Our iOS 7 release date, features, apps, news & screenshots article is updated regularly, so check back often for the latest updates. Updated on the 20th August, with all the launch details and latest information on the beta versions.
When it was first released, iOS was one of the most innovative and different mobile operating systems
, proving that touchscreen interfaces really could work. It was a large part of the reason why the iPhone was so popular when it was first released. A few years down the line and it would be fair to say that iOS hasn’t changed that much since it launched. Even the latest version, iOS 6 (available for current devices, such as the iPhone 5 and iPad 4), is more of a tweak than a brand new OS.
With the competition dramatically improving, with the likes of Android 4.2 providing plenty of new features, and the big threat of the Samsung Galaxy S4, it’s time for a big change, and that’s what iOS 7 brings. It’s a much needed change given that smartphones are sold as much on the operating system as on the hardware.
We’ve seen Apple make big changes to an operating system before in order to bring more success: the introduction of OS X completely revamped the Mac market and the way that people thought of Apple’s computers.
The good news is that we know a lot about iOS 7 already as it was unveiled at Apple WWDC, with beta versions released to developers soon after. As you can see below, iOS 7 is a big departure from previous versions of the mobile OS.
iOS 7 LOOK AND FEEL
Jony Ive was given complete responsibility for the operating system. Responsible for Apple’s hardware designs, Ive’s now tasked with bringing a cleaner, more streamlined approach to the software. The result, from what we’ve seen, is a vastly improved and more modern operating system.
As widely predicted, the OS is flatter and the skeuomorphic design has gone. Skeuomorphism is where an app is designed to look like its real-world equivalent, such as the Notes app having a yellow background and lines. As a concept, skeuomorphism is increasingly outdated, and apps designed for digital make a lot more sense.
Generally speaking, iOS 7 now gives more room for apps, taking every edge-to-edge. Using all of the screen space really makes a difference. All of the icons have been redesigned, too, giving them a cleaner appearance. Finally, the other change on the home screen is that the signal strength bar has been replaced by a series of dots, rather than bars.
It’s perhaps a shame that less has been done to bring more information to the home screen, such as with Android’s widgets, but Apple is presenting information in a different way. Here’s what you can expect from the new OS.
iOS 7 NOTIFICATION CENTER
You still get the Notification Center, which is a pull-down menu from the top of the screen, but it’s presentation has been overhauled. Now you can scroll through your latest messages, emails, calendar, photo and other notifications in a long list.
New is the Missed tab, which lets you see any missed calls, and the Today tab, which gives you a quick glance of what you’re up to today.
The Notification Center has been overhauled and it’s easier to see what’s going on
iOS 7 WEATHER
The Weather app is a good example of the new design. It runs full screen, rather than in a small window. There’s also a neat animated background that visually shows the weather, such as rain.
Bigger and better: the new Weather app
iOS 7 CONTROL CENTER
Using iOS has always been slightly annoying, as all of the settings, even the most frequently used ones, are in the Settings app. With iOS 7 a new Control Center changes that. This new menu, which you get from swiping up from the bottom of the screen, gives you access to common settings, including Flight mode, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, brightness, playback controls, a flashlight, calculator and camera.
Hooray – there’s no need to go to the Settings app to make simple changes thanks to Control Center
iOS 7 AIRDROP
Transferring files between iOS devices is set to get easier with AirDrop, a new method of transferring data using Wi-Fi. Accessible through Control Center, you just tap AirDrop to share what you’re currently viewing on your phone. A small menu appears to show you your nearby friends, then you just tap one or more to share the data.
Apple had a quick dig at Google by saying this method was easier than tapping your phones together, but we wouldn’t be entirely surprised if AirDrop could be activated this way if and when NFC support comes to the iPhone and iPad. AirDrop will work on the iPhone 5, fifth-generation iPod Touch, iPad 4 and iPad Mini.
Share data quickly with AirDrop
iOS 7 SAFARI
Safari has had a sizable overhaul, too. It now runs full screen, fitting as much as possible on screen at once. There’s now no separate Search box, with a single box for searching and URLs.
The biggest addition is the tab browser, where you flick through your open tabs in a graphical carousel, similar to that available on Chrome. It’s good to see that your iCloud tabs appear at the bottom of this carousel, rather than in a separate menu, so you can pick-up browsing where you left-off on another device.
We like the way that you can also start a Private browsing session from here, rather than having to go through the Settings app.
Full screen Safari gives you the entire screen for browsing
iOS 7 APP STORE
It’s a minor change here, but an important one: Apps now update automatically in the background, so you don’t have to remember to do it manually.
iOS 7 CAMERA AND PHOTOS
One of the biggest things that people use their smartphones for is taking photos, so both the Camera and Photos apps have been overhauled. The Camera app now has a range of filters, so you can take more creative shots, similar to InstaGram. It also has a new Square mode, for taking square pictures. This format works slightly better than portrait for a lot of situations. You still have the standard Video, Photo and Panorama modes.
Living in a hipster’s paradise: the new Camera app has filters and a Square mode
Photos has been improved, so you don’t just see a massive collection of pictures that you have to scroll through. Instead, Moments lets you browse by date and location, giving you automatic filtering of images.
Photos now automatically sort themselves, so you’re not just presented with a big list of thumbnails
iOS 7 MULTI-TASKING
It’s time for proper multi-tasking. Now apps are updated automatically by Push Notifications, so you don’t have to wait for them to update when you switch to them. The interface has also been improved, giving you a much more graphical way to switch between apps, with a thumbnail preview of all running apps. Given the rather basic task switching available now, this is a big improvement.
Multi-tasking is now much more visual
iOS 7 iTUNES RADIO
Similar to Spotify, the iTunes Radio app (built into the Music app) lets you stream music from the internet. It’s free to iTunes Match users and will launch in the US initially, with a worldwide roll-out to come at an undisclosed date. You can, of course, buy any track that you like directly from the app.
Streaming radio the Apple way
iOS 7 FIND MY IPHONE ACTIVATION LOCK
The Find My iPhone Activation Lock is designed to prevent thieves from using your phone. You need the Apple ID associated with the phone to turn off Find My iPhone or to re-activate a device that has been remotely wiped.
iOS 7 MESSAGES AND MAIL
Both the Messages and Mail apps have a new look and feel to match the rest of the OS. They’re certainly a lot cleaner, but we don’t know yet if there’s an unread messages view, which is the one thing that iOS really misses.
Messages and Mail now have cleaner interfaces
iOS 7 NOTIFICATION SYNC
Multiple iOS users rejoice, as Notification Sync means that notifications you’ve dismissed on one device don’t pop up on another. Anyone that’s turned on an iPad after a day’s iPhone usage will be very happy indeed.
iOS 7 RELEASE DATE
We’re currently up to iOS 7 Beta 6, with rumours of a Beta 7 due out soon, although that may not happen. We know that the final version is due for release in Autumn, but we can now make a good guess as to when we can expect to see the final version of iOS 7: 18th September.
That’s the rumoured launch date for the iPhone 5S (unless Apple springs a surprise on us and launches the iPhone 6). Given that Apple usually releases a new version of its operating system with new hardware, iOS 7 should launch then.
Given that hardware then takes a few weeks to come out, iOS 7 will most likely be released for existing phones on that date. As usual it will be a free download. It’s currently up-in-the-air as to when the iPad version of the operating system will be released, and it may be that we have to wait a few weeks for the launch of the iPad 5and iPad Mini 2 before we get to see the tablet edition.
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