Live Activities: Follow activities happening in real-time like a sports match or a ride-share with just a glance at the Lock Screen. Third-party apps and App Clips can implement support thanks to the Live Activities API. Game Center SharePlay support: Games that use Game Center multiplayer support have SharePlay integration. You can start playing automatically with friends on a FaceTime call.
This year looks to be no different, with a total of nine iOS 16 features now known to not be included in the first public version of the new OS. Typically, Apple is unable to finalise several features before the first official release of a significant new version of iOS. Apple previewed each of the following features when it announced iOS 16 at WWDC earlier this year, but they won’t be present in iOS 16.0 when it releases to the public. Last year, a large number of features in iOS 15 and iPadOS 15 were not available in their initial release, taking several months to trickle out to users.
Highlights
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Updated architecture for the Home app: Enhancements to the underlying architecture of the Home app to enable faster, more reliable performance and improved efficiency, especially for homes with lots of accessories and multiple controller devices.Freeform app: A new digital whiteboard app with a flexible canvas for diagramming projects, aggregating important assets, and brainstorming, with real-time collaboration features and rich multimedia support.
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Game Center Contacts integration: Contacts shows your friends’ Game Center profiles. Tap through to see what they are playing and achieving in games. Support for Matter: The new smart home connectivity standard that enables compatible accessories to work together seamlessly and across platforms. Matter allows users to choose from even more compatible smart home accessories and control them with the Home app and Siri on Apple devices.
Easy Shortcuts setup for iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and iPhone X: Siri can run shortcuts from installed apps without any setup process (to be available for newer devices immediately without delay).iCloud Shared Photo Library became the latest feature to be delayed following Apple’s “Far out” event earlier this week, but all of the other delays were known upon the initial preview of iOS 16 at WWDC.
iCloud Shared Photo Library: A new option in the Photos app to allow users to create a shared photos library and invite anyone with an Apple ID to view, contribute to, and edit it, including favouriting images and adding captions. There are no limitations, and all participants have the same permissions, making it ideal for families. Key sharing: The ability to securely share keys in Apple Wallet via messaging apps and Mail.