One of the joys of operating system updates is your iPhone (or iPad or Mac) gets better with age. The future for the iPhone in 2024 is bright, with must-have features coming soon, beginning as soon as January. Here are five of the best things to look forward to.
1. Stolen Device Protection
Oh my, this is cool. You can read comprehensive details of it here, but it’s front-and-center on this list because it’s so good. Essentially, until now, if a thief gets hold of not only your iPhone but your passcode, too, you could be in deep trouble.
Maybe they shoulder-surfed you in a bar, or befriended you to get the code. Once they have it and the hardware as well, they can change the passcode to lock you out and install themselves in your Face ID. From there, they can access your banking apps and take your money.
With Stolen Device Protection, protections and delays are put in place to make most of these scary problems disappear.
2. All Change For Messages
Apple has jealously guarded the way it has kept its Messages distinct from the rest of the industry—it’s even managed to make blue message bubbles more desirable than the green ones that show up when someone messages you from an Android handset.
But in November, Apple made a surprise announcement: it will support Rich Communications Services from “later next year”. I take that to mean the fall, that is, when iOS 18 and the iPhone 16 series are launched.
It doesn’t mean that it will be integrating Messages with RCS, and those blue bubbles are likely to remain unique to iOS users, not Android-toting friends. Apple has said that the RCS Universal Profile will… work alongside iMessage, which will continue to be the best and most secure messaging experience for Apple users.”
But it should mean greater interoperability when it comes to undoing send, seeing the useful typing indicator, and so on.
3. Siri With Generative AI
This also looks like coming in the fall with iOS 18, but the addition of Generative AI to Apple products is likely to involve Siri becoming much smarter and more capable. It may be more integrated with the Shortcuts app and handle more advanced tasks with ease.
4. Wider Access To Roadside Assistance Via Satellite
Apple made another unexpected announcement when it extended how long iPhone 14 users get emergency access via satellite for free. It had also launched Roadside Assistance so that AAA users can seek assistance via satellite, too. Since Apple said it was beginning this capability in the U.S., that tells me Apple is hard at work doing deals with similar companies outside the States. Let’s hope they sign the deals soon and users can benefit more widely.
5. AirPlay In Hotels
If you spend any time in hotel rooms, you’ll know that it’s not always easy to navigate the in-room TV guides without accidentally ordering a movie or, heavens forfend, finding yourself in the “specialist” programming. With this feature, planned for 2023 but now coming in 2024, you’ll scan a QR code and be able to stream content from your phone to the hotel room flatscreen.
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