The Coolest iOS 15 Features Announced at WWDC 2021

Rob Stark
5 min readJun 9, 2021

The changes to your iPhone’s OS will bring major hit to FaceTime, Messages, and notifications

Apple began WWDC 2021 with a keynote presentation brimming with big announcements across all of its software products. We got a peek at new features coming to Safari, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch — but the most important announcements were for the upcoming iOS 15 for iPhone.

iOS 15 has brought major changes to Messages, FaceTime, , notifications, and more. All of these features are getting to be available when iOS 15 launches within the autumn , but you’ll try them out early once the iOS 15 beta is publicly available sometime next month. We’ll allow you to understand when beta signups are live; for now, here are the ten coolest iOS 15 features Apple announced today.

FaceTime on iOS 15 has got several new features that Apple hopes will make video calls “feel more lifelike,” which seems to be Apple’s way of claiming it’s turning FaceTime into a competitor for Zoom or Google Meet.

FaceTime can do on iOS 15:

• Spatial audio: The audio from people on FaceTime calls will sound like it’s coming from different locations in your headphones or from your device’s speakers. Apple says this may help make group conversations easier to follow.

• Mic filters: Users are going to be ready to toggle on Voice Isolation to dam out ground noise on their end, or activate Full spectrum audio if they need their mic to select up all the audio in their surroundings.

• Grid view: Group calls are going to be displayed within the familiar grid format, with each participant getting their own tile. Tiles are often arranged and edited.

• Portrait mode: FaceTime blurs your background and focuses the camera on the speaker.

• Invite others with FaceTime links: Users are going to be ready to schedule calls before time within the calendar app and share links to approaching and on-going calls.

SharePlay will allow you to hold group watch parties in FaceTime, or share your screen if you would like to offer a presentation. Shared media is synced and may be controlled by all call participants. you’ll also send SharePlay videos to your Apple TV device. At launch, you’ll be ready to watch or hear content from:

• Apple AirPlay

• AppleTV

• Apple Music

Disney+

• ESPN+

• HBOMax

• Hulu

• Masterclass

• The NBA

• Paramount+

• Pluto TV

• TikTok

Twitch

Apple is functioning to feature more third-party support to SharePlay, and developers can use the SharePlayAPI to form the feature compatible with their apps.

While not strictly an iOS 15 announcement, one among the most important WWDC 2021 reveals is that FaceTime will now work on a browser — even on Windows and Android devices. The shift in strategy for Apple, which rarely makes its software available or usable on other platforms. Come launch, you’ll be ready to send and open links to FaceTime calls on any device also as participate in SharePlay sessions. No more keeping away your friends who don’t use iOS.

Messages is getting new integrations with other Apple apps which will assist you catch abreast of new stories, media, and other content your friends send you.

Whenever a contact sends a URL or media link in Messages, the link will automatically be added to a replacement “Shared with You” list available in several apps, including the News app, Apple Music, Safari, AppleTV, Apple Podcasts, and therefore the Photos app. you’ll also pin a link within Messages to feature it to the highest of the Shared with You section.

iOS’s don’t Disturb mode is now a part of the new “Focus Mode,” which allows you to create different Focus profiles that block notifications from certain apps and pause specific features. for instance , the “Work” Focus mode will exclude distractions from social media, YouTube, and messages, but won’t affect email, Slack, or other productivity apps. Your contacts will see a visible notification that you’re focused or don’t Disturb mode in certain apps, too.

Focus Mode has presets for Work, Sleep, and private , but you’ll create your own. Of course, if you would like to dam all notifications, don’t Disturb mode remains available, too.

Notifications will have a new look and different design on iOS 15. rather than an extended litany of interspersed alerts from various contacts and apps, notifications from people will now appear higher on the list. you’ll also prefer to receive app notifications as a summary sent at specific times of the day.

iOS 15’s Live Text feature scans photos for words — including hand-written notes or business logos within the background — and converts them into selectable text. you’ll copy and paste this Live Text into other apps, turn business names and phone numbers into searchable links, and import all of it into iOS Spotlight. and therefore the feature will even work on your old photos.

LiveText supports seven languages at launch, and can be available on iOS, iPad, and Mac.

Thanks to Apple Music integration, you’ll now add a soundtrack to your curated photo and video highlight reels in Apple Photos. you’ll look for specific tracks and alter between them on the fly to vary a photograph Memory’s vibe. you’ll even pause or skip the video while the music remains playing, and therefore the video will dynamically suits fit the tempo.

If you reside within the U.S., you’ll soon be ready to scan and store in your state ID cards in Apple Wallet. Apple says the functionality is merely available in “participating states,” but didn’t disclose which states are included.

Similarly, Apple Wallet is additionally working with several digital lock manufacturers so users can store their digital work IDs, hotel keycards, and digital house keys in their Apple Wallet also . You’ll be ready to tap your iPhone to enter a location with a stored key. like all Apple Wallet cards, ID and keycards are encrypted and stored locally on the device; they can’t be stolen or hacked remotely.

Maps is getting several updates for iOS 15, including new nighttime map filters and topography information, but the foremost helpful are new navigation features:

• More map information: adding more perfect marking details — like traffic lights, buses and bike lanes, crosswalks — to Maps. These new elements show up visually within the app and in Car Play.

• Track and pin transportation system routes: you’ll pin your favorite public transportation routes in Maps and have updates sent to your Apple Watch.

  • AR Map directions: Apple is launching AR walking directions in select cities this year (with more to follow). Your phone will scan all the surroundings near you then display AR markers and directions in the screen to guide you to your preferred destination.

The above mentioned are the The Coolest iOS 15 Features Announced at WWDC 2021 is our future of mobile app development. Above all, when you can control the whole system connected to the internet over a fingertip, who else would say a no to this amazing technology. Come and meet the experts at mobile app development company Toronto.

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Rob Stark

“Blogging is just writing — writing using a particularly efficient type of publishing technology.”