Apple WWDC: new systems, new music service

The main theme of the conference was "The epicenter of change". This is of course just a slogan, because Apple can call even a slightest modification a revolutionary one. So let us see what did Californians prepared for us.

OS X 10.11 El Capitan

In the newest system for Mac computers there are no revolutionary changes, only many smaller modifications. Like finding a cursor. This may be a detail but somehow it was overlooked in OS X. The email client was changed as well - they have added highlighting and deleting mails via gestures and working in tabs. In Safari browser we have pinning tabs while in Spotlight - the possibility to move a window. There was introduced dividing the screen between two apps and the overall efficiency of the system was improved as well. In the El Capitan version we have the new Metal graphic engine, previously introduced in iOS 8. The new OS X Will be available in autumn.

iOS9

The list of improvements in the new iOS is opened by Siri - it is supposed to be faster and more intelligent, learning about users’ behaviours. Apple Pay, on the other hand, will be more available in the US, and what is more - it will be available in the Great Britain, where it will be possible to pay, for example, for public transportation. In the notepad app there will appear an option to add photos or links, while in maps there will be a navigation with a public transportation. Of course for some cities in the US and… in China. One of the changes in the new iOS will be the disappearance of “Newsstand”. It will be replaced by a new app News, similar to FlipBoard. In this app we will find news prepared by ESPN, New York Times, Conde Nast or Hearst. More of them will probably be added to the data base with time…

iPads will receive new options while typing, iOS will receive the possibility to work in windows as well. Unfortunately, this feature will be available only for iPad Air 2. Users of older models will have to play with Windows… or a window-in-window mode, which will appear in the new iOS. The news that the newest system has only 2GB of capacity is comforting. This is a big step forward. This system will appear on the same models as the previous version, that is iOS8.

watchOS 2

App Store received some attention as well. 100 billion of downloads, 30 billion dollars paid to developers – these numbers made a big impression, just like presenting the new system for Apple Watch. Presented after half a year after the first iteration, watchOS 2 will allow users to display their own wallpapers on the face of the clock, and developers will be able to display notifications from apps on the clock face. There will be an option to display time horizontally (bedtime clock) and information about upcoming events (Time Travel). Maps, FaceTime and Siri were added – with their full functionality. watchOS 2 will allow apps to use the speaker and the microphone of the watch, the user will be able to use Apple Pay as well. Some apps in the watch could work without communicating with the smartphone – using the Wi-Fi. There will be a series of app connected with the Internet – for controlling a house or a car.

Apple Music

One more thing… this is a key sentence that adds a splendour at the end of every conference of Apple. Today – this is Apple Music. This app will be changed a bit. There will be a service based on Beats Music, bought by Apple in the last year. Beats One – that is how it is called now – will not only be a worldwide radio (airing from London, Los Angeles and New York), but also a place connecting artists with users and allowing them to interact – in Beats Connect. The user of course can create his or her own playlists and listen to them via iTunes.

The “recommendation” section will be created by living people, not algorithms. A monthly fee for using an unlimited streaming of music will cost 9.99 dollars. The “family” option – for six users, will cost 14.99 USD. First three months will be free of charge, and the service will be available on Mac, Windows, iOS and Android. For Apple devices the service will launch with the end of June and it will hit other devices in autumn.