few months, so will see then.

Originally Posted by Gerbil

iOS 6 will not work on the original iPad so I won't be installing it.

Still, maybe getting a new one in a few months, so will see then.

Yeah, I was somewhat disappointed to see the original iPad excluded from iOS upgrades, even though it's only 3 years old. Not entirely sure why, yet.

iPad 2 are dropping in price, though.

Hands-on with iOS 6, Apple's next-generation mobile OS | iPodNN

Hands-on with iOS 6, Apple's next-generation mobile OS

Hands-on with the latest volley in the Apple-Android battle


Apple had a lot on offer at yesterday’s WWDC keynote to kick-off its World Wide Developer Conference for 2012. However, none may be more crucial than what Apple had to say about its next-generation mobile OS -- mobile devices have become the driving force behind most of Apple’s staggering growth since the iPhone was launched back in 2007. Underlining this is the incredible fact that Apple’s iPhone business alone now outstrips the total revenue generated by Microsoft. MacNN has had the opportunity to go hands-on with the developer preview of Apple’s iOS 6 Beta for iPhone. Read on to see whether we think this early preview suggests that Apple has delivered enough to keep the iOS juggernaut rolling on.

For users who were hoping for major UI tweaks to Springboard (the iOS home screen), Apple will have left you disappointed. There is nothing fundamentally different about Apple’s tried and true formula in iOS 6. One of the driving philosophies behind iOS is that the OS and its UI remain as transparent as possible, which is probably why it might be some time before we see Apple give its iconic home screen any kind of major revamp. If using an iPhone is all about its ease of use and Apple’s incredible app ecosystem (which is loaded with apps that have all kinds of incredible and innovative UIs in themselves), then at the end of the day the iOS UI really matters little as long as it serves its purpose.



So as Apple did not reveal any major UI tweaks, that leaves the focus on value adding to the OS through feature enhancements and the addition of new apps and UI tweaks to existing apps. The headlining feature enhancement is probably the addition of the new iOS 6 Maps app with free turn-by-turn navigation. Of all the rumors leading into the WWDC, this was one of the hottest and Apple didn’t disappoint on this count. In fact, it exceeded expectations by launching its new Maps app with free turn-by-turn navigation powered by Tom Tom (and 'others'), but with an Apple designed UI.





Also given a substantial upgrade is Apple's vaunted Siri voice-controlled interface. In addition to now being able to launch apps and other tricks like getting information about sports and movies, Siri has also been integrated into the Maps app. As outlined below, Siri can be asked about local points of interest, including the location of gas stations as well as how to get users from point A to point B. Users can also ask Siri about where to grab a quick bite to eat near to where they are currently located.



Although Google tried to steal the thunder from Apple's then-rumored integration of 3D mapping capabilities in its new Maps app, Apple's implementation in iOS 6 is beautifully accomplished, even in its still Beta state. Flyovers look amazing on the iPhone's Retina display, and the way it renders topography and buildings is cool to watch.



Some of the other notable additions to iOS 6 includes the ability to make FaceTime calls over a 3G connection, although users concerned about data allowances needn't be as Apple has given users the option to toggle this function on and off. Much ado was made about the deeper integration with Facebook in iOS, which is a welcome addition -- if you've seen how Apple integrated Twitter into iOS 5, it works in very much the same way. Beyond this, Apple has also overhauled its UIs for the App Store and iTunes Store apps in iOS 6. The changes have been designed to make navigating both stores easier and less cluttered. The Music app also gets revamped with hints of the overhaul Apple gave to the Music app for iPad in iOS 5. The new-look player looks more contemporary as a result.









It has also tweaked the Phone app, giving users the option to send preset messages in response to incoming calls. Users can also continue receiving messages and calls in the background without being bothered now with the inclusion of a new Do Not Disturb function. Apple has further included a new Privacy function in Settings that aims to explicity address user and regulator concerns about privacy and user tracking by informing users which apps are using information from Location Services, Contacts, Calendars, Reminders and Photos.



