Apple just updated both its platforms – we already saw the new Mac OS X, now it's time for iOS 7. It brings a ton of usability improvements, many of which have been lacking in iOS for a while now.
It brings a brand new look for the operating system with flat icons. The icons are designed around a standardized grid to unify the look. It also brings animated wallpapers (not quite live wallpapers) and there's a parallax effect between the shortcuts and the wallpaper as you turn and tilt your phone.
A much bigger change is a revamped multitasking system that allows apps to update much more often, while not wasting battery. To do that, iOS 7 keeps track when you use a specific app (all day, just in the morning and the evening) and lets the app update during that period. It also uses "opportunistic updates" – when you wake the device, it's going to use power anyway so iOS lets the apps update. It also keeps track of signal quality and if it's good, it updates multiple apps at once (it's going to power the radio anyway).
Yet another big update is the new Siri. It got a polished new interface and it goes after Google Now with card-based UI and new services to provide answers to your questions (Twitter, Wikipedia and Bing, take that Google). It can also control your iDevice (increase brightness, turn on Bluetooth) and it offers a new voice (both female and male) for English, French and German.
There's more! The notification center has been updated to provide info about today's goings on (birthdays, weather, upcoming events from the calendar, stocks and even some info for tomorrow). Notification center also show up on the lockscreen. Also, once you dismiss a notification, it goes away on the other devices too so you don't have to see the same notification multiple times.
There are toggles too! Those you get by swiping up from the bottom anywhere in the UI and opening the Control center. You get controls for the screen brightness and the music player, the new AirDrop feature, AirPlay along with some app shortcuts, including a flashlight toggle.
The camera got revamped too, it now features four modes – regular stills and video, square photos with color effects (hi, Instagram) and panorama. Also, photos will automatically be tagged with information on where you took them, which makes finding photos so much easier.
Safari for iOS was updated with a new 3D UI for switching tabs (looks kinda like the one Chrome for Android has) and you're no longer limited to 8 tabs. It now features a single smart search filed rather than having two fields - one for URL typing and another one for initiating Google searches.
Safari will also show what tabs are open on your other devices and features iCloud Keychain integration. A cool new feature lets you swipe from the sides of the screen to go back and forth through your browsing history.
The way the App Store got tweaked too – it now automatically updates apps (hi, Play Store) and suggest apps based on your location (just like WP).
Phew, the Apple team isn’t done yet – Facetime got an audio only option, which is basically VoIP calling. There's AirDrop, which is Apple's answer to NFC (they even made a joke about not having to bump your phones together). Then there's new iTunes Radio – a streaming music service for free (launching in the US).
iOS 7 is available for the iPhone in beta today. When it's done, iOS 7 will be available on iPhone 4 and later, iPod touch 5th gen, iPad mini and iPad 2 and later.
Source : http://www.gsmarena.com/ios_7_announced_new_look_siri_multitasking_toggles_and_more-news-6196.php
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