The jury’s still out on whether we’ll see Apple’s rumored VR/AR headset, but expect new watchOS software and some of iOS’s features to make it to the iPad.
It’s springtime in the tech world, so birds are singing, flowers are blooming, and the Apple campus is getting ready for its annual developer conference. WWDC 2023 is happening June 5 at Apple’s spaceship HQ in Cupertino. Following this month’s Google I/O, WWDC is where we’ll learn about what’s coming up for the iPhone, iPad, Mac, and their accessories. We also expect a bunch of beta software we can tinker with on Apple’s many devices, and possibly even Apple’s long-rumored AR/VR headset.
When is WWDC and how to watch?
Apple’s Worldwide Developer Conference will air online between June 5-9, 2023. There will be an in-person component to the event for interested developers who have signed up beforehand and want to attend the Apple Park special event. You can tune in to the opening keynote on June 5, 2023 through YouTube or directly from Apple’s website.
What can we expect at WWDC?
There will be announcements centered around all of Apple’s software divisions, including iOS 17, iPadOS 17, macOS 14, and watchOS 10. N oted industry analyst, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, has already said there’s no expectation for major tvOS upgrades. Though we expect little fanfare over the next version of iOS 17 and iPadOS 17, watchOS 10 could have a whole new look and feel, plus new health-centric features.
Apple has also historically used WWDC to tease new hardware, including upgrades to its homemade processors and refreshes of its most popular devices. Devoted Mac users hope to hear more about the Mac Pro, last refreshed in 2019, before Apple’s M processor takeover. And if the rumors are on the mark, we’ll finally get to see something to do with the much-leaked-about Apple Reality Pro headset. Gurman has also recently said we can expect “several new MacBooks” at the event.
We have already broken out some of the more compelling iPhone 15 rumors in a separate article, so head there if you’re interested in hardware. Otherwise, iOS 17 is shaping up to be pretty similar to iOS 16. In addition to essential bug fixes and performance improvements, it will expand on iOS 16’s features for customizing the lock screen. It’s also supposed to introduce new features for the Dynamic Island that dropped with the iPhone 14 Pro/Pro Max. We might finally get news on the CarPlay update we’ve been expecting since last year, and Apple Health will likely offer “one more thing” to keep the Apple-using crowd logging their data with the iPhone’s default health-tracking app. There’s also been legal pressure for Apple to finally open up the operating system to third-party side-loading, akin to what Android has had access to all this time, so we might see something on that. To that end, iOS 17 could also spell the end of support for the iPhone 8 and iPhone X.
