iOS 7, the latest version of Apple’s flagship mobile operating system, is here. The newly introduced Apple mobile OS offers a radical new look and some first-for-Apple features for iPhone and iPad fans. Apple iOS 7 introduces great new features like quick-access system controls, automatic app updates, AirDrop file-sharing system for iOS, and smarter multitasking.
Apple CEO Tim Cook introduced iOS 7, calling it “the biggest change to iOS since the introduction of the iPhone.” iOS 7 is almost entirely different from the versions that came before. It brings a ton of usability improvements, many of which we’ve found missing in iOS for quite a while now. iOS 7 launches in beta for iPhone developers today, with a larger public release expected this fall.
Read on to know more about the improvements and features about the Apple’s newest mobile OS, iOS 7.
New Look
- iOS 7 is flat, very skinny, and clean. iOS 7 brings a brand new look for the operating system with flatter icons and UI elements. Overall, the look is cleaner and simpler in many ways.
- Unnecessary bars and buttons have been removed.
- The lock screen is changed for the first time in iOS’s history, with no more shine top or bottom bars for slide to unlock or the clock. Instead, Slide to unlock is translucent above the background image.
- Along with visuals that look nearly transparent, like a pane of glass, it feels smooth and connected from screen to screen.
- All system icons are redesigned around a standardized grid to unify the look. Default app icons are now flatter, but not quite flat.
- The keyboard is more white, than grey, with a translucency that lets you see what’s underneath the keyboard.
- There’s a dynamic parallax effect between the icons and the wallpaper as you turn and tilt your phone. When you move the phone or tablet, Apple promises a 3D effect that makes your wallpaper appear some distance behind the icons.
Control Center
- New in iOS 7 is a Control Center. It’s an area that can be activated from within any app, and is available from any screen.
Just swipe from any screen – including the lock screen – to do things like switch to Airplane mode. turn Wi-Fi on or off, music controls, or adjust the brightness of your display and more. - Control Center also integrates a small flashlight tool, signaling the death of so many third-party flashlight apps.
- From Control Center you can access a flashlight, start a song, toggle AirPlay, timer, calculator and camera.
Notifications
- Notification center lets you know about new mails, missed calls, to-dos that need doing and more.
- A new Feature called Today gives you info about today’s goings on (birthdays, weather, upcoming events from the calendar, stocks and even some info for tomorrow).
- You can access notification center from any Screen including the lock screen.
Multitasking
- iOS 7 lets you multitask between all third-party apps with much better battery consumption.
- You can double-tap the home button to enter into multi-tasking mode to see preview screens of the apps you have open. To quit an app, just swipe it up and out of preview.
- iOS 7 keeps track when you use a specific app and can update your content before you launch them.
Safari
- Safari for iOS 7 has a new look and feel, includes a new tabbed view.
- Tabs are now 3D and fully integrated with iCloud tabs. Users are no longer limited to eight tabs and tabs can be reordered or removed with a swipe.
- Buttons and bars – like the unified amart search field – stay hidden untill you scroll to reveal them.
- Safari opens straight into full screen mode now, with the option to pull down to bring up the search bar at the top.
- The search field has been improved to be a unified smart search field, which lets you have access to all your favorite websites with a single tap.
- It also integrates with iCloud Keychain for password management.
AirDrop
- AirDrop will let users share photos or files peer-to-peer with other iOS users who are nearby. AirDrop lets you quickly and easily sahre photos, videos, contacts and anything else from any app with a share button.
- It also offers the option to make yourself invisible to nearby iOS 7 users from the Control Center.
- AirDrop will only work on iOS devices running the latest wireless chipsets, meaning the iPhone 5, fourth generation iPad, iPad mini, and the latest iPod touch.
Camera and Photos
- The Camera app lets you swipe between your various camera types, such as panorama or HDR so you can quickly take a pic instead of fumbling around with settings.
- The Photos app has been redesigned and now sort your photos based on where and when you took them – automatically putting a meaningful title to the collections.
- Users can also share video with iCloud Photostreams in iOS 7.
- You can search based on date, and location, within the photos app.
- Apple has introduced photo filters so you can add a little professionalism to the picture.
Smarter SIRI
- Siri in iOS 7 gets a new look, a new voice, and new capabilities with a redesigned interface.
- You can choose a male or female voice, if you like. Voices include languages like French, German, and other languages “over time.”
- Siri is faster at answering questions and checks more sources, such as Bing, Wikipedia, and Twitter.
- Siri has also been integrated with settings, letting you tell her to turn on bluetooth, or lower the screen brightness. Siri takes on extra tasks, like returning calls, playing voicemail, controlling iTunes Radio, and more.
iTunes Radio
- Apple has finally introduced the much-anticipated iTunes Radio, features streaming radio stations you’ll love from day one — from the best selection of music.
- iTunes Radio also lets you customize each station by clicking a star to show that you want more of this type of music.
- iTunes Radio is available on iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Mac, PC, and Apple TV for free.
App Store
- The App Store has a new design and will show apps that are popular nearby, as well as apps popular with your friends.
- You can now search for apps based on location, shows you a collection of popular apps relevant to your current location.
- The App Store also automatically updates apps for you in the background now.
iOS in the Car
- Apple is going to bring iOS to the dashboard of your car, depends a lot on Siri.
- It puts the iOS homescreen on the screen of your car, and lets you search for directions, listen to music, etc.
- iOS in the Car knows when you’re leaving home for work — or vice versa — and displays traffic conditions and your ETA.
- Support for iOS in the car will be coming to Honda, Mercedes, Nissan, Chevy, Kia, Volvo, Acura and others.
Activation lock to protect against theft
- This is for those of us who have had an iPhone stolen. Find My iPhone can help you get it back.
- If a thief steals your phone and tries to turn off Find My iPhone, they can no longer turn the device back on without your Apple ID and password.
- Users can also block messages and calls from other users.
- Find My iPhone can also continue to display a custom message, even after your device is erased.
A few more notable features and updates
- Unlock the phone, and icons drift down
- Revamped weather app shows dynamic weather animations onscreen; pinch for all-city overview
- iCloud photo-sharing
- iCloud keychain remembers sensitive data
- Long MMS support
- Swipe from day to day in Calendar
- Phone, FaceTime, and Message blocking
- View PDF annotations
- Support for 60fps video capture
- Airdrop from activity sheet
- Background asset downloads
- Inclinometer support
iOS 7 is available for the iPhone in beta for developers. In the Fall, iOS 7 will be available on iPhone 4 and later, iPod touch 5th gen, iPad mini and iPad 2 and later.
