In just about two months, we’ll get our first look at iOS 17, the latest iPhone update that, like always, will bring tons of changes and enhancements. Rumors say it will lack a major hook–like the Lock Screen in iOS 16 or the App Library in iOS 16–to entice users to upgrade. However, even without a big feature, iOS 17 is still shaping up to be one of the most exciting iPhone updates in years. Here’s why.
Compatibility
When iOS 16 arrived last fall, it dropped support for a few notable iPhones: the original SE, as well as the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, and iPhone 7 and 7 Plus. After a report that Apple would be dumping the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus and the iPhone X this year, it now appears as though that won’t be the case, giving another year of life to those 2017 iPhones.
‘Most requested features’
We don’t know much about what’s in iOS 17 yet– and probably won’t until the keynote–but what we do know is exciting. A report by Mark Gurman last month claimed that Apple would bring some of iPhone users’ “most requested features” to iOS 17. Among the recent rumors are “major” changes to Control Center, which would definitely be among our most requested features. A recent leak also claims there will be enhancements coming to notifications, the always-on display, and the Camera app, as well as major improvements to Spotlight search, all of which would be high on our list of requested features.
Much-needed maintenance
There was a time when Apple would regularly release so-called “maintenance” releases of Mac OS X that would focus on performance and stability instead of adding new features. It’s not flashy, but it’s necessary to keep things running as fast and smoothly as they should. We haven’t had one of those in a while–and really never with iOS–but a recent rumor claims “performance, efficiency, and stability” will take center stage in iOS 17. After iOS 16.4 broke a lot of things, a maintenance and stability release would go a long way toward making our older iPhones feel new again.
Dynamic Island 2.0
Apple introduced the Dynamic Island with the iPhone 14 Pro last year, and rumor has it that it will be coming to all of the iPhone 15 models. This means Apple wants it to be the next big interface feature–and iOS 17 is rumored to bring it to the next level as Apple adds features to allow it to “do a lot more.” The possibilities are fairly endless, and we can’t wait to see what plans Apple has for it.
Next-gen CarPlay
At WWDC 2022, Apple gave us a sneak peek at the next generation of CarPlay, with a stunning interface designed to control much more than your car’s entertainment system. But we didn’t get much more than a few cool screenshots and a promise that vehicle announcements would be coming in 2023. We’re hoping to see a lot more of it during the iOS 17 section of the WWDC demo.
Author: Michael Simon, Executive Editor
Michael Simon has been covering Apple since the iPod was the iWalk. His obsession with technology goes back to his first PC—the IBM Thinkpad with the lift-up keyboard for swapping out the drive. He's still waiting for that to come back in style tbh.