iOS 13, MacOS 10.15, Marzipan, Siri, Mac Pro, and more. What will Apple have in store for us this year?<\/b>
\nApple holds multiple events throughout the year, but the most important two by far are the introduction of new iPhones (typically in September), and the Worldwide Developers Conference in the summer. Known simply as WWDC, the week-long event focuses on the people who make all the apps and services we enjoy on our iPhones, iPads, Macs, and Apple Watches.
The big announcements from WWDC are made during the keynote presentation on the first day. This year, that\u2019s June 3 at 10 a.m. Pacific time.
You can watch on Apple\u2019s WWDC page through Safari on a Mac, iPhone, or iPad. If you have a Windows 10 PC, you can watch the stream using the Edge browser, but other browsers are not supported. With your Apple TV you can watch through the Events app.
In addition to streaming the keynote, Apple will stream the entire conference, though the sessions are primarily of interest only to developers. You first need to sign up for an account on Apple\u2019s Developer website. A developer account is not needed to watch the June 4 keynote.
The most exciting stuff at WWDC is usually all the new features coming to the next version of iOS. With over a billion active devices worldwide, iOS is by far the most popular thing Apple makes, and one of the most popular consumer operating systems in the world.
We expect big things from iOS 13. Hopefully, it\u2019s as fast and stable as iOS 12.
We\u2019ve heard plenty of rumors about iOS 13 and what new features it will bring us, often from reliable sources like Bloomberg\u2019s Mark Gurman. And we have our own wish list of features. Here\u2019s a short summary of what we think we can expect, but there are always a few surprises. If you want a more detailed breakdown, head over to our iOS 13 rumors article.
This promises to be a really big year for macOS. Last year, Apple explained its plans for a project code-named Marzipan, by which Mac developers would be able to make Mac apps using the same UIKit framework that is used for iOS apps, in addition to the existing AppKit framework used today.
Apple gave us a first look at what this will look like with four apps in macOS Mojave: News, Home, Voice Recorder, and Stocks.
In macOS 10.15 (California-landmark name yet to be revealed), we\u2019ll see improvements to these apps, along with a host of others. Expect a partial breakup of iTunes (finally!) with separate Apple Music, TV, and Podcasts apps, for starters.
At WWDC 2018,Apple unveiled Marzipan. Expect to see more about this project at this year’s conference.
Rumor has it macOS 10.15 will also allow you to use your iPad as a secondary display. And Siri on the Mac might finally get the ability to set alarms and timers. The Mac Messages app is said to get some features from iOS, like stickers and effects.
A report published just days before WWDC by Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman summarizes what we can expect from the event. It’s almost all stuff we’ve heard before, but this particular passage sticks out:
iTunes has been the way Apple users listen to music, watch movies and TV shows, hear podcasts, and manage their devices for almost two decades. This year, Apple is finally ready to move into a new era. The company is launching a trio of new apps for the Mac \u2013 Music, TV, and Podcasts \u2013 to replace iTunes. That matches Apple\u2019s media app strategy on iPhones and iPads. Without iTunes, customers can manage their Apple gadgets through the Music app.
In March, Apple announced its Apple Arcade subscription gaming service, saying that it would launch in the fall. Apple\u2019s promise that games will be playable on iOS, Mac, and Apple TV makes us think they will be built as UIKit apps exclusively, and syncing progress between them will rely on new under-the-hood changes in macOS 10.15 and iOS 13.
We may hear about devleoping cross-platform games for Apple Arcade, but a firm release date and pricing will probably come later.
We might hear a little more about the Apple Arcade service in this context specifically (making cross-platform games), but we probably won\u2019t get a specific release date or price just yet.
Apple TV+ was announced at the March event as well, but we\u2019re not likely to see a bunch of new Apple TV+ shows announced at WWDC. Rather, it might be mentioning in passing as part of bringing the TV app to Macs in macOS 10.15. Actual launch date, lineup, and pricing will probably be announced later.
Siri still can\u2019t do a lot of the things it should have mastered years ago.
We haven\u2019t really heard much in the way of Siri rumors leading in to WWDC. Siri on the Mac is said to improve, but only by catching up to features available on the iPhone. The SiriKit framework for developers is said to get some new \u201cintents,\u201d which are the specific types of functions that Siri can integrate with third-party applications.
Apple may announce a new hardware accessory at WWDC that works the way Tile trackers do: using Bluetooth Low Energy to \u201cping\u201d nearby iPhones in a privacy-protecting fashion to let you know track any object you attach it to.
This is meant to go along with a new all-in-one tracking app for both iOS and macOS that combines Find my iPhone with Find Friends.
Apple may be making its own version of the popular Tile tracker. It\u2019s not a bad idea, actually.
In other words, Apple is going to put all tracking-type features together in a single app, and sell a piece of tracking hardware. Expect a big focus on the way Apple protects your privacy and security with this.
We first heard that Apple was working on a new Mac Pro back in 2017.Last year, we got a bit of an update, as Apple confirmed the Mac Pro to be \u201ca 2019 product.\u201d Apple has also previously confirmed that its new high-end desktop Mac for professionals will be accompanied by a new Apple display.
The new Mac Pro will probably be bigger, and more rectangular, than the \u201ctrash can\u201d model. But we probably can\u2019t expect the big, boxy \u201ccheese grater\u201d of the old days.
We don\u2019t know much about the Mac Pro, other than the fact that Apple seems to recognize that the \u201ctrashcan\u201d design of the current model doesn\u2019t provide the easy access, customizability, or upgradability that Pro users demand. Thus, the new Mac Pro will likely be a somewhat more traditional design and more modular, though we don\u2019t think you should expect the sort of freewheeling mix-and-match hardware market of Windows desktops.
As for that new Apple display, the latest rumors suggest it might measure 31.6 inches with a wider aspect ratio and 6K resolution. It is said to incorporate \u201cmini-LED\u201d backlighting, which should give it exceptional color gamut and accuracy.
There\u2019s a rumor floating around about Apple introducing a new MacBook Pro this year; a 16-inch model with an \u201call-new design.\u201d New MacBook Pros are often unveiled at WWDC, so this could be the place. If the rumor is even true, Apple may choose not to announce it if it is not really close to shipping, choosing instead to reveal it at a later date.
Apple just announced upgrades to the current 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Pro models, giving them the latest Intel processors but no other significant design changes. That could be an indication that we can\u2019t expect any other MacBook news at WWDC. It could also be Apple\u2019s way of getting minor updates out of the way to save time in the keynote for more substantive announcements.
It\u2019s definitely odd for Apple to update existing MacBook Pros right before obsoleting them with a new design, so if a new MacBook Pro is announced, expect it to feature the sort of significant design changes that makes the company want to keep the 15-inch model on the market at the same time: an ARM-based Apple-designed CPU, a touch screen, things like that.
If you\u2019re hoping for news about new iPhones, forget it. Apple holds a separate event to announce those, typically in September.
The company has also used its big September events to announce the AirPods, and we expect second-generation AirPods or other mobile accessories would probably follow suit.
Apple Watch is in the same boat. Every Apple Watch has been introduced during Apple\u2019s September event. We may hear a little bout watchOS 6, but not new Apple Watch hardware.<\/p>\n