You watched the keynote and read the recaps, but it’s probably a good idea to assume that Apple is holding back some of its iOS 13 announcements for the rumored iPhone 11, or whatever its marquee phone for 2019 winds up being called.
We know that dark mode, a keyboard you can swipe to type on, new photo features and customizable Memoji avatars are coming to iPhones that are compatible with iOS 13. But Apple being Apple, there are likely more details that the mega-brand will announce this fall when iOS 13 officially lands on the iPhone 11. Consider it a bonus round. That’s exciting for anyone who wants to make the most of their device, though it might mean that some of these future tools only work in Apple’s newest phones . We’ll find out.
Apple — and Google , too — often holds back some announcements that could give away too many secrets about its next device, one that’s still a full three months away, assuming Apple sticks to its September update cycle. Developers often find intriguing nuggets hidden away in the iOS developer beta that could hint at future iPhone features.
Even without poring over the developer code, there’s plenty of potential software in store that could support an overhauled iPhone 11 design. Although the thoughts below are based on rumors and guesswork, Apple has pulled enough features out of its hat last minute to make the speculation worthwhile. With Apple, anything can happen.
New camera features could step into the light
There’s a rising smartphone trend for cameras with impressive zoom photography. Huawei, Oppo and even Apple archrival Samsung are on the forefront, each with at least three rear lenses that help make zoom shots happen.
At the very least I’d expect see on-screen controls pop between the various zoom levels, and there could potentially be new camera filters to enhance the effect.
A power-sharing toggle in the Control Center
Samsung’s Galaxy S10 phones can top up other phones — even an iPhone — with a new feature called Wireless Power Share. You turn it on, place a device that’s compatible with wireless charging on the back, and watch it slowly top up until you’re ready to go or until you hit 30% remaining battery.
We’d see a power-sharing tool come to the iPhone’s Control Center at the very least, likely with its own separate app to manage power and detailed opt-in settings like “charge only when plugged in.”
Face ID camera features could go beyond speed
Apple announced that Face ID, the iPhone X family’s secure face unlock software, will work 30% faster than it does now. That might not be all Apple has in store for Face Unlock. An update to Face ID could be even more secure and include new AR capabilities. Apple showed off a demo of Minecraft Earth, a 3D AR world-building game, so we know Apple’s commitment here is rock-solid.
You might not see much new software in the settings or additional toggle controls, but you would see the result in more apps and tools to use AR in interesting ways. Those APIs would still ultimately be part of the iOS 13 package for app-makers.
