Apple has unveiled an all-new Lock Screen experience and new ways to share and communicate in iOS 16.
The new update allows users to personalize their lock screen, save family photos in the shared iCloud Photo Library, retrieve sent messages, and schedule emails. It also allows them to explore more with the Live Text and Visual Look-Up features.
A multi-layered effect is deployed as part of the new experience to create a sense of depth, and users can also change the look of the date and time with expressive text styles and color choices.
The lock screen also includes widgets inspired by the complications of the Apple Watch, making it easy to get information at a glance. Users can quickly see upcoming calendar events, weather, battery levels, alarms, and time zones. The progress of the activity ring and other related widgets are also displayed.
Live Activities is also a new feature that allows users to monitor what is happening in real-time, such as a sports game, workout, ride-sharing, or food ordering right from the lock screen. Notifications have also been redesigned to roll up from the bottom, making it easier for users to get a quick and clear view.
As part of the new updates to email, users can schedule emails in advance and even get a moment to cancel the delivery of a message before it reaches a recipient’s inbox.
Live Text also uses on-device intelligence to recognize Text in images on iOS. Visual Look Up introduces a new feature that allows users to touch and hold the subject of an image to pick it up from the background and in apps like Messages. to place.
CarPlay can now provide content for multiple screens in a vehicle, and Apple Pay Order Tracking allows users to receive detailed receipts and order tracking information.
Security and ease of use are also things the company hopes to offer. Safari adds shared tab groups to share a collection of websites with friends and family, making it easier to add tabs and see what others view.
Browsing in Safari also has passkeys, unique digital keys that are easy to use and never stored on a web server. Keys in Wallet also get an extended support.
“iOS 16 is a major release with updates that will change how you experience the iPhone,” said Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of software engineering.
“We’ve reimagined how the Lock screen looks and works with exciting new features that make it more personal and useful, introduced shared iCloud Photo Library for families, streamlined communications through new capabilities in Messages and Mail, and enhanced intelligence harnessed with updates to Live text and visual search.”
The developer preview of iOS 16 is available to Apple Developer Program members starting today, and a public beta will be available to iOS users next month.
