Some major, some not so major. Of course, the real change is that after fifteen years, Apple has finally ditched the “OS X” moniker. Hints at this name change have been around for a couple of months. This feature is very similar to the picture-in-picture mode that’s already part of iOS 9.3.
Advertisement
The event will be live-streamed on Apple’s website, and you can follow all the announcements as they happen right here.
This year’s macOS is named “Sierra”. But times change, and “the name of the world’s most advanced desktop operating system is now macOS”. And now, those rumours have come to pass. The latest OS update is called Sierra, and it has a new feature called “Auto-Unlock”. Being in close proximity to your Macbook will allow it to unlock without the need for a password. Purchase something online via the “pay with Apple Pay” button, and a box will prompt you to check your iPhone or Apple Watch to authenticate the purchase. The feature also includes Universal Clipboad, which will allow data to be sent via Mac devices to iOS devices simply by copying and pasting.
macOS Continuity will also share the Desktop files between devices, including the iPhone.
Siri on Mac has a bunch of familiar features, but also new tricks. Users will not be able to choose Apple Pay as a form of payment, along with Paypal and credit cards.
Apple is also adding a facial recognition tool to its mobile software so the people and objects captured in photos are automatically identified.
A new messaging app and improvements to maps and the Siri voice assistant are among the new features coming to iPhones and iPads.
To watch on your Apple TV, you must be running software 6.2 on your second or third generation models, while you can just watch it on your fourth generation model via the WWDC app (more on that below) without having to check your software.
iCloud now plays an expanded sync role, too, letting you move files and folders from Mac to Mac or from Mac to iOS. Click on it, and the video leaves the web page and takes up its own small window on screen.
Apple had been testing Siri integration since 2012.
Apple is letting its virtual assistant Siri work with applications made by other companies. Siri sits inside your computer, and there’s a new icon up in the dock, but also in the top left of the menu bar.
It looks a lot like Siri on the iPhone and elsewhere, with colourful sound waves and all.
“Apple has acquired a variety of companies with expertise in artificial intelligence recently, and among them is VocalIQ, which specializes in conversational voice interactions”, explained Jan Dawson, chief analyst at Jackdaw Research, in a recent blog post. But Jan Dawson, a tech analyst at Jackdaw Research, notes that Siri can volunteer helpful reminders from the Apple calendar, offer suggestions based on a user’s location, or search for images stored in Apple’s photo app.
macOS Sierra will be released first as a beta, or developer preview, from now, with a public beta being launched a little later this summer, in July.
Advertisement
Apple in recent years has given away all updates to OS X, and that tradition continues with Sierra.
