Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) which holds annually in California by Apple had this year’s event yesterday, the 5th of June 2017. The event was used by Apple to showcase its new softwares and technologies.
Here are the highlights from yesterday’s keynote:
THE NEW IPAD PROs INTRODUCED
Apple introduced two new iPad Pros – the 10.5 inch model and the 12.9 inch model. The 10.5 inch model comes in Space Gray, Rose Gold, Gold, Silver while the 12.9 inch model comes in Space Gray, Gold, Silver. Both models come in 64GB, 256GB, 512GB of internal storage.
The 10.5 inch iPad Pro comes with 2224 x 1668 display resolution while the 12.9 inch iPad Pro comes with 2732 x 2048 resolution. Talking about the processor, they have the A10X Fusion chip with 64‑bit architecture. Their cameras are packed with 12MP for the back, 7MP for the front, digital zoom up to 5x, optical image stabilization, auto HDR for photo, auto image stabilization, photo geotagging.
The 10.5 inch model has a battery capacity of 30.4‐watt‐hour while the 12.9 inch model has a battery capacity of 41‐watt‐hour and they both last up to 10 hours.
iOS 11
Apple talked briefly about the Files app which is a management system that you can use to sort files by size and date, similar to how you’d go through your files on a desktop or laptop. There’s a dedicated place for your recent files. Not just the ones on your iPad, but also those in apps, on your other iOS devices, in iCloud Drive, and across other services like Box and Dropbox.
iOS 11 also improves multitasking that lets users pull up an app from the dock and drag it onto the screen to split the screen. You can use touch to hold and drag folders, files, or photos and drop them in a different app such as Mail or iMessage.
There’s also a new safety feature that recognizes when a user is driving and automatically turns on Do Not Disturb to prevent distractions.
THE NEW AUGMENTED REALITY SOFTWARE
Apple’s new ARKit software can display virtual objects in the real world. The software will let apps place items into a physical space by using your phone’s camera, with the goal being to make the iPhone “the largest AR platform in the world.”
REDESIGN OF THE APP STORE
The App Store has been redesigned for better discovery and a How To section for tips on how to use various popular apps. Apple’s also bringing back the “App of the Day” section to promote users to open the App Store more frequently.
APPLE HOMEPOD
The new HomePod is a speaker used to play music around the home. It also comes with Siri and a “Musicologist” feature that works with Apple Music to stream the music you ask Siri to play. When placed anywhere in the room, the HomePod automatically analyzes the acoustics, adjusts the sound based on the speaker’s location, and steers the music in the optimal direction.
You can also ask Siri more complex questions, and you can ask it to control smart home devices and check the day’s weather and news briefings, just like Amazon Echo and Google Home.
MAC OS: HIGH SIERRA
High Sierra is the new version of Mac OS Sierra. It is packed with improvements such as support for VR headsets, Metal 2, which is a technology built into macOS that allows apps to unleash the full power of the GPU. The Metal 2 not only takes the visual experience to the next level, but also adds capabilities like machine learning, virtual reality, and external GPU support for entertainment and professional creative apps.
Safari also has an update – the new browser is going to be much faster, auto-playing for videos will be stopped and invasive advertising cookies will be stopped. The photos app will also be improved, the filing system is getting an overhaul.
WATCHOS 4
The newest version of Apple’s Watch software, WatchOS 4, will offer three new watch faces, more workouts in the Fitness app, an improved flashlight, and the ability to pair it with your gym equipment. But the biggest update to the watch is the Siri integration that is now available on the watch face. Using machine learning, Apple says the watch can now check your routines and the apps you use the most, automatically displaying the on the watch face at the most appropriate times.
ANOTHER iMAC
A new iMac called the iMac Pro is packed with a 5K display with improved cooling capacity, and 8-core Xeon processor (upgradeable up to 18-core,) up to 4TB of SSD, up to 128GB of ECC memory, four Thunderbolt 3 ports, and built-in 10GB Ethernet.
Well, that’s it for Apple’s major announcements at the WWDC17. We’ll bring more to you as we learn more about the new devices and software.
New stuffs, big bigger money
Apple would need to bring down the prices of their devices iň other to gain more fans. I ain’t Apple’s fan, anyway.