On June 13, iOS 10 will be making its much-anticipated debut at WWDC. There have been plenty of rumors as to what we can expect from its release and, if they turn out to be true (we hope some of them are) we shouldn’t be too surprised. But, even in the modern world of leaks galore, you can never be fully certain what Apple has in store.
Here are the top five updates we really hope to see in iOS 10:
1. The Ability to Hide Apple Installed Apps
While some people don’t mind this so much, there are a few of us who seriously hope this is part of the iOS update. There are some Apple pre-installed apps that we never use (like Stocks, Compass, Find Friends, etc.,) and have to group into one “unnecessary extras” folder just to free up some space on our home screens. Rumor has it that some code has been added into every app on the App Store, suggesting that Apple is planning to finally let us hide those pre-installed apps.
2. A Divorce Between Apple Music and iTunes
Please, please let this become reality. iTunes and Apple Music do not work well or look nice together, so it would make absolute sense for Apple to separate the two in iOS 10. I’m honestly not sure why the streaming service was not a separate app to begin with and I can’t tell you how many times myself and friends have been confused when trying to DJ on my phone and navigate between the two. There have been rumors about an upcoming Apple Music redesign, so fingers crossed.
3. Customizable Control Center
The control center is super convenient for accessing your most-used functions. The problem, though, is that you’re not able to customize it with the shortcuts you truly want or remove the ones you don’t. With new features like AirDrop and Night Shift integrated, the Control Center feels too busy, being able to customize it to your needs would be awesome.
4. Split View
Personally, I would love to see Split View on the iPhone for a productivity boost, just like what Apple did for the iPad with iOS 9. Certainly, it makes the most sense for the iPad’s larger screen, but those of us with an iPhone 6 or 6/6s Plus would welcome the addition.
5. Voicemail Transcription and Basically Anything That Improves Siri
Given the newly introduced Google Assistant and ever updating Amazon Alexa, Siri is quickly falling behind when it comes to voice control assistants. Siri became more proactive in iOS 9 but it’s still not great, especially as its now being compared to the likes of Google and Amazon. In iOS 10, we’d love to see the ability to transcribe voicemails into text, something we’ve been anticipating for a while.
Moreover, Siri’s inability to work with third-party apps is sad, especially given the growing number of partnerships with the Alexa platform, and the endless potential for Google Assistant. Imagine being able to ask Siri to open and play a Spotify playlist or send a tweet for you. Not sure why we can’t do this already, but we assume Apple has to be planning something.
6. Redesigned Notification Center
Apple has improved Notification Center immensely over the last few years, but it still pales in comparison Android’s way of handling notifications. As it stands right now, Notification Center is clunky and little more than window dressing rather than something truly useful. A full redesign, one focused on limiting clutter, improving speed and overall utility would go a long way.
While this is just a wish list, there are plenty of rumors going around and it’s possible some of these wishes will come true. Luckily, WWDC isn’t too far away, so we don’t have to wait much longer to hear what Apple has in store.
