Apple’s acclaimed WWDC 2020 is slowly approaching as it is set to take place from June 22nd to June 26th. That means we’re soon going to get a glimpse of the new iOS 14, the company’s next-generation operating system designed for iPhone.
There have already been numerous leaks and reports about what we might see this year in the OS, but after last year’s fail of iOS 13, there are a few things we need to see in iOS 14.
Lock Screen
iPhone users have requested for years an always-on Lock screen, just like the Apple Watch has. The screen would then offer information that can be glanceable and actionable, as well as tappable. Another thing we would like to see is a GuestBoard. Something like a locked-down PreBoard and opened SpringBoard that would allow users to borrow their phone to someone to make a call without giving them access to personal data.
Home
The Android Home interface is rather organized and neat, but the Home panel on iPhones is still fragmented across lots of vendor apps. Users have requested Apple to deprecate Home control from within vendor apps and move it completely into the Home app. It would be incredibly nice if iOS 14 would come with this change.
FaceTime
While we’re received FaceTime group calls, there’s still no call recording function. Of course, for some, this might seem not a good idea, but for those stuck at home with family also stuck someplace else, this would be a great feature to have.
Photos & Camera
Apple has made massive advancements forwards when it comes to computer vision, and machine-learning development as editing features for photos and videos are rather powerful and almost complete.
However, what Apple lacks is anonymization. It has the ability to detect faces, but the company has to provide users with protection for situations that demand it. Moreover, the ability to employ technologies such as Smart HD on the cameras that support it to use Smart Zoom would also be a great addition in iOS 14.
Maps
The tech giant has been enhancing Maps in the last year, but mainly in the U.S.; however, these maps need to be improved internationally, especially the crowd-sourced traffic data, so people don’t have to use other apps like Waze, which register their location.
Another request is augmented reality maps, in which the directions are imposed over the real world. That might come with LiDAR and the iPhone 12, but the sooner we get it, the better it would be.
Notes
Unfortunately, you cannot use Notes as a plaintext. It would be great for iOS 14 to come with the ability to create simple Notes, such as pasting a link as a URL when needed.
Safari
Safari is expected to receive an auto-translate feature, which is great for users who’d rather not employ Google’s translator. Also, some users have reported the misuse of the browser’s web view offshoots. For instance, universal links, which are supposed to allow you to tap an URL in an app that will take you to the app on which the content is posted on, are actually not opening in the respective app but keeps you on the web view.
Messages
There are a number of leaks regarding Messages getting better group features, such as multi-typing bubbles and mentions, as well as a ‘Mark as Unread’ and retracting option and messages reactions. However, a few years back, Apple has tested peer-to-peer and relay messaging, which basically means if you happen to be off the grid, you could still use ad-hoc Wi-Fi and Bluetooth to send messages.
Considering the recent advances with everything in technology, it would be great if iMessages would have an off-line mode.
What changes do you want to see coming with iOS 14?
