The Apple Worldwide Developers Conference kicked off on 3rd June in San Jose and included a lot of exciting announcements by the company. From the brand new cheese grater Mac Pro to a beautiful 6K display, here are the biggest announcements from WWDC 2019.
1. iOS 13
The new iOS 13 comes with a host of new features which include a specific focus on privacy and accessibility. First, all iOS devices finally are getting ‘Dark Mode’. The new mode is a way to reduce eye strain by inverting the colour scheme and essentially giving the user a black background with white text.
The dark mode can be enabled by going under settings and will work on most applications with native support. The new model will arrive on the iPhone this fall and will be implemented in the new OS. Apple has a public beta releasing in July where aspiring developers can try out the new features by signing up.
The new OS will also be twice as fast when compared to iOS 12 thereby giving a huge speed boost. Apple has reworked how the applications are packaged in the app store and as a result downloads will now be 50% smaller with system updates being up to 60% smaller in file size. Face unlocking in some iPhones will also get a 30% speed boost.
The gallery is also getting a big overhaul with machine learning being adopted into it. Photos and videos will now be easier to sort out through the software’s new algorithm. Users will also be able to edit videos with a host of new effects.
The Health app in the next update will include a new cycle tracking feature which will help women keep a check on their menstrual cycle. Other features also audio monitoring to help you protect your ears, recent alerts and so forth.
Coming to privacy Apple has now simplified login for users accessing certain services. Instead of options of singing in with social media accounts, users will now see a ‘Sign in with Apple’ icon which uses a dummy email to sign them in immediately. This is an effort to increase privacy in iPhones and Apple devices in general. A lot of other features were announced which will also be included when iOS 13 drops this fall.
2. The all new Mac Pro
The 2019 Mac Pro is a box full of surprises. From a changed design to a different architecture, a lot has changed. For starters, the Pro has now gone back to its roots. The 2019 Mac Pro has ditched the bin design and went back to a standard tower build. The all steel exterior is comprised of a front and back which oddly resemble a cheese grater. The chassis also has three handles on the top for mobility. The casing can also be completely removed by simply pulling the top off.
In terms of the hardware inside the Mac Pro is an absolute beast. The base machine is powered by an 8 core Intel Zeon processor with a maximum of 28 cores. There are 12 DIMM slots with over 1.5 TB of RAM. Yes, you read that right. The graphics will be powered by an AMD Radeon Pro 580X and can support over four AMD GPUS. The Pro also has 8 PCI slots which are 4 full sized and other 4 half sized. The huge 4TB SSD Storage is made for high-speed data performance. To top it all off the power supply in the Mac Pro is a massive 1400 Watt one.
The Mac Pro has been made with developers and industry professionals in mind to ensure that content creation and development is entirely free from any disturbances. However, the price tag matches the extreme hardware.
The base Mac Pro model starts at $ 5,999 which translates to over ₹ 415,000. The machine is expected to launch this fall and further prices will be revealed in time.
3. The Pro Display XDR
Alongside the Mac Pro Apple also launched a display fit for this machine and similar high-performance ones. Officially called the Pro Display XDR, the display has been designed with the same aesthetic thinking as the Mac Pro. The 32-inch Retina display is the world’s first configuration with a 6K resolution. Apple has incorporated a technology they like to call Extreme Dynamic Range (XDR) which is essentially an upgrader over High Dynamic Range (HDR).
The brightness of the display can go up to over 1,600 nits with a constant value of 1,000. This is achieved by Apple’s unique cooling design which enables the display to efficiently disperse heat from the back. The new contrast ratio of 1,000,000:1 will help the display achieve excellent colour reproduction.
The Pro Display XDR will start at $ 4,999 dollars(₹350,000) for the base model. The upgraded Nano-Texture model with the capability of getting rid of reflections will set you back $ 5,999 (₹415,000). However, that’s not all. Buying a display it seems isn’t enough. The stands for the Pro Display will be sold separately and come in two variants.
The VESA Mount Adapter will cost $ 200(₹14,000) and the Pro stand will cost $999(₹70,000). Again it is important to remember that these machines are not aimed at everyday consumers. The Mac Pro and the Pro Display are for serious developers and content creators but that doesn’t mean you can’t buy it.
4. Mac OS: Catalina
Along with the release of Mac Pro and Display, a new macOS titled ‘Catalina’. Fully complete with voice commands for accessibility and increased features, Catalina OS is the latest update for Apple computers out there.
One of the biggest announcements out in this new OS is the dropping of iTunes and splitting it up into three different platforms. The new apps are Apple Music, Apple TV and Apple Podcasts. This comes as a breath of fresh air as iTunes was in need of a major update.
In terms of the User Interface, there are no considerable changes except a few aesthetic details here and there. The dashboard feature is also being removed in lieu of other features.
5. iPadOS
It seems this year a lot of overhauls are in order. A separate operating system has been revealed designed just for the iPad. The iPadOS is an effort to improve functionality and make the pad more customisable by adding a lot of facilities on the home screen and beyond.
For starters, users will be able to tailor their home screen using new tools. The home will not include a widget called ‘Today View’ which will help deliver notifications like the weather, news and other quick information at a moment’s notice. The split view mode will help in multitasking by dividing the videos into separate sections so more can be done at once.
Apple Pencil has also been boosted by new drawing algorithms to help art creation. The pencil will also be able to add notes to emails and webpages easily.
Furthermore, the file manager has been redesigned with a view to simplifying file sorting and management. The iPad will now be able to import and export files from USB drives, SD Cards and other USB supported storage devices. You will now also be able to use a USB mouse to control the iPad to enhance accessibility. Combined with the new keyboard gestures and dark mode, the iPad will have more power than ever.
6. tvOS 13
Siri is coming with a new voice which will now sound more natural and more ‘Human’. As part of the inclusion effort, Apple is also giving Siri a more Indian centric voice and added features. The new localised Siri will have natural Indian male and female accents for user comfort and familiarity.
Emojis are also taking a step further with new options called ‘Memoji’. These customised emoji stickers will have new virtual accessories such as over 30 new hairstyles and over 10 new pieces of headgear. These new packs will also be available in various messaging applications.