While there are still room for Apple to make further enhancements to its mobile OS in future releases (ie. think widgets and further enhancements to notifications), it has ensured that its latest marquee additions to iOS continue to make it compelling for end users. In some respects, from a feature perspective, iOS 6 lags behind Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich). However, where it continues to stay well ahead of Android is in its stability and its slickness. Even the Beta 1 version of iOS 6 feels rock solid.

That Ice Cream Sandwich is Google’s most polished version of Android to date is not in question. However, it continues to have what may be perceived as architectural shortcomings not always visible to the end user, particularly with its lack of proper optimization for multi-core processors. Intel recently highlighted the inefficient way in which the Android OS makes use of the system resources that Android manufacturers are stuffing into their devices for the sake of the hardware spec wars. iOS is built on the full Mac OS X kernel, which helps to explain why it does what it does so well by comparison -- it takes much better advantage of its system resources. Overall, iOS 6 looks to be yet another step in the right direction for users who are looking for the easiest to use and master mobile operating system.

"[Google] released a dairy product, 4.0, about the same time that we released iOS 5. About 7 percent of Android customers are running the latest version versus 80 percent of customers running iOS 5."

-- Scott Forstal, WWDC

Addressing fragmentation.

I don't supposed it occurred to the witless aquatic bird that 900,000 activations a day must mean that people are quite happy with a phone that can do most if not all that iOarse can do even if it's one or two releases behind.

Giz reader Zach wrote in after noticing something strange going on in the new Music app:

I noticed today that the reflection on the metallic sliders in the iPod app actually change as you tilt the phone from side to side.

And by God, he's right. Apple actually modified the app so that it'll detect the phone's slight shifting of position and create an artificial gleam on a virtual knob meant to replicate a design feature from the 70s. Functional? Nope. Entirely superfluous? Yep. Impressive? Yep again, if only for its lunacy.

This is skeuomorphism on bath salts, and proof beyond a doubt that even post-Jobs, there are still some attention to detail nutcases onboard.

It has nothing to with jumping up and down over it - it's simply a type of attention to detail that is a pleasure to notice, and something you rarely, if ever, see from competitors.

It's a nice touch.

That said, the Beta 1 of iOS 6 is close to rock solid, but there are still enough details and issues to warrant a 3 months beta period. Really just fine and minor details that will only surface from actual use.

Originally Posted by Cthulhu

it's simply a type of attention to detail that is a pleasure to notice,

yeah, only if you are an autistic adult or a 6 year old

..... or not appreciated by those satisfied by mediocrity.

Or a totally fucking useless attempt at masking all the other flaws in this piece of crap.

^ bingo !!!

Well, Nutter, it makes me wonder why you are using an iPhone if you detest the company and their products so much...

He can't help it, he has homosexual tendencies.

Quack Quack, I gave the iPhone a try, at the time it was a good alternative

it's actually a computer, not a Phone, and I liked that

I couldn't care less about the company and the other retard products they have

I am not a religious nutter like you are Quack Quack,

Originally Posted by Butterfly

Quack Quack, I gave the iPhone a try, at the time it was a good alternative

it's actually a computer, not a Phone, and I liked that

I couldn't care less about the company and the other retard products they have

I am not a religious nutter like you are Quack Quack,

You're not? Despite owning 12 Macs?

AFP: Apple fends off Android challenge with maps, Siri

Apple fends off Android challenge with maps, Siri

By Glenn Chapman (AFP) – 2 days ago

SAN FRANCISCO — Apple says it is planning to rev up the software running its coveted gadgets, training its sights on the China market -- and tossing Google Maps aside in the process.

Apple used its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in San francisco Monday to show off upgrades to the software running iPhones, iPads, and iPod Touch devices including its own Siri-infused mapping technology and features tailored for Chinese users.

The hundreds of improvements in the iOS 6 mobile operating system due out before the end of the year come as Apple seeks to outdistance rivals powered by Google's Android software.

Apple chief Tim Cook kicked off the California company's annual WWDC by showing off new capabilities built into software for its hot-selling devices and slimmer, more powerful MacBook laptop computers.

Apple booted Google Maps from iOS 6, opening up another front in the war with the maker of the Android operating system.

