Apple lifted the curtain on all of its upcoming software updates during its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) 2024 keynote, showcasing what we can expect in all of its next major software updates – including iOS 18.
Apple Intelligence, Apple’s own brand of AI tools, will be a big part of all new software updates, including iOS 18. However, due to hardware limitations and the power required for AI, not all iPhones can run iOS 18. will be able to get Apple Intelligence.
Regardless, there’s a lot to look forward to in iOS 18 — and there are a few specific features I’m really excited to get my hands on (plus one I’m a little nervous about).
Although I have never considered myself a professional photographer, I have loved taking pictures ever since I got my first digital camera. Smartphones have made taking photos so much easier, and since I’ve used an iPhone most of my life, I’ve accumulated a lot of photos. And after I became a parent, I took even more. In fact, on my 1TB iPhone 15 Pro, I have over 52,000 photos and 2,000 videos.
The Photos app has largely remained unchanged over the years, at least until iOS 18. We’ll have a new, simplified interface and the ability to pin collections and memories that matter most to us. It’s also getting some Apple Intelligence superpowers, and I’m especially looking forward to that.
With Apple Intelligence, we’ll be able to do better searches in Photos. For example, we will be able to search for photos and videos using natural language phrases. For video search results, it will be able to find specific moments in those videos and take you right to that segment.
One of my favorite tools on Android phones lately is the ability to remove unwanted objects and people from the background of my photos (Magic Eraser in Google Photos). Apple is finally adding a similar tool to its photo editing suite in the form of Clean Up.
This uses Apple Intelligence to identify and remove distracting objects in the background of your photos without changing the subject. I had to use the Google Photos app for the Magic Eraser tool for this, but with iOS 18 I can stick with the standard Apple Photos on my iPhone.
Finally, since I have so many photos and videos of my daughter, I’m looking forward to trying out the new memories feature that lets you create your own video story. All you have to do is enter a description of the memories you want to display, and Apple Intelligence selects the best photos and videos based on that prompt. It sounds like a fun way to make fun little videos of my daughter to show family and friends and I can’t wait to use it.
My job at Digital Trends involves a lot of writing. That’s basically all I do, and honestly, I wouldn’t think of it any other way. I enjoy my job, but sometimes I need a little push.
I often use some tools while writing, like Grammarly, to make sure my words are correct and look good to read. And with Apple Intelligence, I can’t wait to try out the new writing tools that are implemented throughout the system.
I don’t plan on using the rewrite tool since I like to write my own words, but I’m curious to try these for proofreading and summarizing. Before I submit my work, I like to proofread it to make sure everything is spelled correctly, no typos, bullet points are where they need to be, and other basic things are in order. I’m curious to see how well the patch tool will perform once it’s available.
The summary tool will probably be the one I use the most. I take notes frequently during press briefings and come across long articles throughout the day. There are also a lot of emails that land in my inbox that are quite long. I hope the summary tool will make my life a little easier by giving me only the key points of the text.
More customization of the home screen and control center
A feature that doesn’t use Apple Intelligence, but I can’t wait to try out yet, is the new home screen customization.
While some people may not like that iOS is becoming more Android-like with customization, I welcome it. I especially like how the icons look in dark mode since I live in dark mode 24/7 and I’m also curious about the icon coloring. Although Apple didn’t show all the great examples, I think it could look good if done right.
I’m also looking forward to tinkering with the new control center, which has been the same for many years. Being able to put the controls you want anywhere, as well as getting controls for third-party apps, is a big and welcome change. And the fact that you can finally change lock screen shortcuts? It was about time!
Improvements to the Messages app
Apple is finally rolling out some big new changes to the Messages app as well.
The feature I’m most looking forward to is RCS support. However, it was rather odd that Apple barely mentioned this during the keynote, considering how big a feature this is. It might have something to do with Apple being forced to play this hand due to regulations, but it would still be nice to hear more about what it’s going to look like instead of just “RCS is coming.”
While Android fans will scoff at Apple finally giving us a Send Later feature for iMessages because they’ve had it before, it’s still a cool feature that I didn’t expect. Maybe my mind was just focused on RCS support, or maybe it’s because I don’t often have to schedule messages. But it’s good that this will be a feature available to all iMessage users.
A smarter Siri, we hope
I hardly ever use Siri except to set timers when I’m cooking or maybe change the music in the car. But now that Siri will be infused with Apple Intelligence, I’m looking forward to giving the whole virtual assistant thing another go.
With Apple Intelligence, Siri should be more natural, relevant and personal. It should be able to understand you, even if you stutter, slur your words, or make several requests at once. It can even understand the context of the screen, making it more capable than ever.
Of course, since Apple Intelligence isn’t currently in the first iOS 18 developer beta (it won’t be available until the fall), we can’t say for sure if it’s really better or not. But I’m very curious to see if this is actually an improvement over the current state of Siri, even though it’s a relatively low bar.
The imaging stuff feels awkward
While AI can definitely be useful, one of my biggest issues with it in general has to do with the ethics behind it all, especially the image generation. And, unfortunately, Apple has decided to join the bandwagon.
We know that iOS 18 and Apple Intelligence, along with iPadOS 18 and macOS Sequoia, will have the Image Playground feature. It is a standalone app and is also integrated into first-party apps like Messages, Notes, and more. With Image Playground, users can create new and “original” images based on a series of descriptive keywords. Your image can look like an animation, an illustration, or even a sketch.
You can express yourself better in Messages or even have a better photo to go with your notes, and it’s contextually aware. So in Messages, for example, it will suggest suggested images based on the topic in a thread, and in Notes it can even generate a new image based on the surrounding context. Then there’s Genmoji, which lets you create pretty much any emoji you want just by writing a description.
Personally, I’m a bit uncomfortable with all of Apple’s image generation tools. In order for AI to generate art and images, it must learn from existing art from artists and creators by scraping the Internet and then incorporating it into the art it generates from a prompt. Apple says its imaging tools have been trained on high-quality, licensed and public data. The three art styles for Image Playground were also created by Apple’s design team.
It sounds like a better approach than some other image generation tools, but I still don’t feel good about it. This is especially true when Apple is often seen as a brand for creatives and artists (eg drawing on the iPad with the Apple Pencil).
During the keynote, when Apple showed off the Image Playground feature in the Notes app, converting a hand-drawn sketch into an AI-generated picture, I shook my head. I personally prefer to see the hand drawn sketch as it makes your notes look more like, well your notes. The sketch didn’t even look terrible, better than my artistic capabilities anyway.
There is something to look forward to
Despite my issue with AI image generation, I still look forward to many features in iOS 18 and Apple Intelligence.
Some of the biggest requests I’ve had over the past few years are finally coming true, like more home screen customization, custom lock screen shortcuts, a better control center, and improved ways to search my photo and video memories . I’m also looking forward to getting text summaries in multiple apps, and maybe even using Siri for more than just setting a timer.
iOS 18 is currently in developer beta, with the public beta coming in the coming weeks. The final version of iOS 18, along with the iPhone 16, is expected in the fall.
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