Apple has offered an early look at the next major update coming to iPhone later this year. Dubbed iOS 18, the new operating system will be available as a free download.
With iOS 18, iPhone owners will enjoy the "biggest ever" redesign to the Photos app, the ability to hide apps, change the colour of app icons and position them anywhere on-screen to make room for your wallpaper.
In Messages, iPhone users will be able to schedule messages, while Apple will also support sending texts and reactions to messages via satellite, so you'll be able to stay in touch without Wi-Fi or mobile signal.
When Apple's own Apple Intelligence models can't handle a specific voice (or typed) request, then it will suggest sending the information to ChatGPT-4o from OpenAI. If you grant permission to share the information with ChatGPT (it will be deleted when the request has been processed) then it can process the task within the same Siri window APPLE PRESS OFFICE iOS 18 adds the ability to lock specific apps with a Face ID scan, so you can pass your iPhone to a friend, family member, or colleague while keeping parts of your device — like the Health app, for example — locked.
For the first time, iPhone owners will be able to switch the two shortcuts on the Lock Screen too. Until now, these circular buttons been reserved for the torch and camera.
Elsewhere, iOS 18 brings some new wallpapers, a standalone password manager app, and a dedicated Game Mode that minimises background activity to you'll enjoy high frame rates for hours of gameplay.
If you're using iOS 17 on your iPhone at the moment, then you'll be able to upgrade to iOS 18 free of charge. The full list of iPhone models compatible with iOS 17, and therefore iOS 18, are as follows:
However, that does not mean that you'll get access to all of the features included in iOS 18.
And the standout feature of this new wave of software updates, known as Apple Intelligence, will most likely be missing. With its strong emphasis on privacy, Apple wants its Artificial Intelligence (AI) tasks to be processed on-device wherever possible. Unlike rival solutions like ChatGPT-4o and Google Gemini, it will use the Neural Engine built into Apple's custom-designed chipsets to crunch the numbers.
This decision should also make everything feel faster, since there's no need to wait for information to be sent to servers, processed, and then beamed back. It's also worth noting that while Microsoft charges £19 per month to access similar AI functionality in apps like Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. ChatGPT can pay an optional subscription to increase the functionality, get faster responses, and more.
There are even rumours that Google is looking to charge for a number of features under the umbrella of its Gemini assistant — leaving Apple as an outlier, as it hasn't announced any plans to charge its users for Apple Intelligence. Instead, you'll be able to use the complete gamut of AI features announced during the WWDC keynote as many times as you want at no additional charge.
Photos on iOS has automatically crafted short films, known as Memories, based on trips, people, or locations for some time. However, Apple Intelligence lets you list criteria for a bespoke film — including who should make an appearance, whether it should start or end with a selfie, and much more — and watch the complex on-device models build your film in real-time
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The catch? Since everything is handled on device, you'll need an iPhone 15 Pro or 15 Pro Max, which are the only handsets in the Apple line-up with an A17 Pro system-on-a-chip.
Undoubtedly, new iPhone models with speedy processors capable of handling all these on-device Apple Intelligence tasks will be in the works. But until then, only those with an iPhone 15 Pro or 15 Pro Max in their pocket will be able to take advantage of the full suite of Apple Intelligence features.
Apple Intelligence is an umbrella term for a slew of new features, including the ability to proofread your emails, adjust the tone of your writing, summarise lengthy articles into bullet points, new photo editing tools, and the ability for Siri to adjust settings on your device for you.
Here's a rundown of some of the highlights that Apple previewed during its WWDC keynote —
Many of these same Apple Intelligence features will also be coming to iPadOS 18 too. There's a long list of iPad models capable of updating to the new operating system — but like with iOS 18, Apple Intelligence features will be reserved for those models with an M1, M2, M3, or M4 processor.
Like the A17 Pro system-on-a-chip, these M-branded processors have a Neural Engine capable of crunching through the complex models needed to power these features.