Apple's new operating system for the iPhone and iPad includes "an entire new mapping solution from the ground up, and it is beautiful," Apple's Scott Forstall told the standing-room only crowd in San Francisco.

"We are doing all the cartography ourselves. We are covering the world."

Apple has "ingested hundreds of millions of business listings around the world," he added, and has integrated with the consumer review service Yelp for reviews and ratings.

Although Maps does little to generate revenues directly, it often links to searches for products and services such as restaurants or businesses.

"You can now do local search even in China," said Forstall, who added that an array of new iOS 6 features was tailored for that country.

Analysts say the Apple maps program could over time move iPhone and iPad users away from Google search and reduce revenues for the search giant.

"Make no mistake, with maps and some expanded Siri features, Apple is now in the search business," said analyst Greg Sterling on the technology blog Search Engine Land.

Google last week beefed up its maps program, which had been pre-installed on Apple devices.

Apple said that iOS 6 will also include a better-educated Siri personal assistant, which performs many of the search functions of Google.

"Siri has been out only eight months," Forstall said.

"In these eight months Siri has been studying up and learning a lot more."

Siri, which made its debut with the release of the iPhone 4S, will be extended to recent generation iPad tablet computers, according to Forstall.

Another improvement to the iOS will be to incorporate Facebook in the operating system.

"We have been working very closely with Facebook to create the best Facebook experience ever on a mobile device," Forstall said.

Apple also pulled back the curtain on slimmer, more powerful Macintosh laptops.

The move keeps Apple, which has been dominating the market for tablet computers like the iPad, in the game against a new line of slimmer laptops using Microsoft Windows or the Google Chrome operating system.

"Today we've updated the entire MacBook line with faster processors, graphics, memory, flash storage and USB 3 connectivity," said Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of worldwide marketing.

The MacBook Air is as thin as 0.68 inches (1.7 centimeters) and weighs as little as 2.38 pounds (1.08 kilos). Its price starts at $999.

Improved models will see a boost in speed and memory and cost $100 less than previous versions.

The high-performance MacBook Pro will include the "Retina" display used on the new iPads, giving an extra high resolution screen.

"With a gorgeous Retina display, all flash architecture and a radically thin and light design, the new MacBook Pro is the most advanced Mac we have ever built," Cook said.

Prices start at $1,399.

The new MacBook Pro is "a screamer of a machine," according to Gartner analyst Van Baker.

"Apple is doing some amazing things with the notebook form factor," Baker said. "It is a shame to see Apple is the only notebook manufacturer doing innovation as opposed to driving costs down."

Improvements to the software powering Macintosh computers included dictation technology so that "wherever you can type you can now talk," according to Apple senior vice president of software Craig Federighi.

Apple was also "really improving our Chinese input method" with a better dictionary, special fonts for characters, and support for search engine Baidu and other major Internet services in that country, Federighi said.

"Get your apps ready for China," he told developers.

The new Mac operating system, called Mountain Lion, will be in new machines and available as an upgrade next month for a price of $20.

Equity Research managing director Trip Chowdhry summed up the Apple announcements as "nice refresh, but no breakthroughs."

"I'm totally impressed, mostly on the software side of things," said independent software developer Carlos Oliva, who traveled from his hometown on the Chilean coast to attend WWDC.

Originally Posted by Cthulhu

You're not? Despite owning 12 Macs?

I was a mac fan when the alternative was far worse, that was back in the 1990s

Win95 tards then sounded much like the itards of today,

"Make no mistake, with maps and some expanded Siri features, Apple is now in the search business," said analyst Greg Sterling on the technology blog Search Engine Land.

Ha Ha, Dream on! These Apple Fucktard fanboi bloggers don't half come out with some crap.

Windows 8's new Appollo is launched next week, and apparently they will be mentioning how they have put more into 1 update than ios has into their last 3

Originally Posted by Kwang

Windows 8's new Appollo is launched next week, and apparently they will be mentioning how they have put more into 1 update than ios has into their last 3

That ought to be good for some laughs.

I hear they are charging nearly $100 licensing fee for the OS alone. Yeah, MS, good luck with that.