Many iPhone fans have found previous iOS updates to be underwhelming, to say the least. But, the latest rumors suggest that this year’s iOS update with iOS 18, will be Apple’s biggest update to iPhone yet. With AI being the talk of the town, Apple is set to make some huge waves this year.
iOS 18 will be officially announced at the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in June this year. So, here is everything we know about Apple’s next software update for iPhones so far.
Siri
Siri was launched in 2011 with the iPhone 4S. Yes, it has been that long! Since then, Apple has made a lot of smaller refinements, but they haven’t added a lot of new features to Siri. However, this seems to be changing with the new iOS 18 update as Apple is planning to integrate Large-Language Models (LLMs) with Siri.
So, what does it mean for the average user?
Think about it like ChatGPT-meets-Siri, where Siri will have natural conversational capabilities and will be able to perform on-device tasks for you. Knowing Apple, Siri will likely be able to retain information and carry out a conversation seamlessly on other Apple devices. So, investing in an Apple ecosystem would be a reasonable idea now.
Mark Gurman of Bloomberg claims that Apple will integrate Siri with the Messages app. This will help Siri answer complex questions in the app itself and auto-complete sentences effectively.
If you’re a fan of the Shortcuts app, you’re going to love this one. Apple plans to integrate Siri with Shortcuts so users will be able to automate a lot of complex tasks. As an example, with the Siri and Shortcuts integration, you can tell Siri to make a playlist of 20 songs you listen to the most and send it to a friend.
Generative AI
Apple seemingly wasn’t ready for AI when it made a splash last year. When big companies like Google, Microsoft, OpenAI, and Amazon were unveiling their shiny new AI products, Apple was trying to play catch-up by spending over $1 Billion per year on research and the hardware needed to run LLMs.
Now, Apple is set to unveil new AI features with iOS 18 this year. This can include auto-generated playlists on Apple Music and AI-assisted writing in Keynote and Pages.
A lot of hardware power is required to run AI features locally. This means that these features might only be able to work locally on the upcoming iPhone 16. However, Apple has planned ahead and started creating AI servers in 2023 and plans to deploy generative AI in late 2024.
This perfectly lines up with the debut of new iPhones and iOS 18 in September.
This means that running the generative AI features on any iPhone model will require a stable internet connection nonetheless. So, it’s best to have your internet service prepared in order as well. If you’re looking for the best internet deal, then now is the time to contact Xfinity to get futuristic internet speeds, ideal for the upcoming AI-powered software. They also have a dedicated helpline for Spanish-speaking customers. Feel free to reach out to them 24/7 at Xfinity Servicio al Cliente.
However, it is important to note that Apple’s generative AI might not be fully feature-complete with iOS 18 so expect more features to arrive on iPhones with later iterations of iOS.
RCS for a Unified Texting Experience
After a long back-and-forth, Apple is finally caving in and adopting RCS later in 2024.
So what even is RCS?
Think of Rich Communication Services (RCS) as the language used between the phone and the carrier to send and receive messages.
This will allow for better communication as compared to SMS and MMS. Some of the features it provides include:
- Support for larger file size sharing.
- Emoji reactions across multiple platforms.
- Typing indicators across all devices.
- Cross-platform read receipts.
- Sending messages over Wi-Fi and cellular.
- Better group chats.
Apple hasn’t provided any details on this yet. However, “later in 2024” leads us to think that the implementation of RCS will be coming with iOS 18’s launch.
Will I Be Able to Run iOS 18?
If your phone is running iOS 17 then iOS 18 will probably be supported on your device. iOS 18 should be compatible with the following iPhone models:
- iPhone 15 series
- iPhone 14 series
- iPhone 13 series
- iPhone 12 series
- iPhone 11 series
- iPhone XS Max
- iPhone XS
- iPhone XR
- iPhone SE (2nd & 3rd generation)
Visual Overhaul
Apple is working on changing several visual elements in iOS 18. This change won’t be as drastic as the one from iOS 6 to iOS 7. Previous rumors suggested that iOS 18 will mirror the design language of visionOS.
A visionOS-styled UI design seems unlikely as Vision Pro uses pass-through video that allows the user to see the surrounding environment. Here, visual depth and transparency are key, none of which are needed for the iPhone interface.
Apple has also started working on a visual upgrade for macOS which we might not be seeing until 2025 at the earliest.
When Can I Expect to See iOS 18?
Apple usually unveils their upcoming updates in June and releases them with their next iPhones in September – so this year should be no different.
After WWDC, iOS 18 beta will be released for developers to test out and a public beta will be released in July.
