Apple first announced iOS 18 at Global Developers Conference in June, one of the company’s biggest software upgrades in years. From long-awaited features in Apple Intelligence With the redesign of the Photos app, there’s a lot of new stuff for users and developers to explore. With iPhone 16 launchWe now have a better understanding of existing features and the upcoming AI upgrade roadmap.
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The latest version of iOS makes your iPhone more customizable with personalized home screen layouts, Better Control Center navigationand updates to key apps like Messages, Mail, and more. Here’s everything you need to know about iOS 18 and why you should be as excited as I am.
1. Apple Intelligence on iOS 18
I have used Apple Intelligence on my iPhone 15 Pro in beta for a while now. It won’t be rolling out with the iPhone 16 series but will be in beta starting next month with iOS 18.1. Apple’s competitor AI Galaxy And Google Gemini has some common features like summary and Clean up in Photos (like Magic Eraser) but overall it’s more intuitive than the other tools.
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I find the notification summary feature extremely useful. It’s not always reliable, but most of the time it’s accurate. If you get a lot of emails, WhatsApp messages, Instagram messages, etc., this feature helps clean up your notification panel. It summarizes multiple texts/emails into a single notification in one sentence and only expands when you tap on it. You also get the usual writing tools to help summarize the content and create images or “Genmoji”
Apple Intelligence uses Image Playground to help you create images based on descriptions, suggested concepts, or people from your Photos library. You can customize these images with new styles and make changes to add context to your story. The feature is built into your iPhone, and Apple claims that it “learns your personal information without collecting your personal information.” The company has partnered with ChatGPT to bring this service to your iPhone. You don’t need an account to access ChatGPT and it will be integrated into your iPhone.
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I also find Apple’s Intelligence animations more intuitive than those of its competitors. Google and Samsung’s loading screens make me want to leave the screen, but Apple’s approach keeps me focused on the screen while the changes are processed or it creates a Memory Movie. The Clean Up feature in Photos isn’t exactly like Google’s Magic Eraser, but I hope it gets better in the stable version.
While Apple Intelligence is the most prominent addition to iOS 18, not all iPhones will get the feature. It’s expected to roll out to the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max alongside the new iPhones; although iOS 18 is available for the iPhone SE (2nd generation). The feature will launch in US English first and will expand to support localized English in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, and the UK in December. Apple Intelligence will support additional languages including Chinese, French, Japanese, and Spanish next year.
2. All-new, more powerful Siri
Siri is getting a much-needed upgrade to compete with other apps on your device. virtual assistant. This is one of my most requested features on iOS 18 Wish Listand Apple appears to have done it. The feature isn’t in beta yet. But in a demo shown at the iPhone 16 launch, Siri sounded more natural than ever. Apple’s virtual assistant is being redesigned to understand you better, with greater awareness of personal context and the ability to take action within and across apps. Siri is getting a boost with ChatGPT Integration on iOS 18.
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The new version of Siri also supports vacuums with the Home app, allowing you to control functions like power, cleaning mode, vacuuming, mopping, and charging status just by asking your iPhone. Other hands-free Siri interactions include the ability to nod in agreement or gently shook his head and did not answer. when a call comes in while you’re wearing your AirPods Pro. Siri now works in the background, so you don’t have to speak up to accept or decline calls. Plus, you can now ask Siri to apply styles in Photos while you’re editing.
3. More personalized home screen
With iOS 18, Apple finally lets you place apps wherever you want on the home screen. I mean, no more worrying about left-aligned stacking and filling in negative space! I’ve missed this customization, especially on the Pro Max and Plus iPhones, where it’s hard to reach the top of their large screens with my thumb when I’m holding the device. Like Android, iOS now lets you place apps wherever you want — no more rigid grids.
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Apple also added the ability to customize icon colors to match your wallpaper — much like Material You on Android. iOS 18 will suggest color combinations that match your background color to make your home screen look better. It looked great with Dark Mode during the WWDC keynote, but you’ll need to customize it to your liking, as the default colors are too cartoony in the beta.
4. Customizable Lock Screen and Control Center
The customizations extend to the lock screen. You can now replace the Torch/Flashlight and Camera lock screen icons with other apps, so they’re just a swipe away from the lock screen. iOS 18 also adds the ability to lock apps with Face ID and a passcode. You can add apps to a hidden space that no one else can access when, say, you hand them your iPhone to show them photos.
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Apple is Updating Control Center to provide more customization and better navigation. For example, you can now swipe up from Control Center to get to a larger, more convenient media player. Plus, Control Center supports multiple widget pages, including one dedicated to managing smart home devices.
iOS 18 makes pairing easier for third-party devices with on-screen pop-ups, like when you pair AirPods. The new update also gives you more control over how you add contacts.
5. Improved Photos app
In iOS 18, Apple is redesigning the entire Photos app. The new interface streamlines the Library to show important photos at a glance, with Collections at the bottom. A single Collection can include groups of people, which wasn’t possible before. The new feature automatically organizes your library by topics like Recent Days, Trips, and People & Pets. When you tap Photos, you’ll see a screen that’s about 60 percent full of your regular photo library, while the rest is Collections.
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The WWDC keynote introduced fast forwards and a Photos grid that lets you see your entire library, which you can navigate by scrolling. Plus, you can now filter screenshots. iOS 18 also adds the ability to swipe right from the grid to go to a new Carousel, which includes Featured Photos, location-based media, Favorites, and more. It’s said to show a new set of photos every day to keep the experience fresh.
In my experience, the Photos app is pretty cluttered so far. It’s better to spend some time editing the folders you need on the screen and customizing it to your liking.
6. Messages with more personality (and satellite support)
Messages is also getting new features like RCS support, ability to schedule messagesand text formatting, which really should have been part of the app all along. With iOS 18, you can now schedule messages to be sent at a specific time—another feature Android has had for a while—just like you can with email. As for RCS, it makes for a better messaging experience if you receive messages from people who don’t use iMessage, especially Android users.
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The updated Messages app will also let you add text formatting like bold, italics, underline, and strikethrough to your texts. Another new feature is text effects, which add a touch of personality and unexpected emojis to your messages. You can apply fun, animated effects to any letter, emoji, or word and phrase in your messages—most of which are automatically suggested as you type. Plus, iPhone 14 and later models will be able to access Satellite connectivity for texts in areas without a signal.
7. Other application updates
Apple is updating the Mail app to add Sorting, which lets you filter emails into categories like Primary, Transactional, and Promotional. Sorting will be available later this year. More app updates include a Terrain view in Maps, Click to withdraw in Wallet to share digital cash with just a tap and Insights in the Journal app.
Apple is adding more features to Safari in iOS 18. It will now detect relevant information on a page and highlight it as you browse. There’s a redesigned Reader, adding a table of contents and high-level summaries for a better experience. Plus, you get Game Mode to minimize background activity, maintaining a consistently high frame rate for long periods of time. Switching modes will also reduce audio latency with AirPods and wireless game controllers.
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The Home app is getting a major update later this year, introducing support for robot vacuums and the ability to see your home’s energy usage. For compatible locks, Apple is adding Express Mode, which lets you unlock your door when you approach it with just your iPhone in your pocket or while wearing your Apple Watch. You can also now grant specific controls to people with Guest access.
The new iOS 18 update also integrates Reminders with Calendar, so you can see reminders added in the future when you view your schedule. Developers and the public can access iOS 18 beta now. The full release will be available next Monday, September 16.
