iOS 16, Apple’s latest iOS for iPhones, is almost ready for prime time. It has a slew of new features and possibilities for app owners to incorporate into their iOS-based offerings.
Whether it’s health & fitness, entertainment, social, navigation, medical or travel, app owners can rejoice over some of the new features iOS 16 brings to the table. It will make their app offerings stronger, better, and more versatile in the marketplace and give them a better competitive edge.
Granted, of course, app owners take advantage of the advanced offerings iOS 16 brings to their apps. Preferably making their apps iOS 16 compatible from the official next-generation release of iOS to the public in mid-September 2022.
Get your app in good hands for the iOS 16 release
Developers and app owners are the lucky ones as they get their hands on iOS 16 first. Apple is interested in apps supporting iOS 16’s latest offerings, and that’s why they are revealing iOS 16 at the WWDC22 (Worldwide Developers Conference 2022) event on June 6, 2022, so developers can start reworking their apps before the public release in September 2022.
The iOS 16 beta version is available for download by developers, giving them time to incorporate the latest and greatest enhancements. Whether you are a first-time app owner or seasoned in the app store, partner with a reputable iOS app development company who can build an app for any iOS device you are targeting and incorporate the latest iOS 16 trends.
The time has long passed where it was enough for app agencies to master development phases like concept, UI/UX design, frontend and backend development and quality assurance, though those are still important. App companies today need to know about Apple’s latest news and features, so their clients don’t risk being left behind by the competition offering better app experiences.
Instead of just going with low ball development offers, you owe yourself to do some background work and hire someone qualified.
So, what are some of the new features coming soon you should include in your app? Here’s a run-down of the most essential milestones to consider.
Design changes are coming with the new iPhone 14’s hitting the market
Don’t expect to spend a fortune to have a complete design overhaul of your app to keep up with the times. Since pre-iOS 7’s skeuomorphic, glossy and bevels UI, there haven’t been dramatic UI changes, and iOS 16 is no different.
The slight change we see added to the Human Interface Guidelines is the omission of the notch on the iPhone 14 Pro models (the regular models will likely keep the notch).
Some of Apple’s native apps will likely also get a design refresher, such as Apple Music getting auditory, haptic, and visual improvements with spatial audio support. The icons may also get tweaked slightly; however, overall the visual UI experience remains the same.
Health app owners getting a lot more data access
Apple is updating its Health app with better sleep tracking, medicine management, health tracking, and some features to improve women’s health.
The Apple Watch is still the number 1 smartwatch with a 30% market share and a 24% annual growth, and every year there’s a new smartwatch released with new advanced hardware and new apps to follow.
2022 is no different. The Apple Watch Series 8 is coming and health app owners want to pay attention. The new Apple Watch is likely to provide tracking for diabetes detection, sleep tracking, sleep apnea, fertility thermometer, and blood-pressure monitoring.
All this can be transferred to iPhone and Apple Watch compatible apps for data reading, analyzing, and outputting.
Fitness and health apps can take great advantage of all the new and existing data to track calorie intake, healthy sleep patterns, nutrition suggestions, etc.
Medical apps can use the more “serious data” to improve the efficiency of the patient/doctor apps we see in the app store marketplace currently. With enhanced features, care plans can be customized to the patient’s benefit in more detail.
Navigational or car-focused apps are getting new opportunities
Crash detection is another great iOS 16 feature app owners definitely don’t want to omit in their navigational or car-related apps as it’s likely to save lives and be a huge value parameter to users.
By using sensors like the accelerometer, iOS 16 will be able to detect car crashes and dial 9-1-1 if the user has not canceled the alarm within a short period of time. It’s similar to the already existing and useful ‘fall detection’ in Apple watches and iPhones, which already has numerous documented life-saving cases.
Hiking and survival apps should benefit from the emergency satellite features
Sticking to the life-saving iOS features, it’s not confirmed by Apple but we sure hope the rumors become true.
There is a chance that Apple will add satellite-based emergency features in the latest iPhone 14 models. While not backwards compatible, it’s going to be really helpful for people living on the edge (or in the forest) in the possession of the latest iPhone.
The satellite-based emergency feature will be able to dial for help in a life-threatening situation even when there’s no cell-phone coverage. Instead, it will be possible to get a signal by using – tadaaa – satellites overhead.
Augmented and Virtual Reality app integration
It’s a well-known secret that Apple has been working on a VR headset for years to possibly debut in 2022. They already have an AR-kit in iOS, which has been heavily used by companies like furniture giant IKEA to place digital furniture in living rooms across the globe.
The upcoming rendition of the AR/VR app offerings from the App Store is likely to blow everyone’s socks off. With built-out AR/VR features to accommodate Apple’s new headset, there are possible new features and functionality to take advantage of for app owners.
Apps will be able to mix augmented reality with virtual reality, so the iPhone will be a companion piece to the headset. This is a brand-new market that is going to be lucrative.
In Conclusion
These are some of the new iOS 16 features it would be wise to incorporate in your new or next app update. If you don’t, you risk your app quickly becoming a dinosaur as app trends and technologies are moving fast. Anyone not keeping pace will experience abandonment by its users.
Except for the iPhone 6 series, all iPhones will be supported by the next iOS generation. The A9 chip is becoming too old and slow, which is not bad news for app owners. It can be challenging to develop apps for old technology as apps must react quickly on any supported device.
We can’t wait to get our hands on iOS 16 to try it out and see what new features the next generation of app owners will include.
