
Where is Apple going?
My thought’s on IOS 11 Beta after using it for 1 month
I’ve been trying out the Apple Beta for IOS 11 for a good month now. This was the first time I tried a Beta and I can say I really like the experience! Instead of making another article about all the new features and how amazing they are, I thought I’dd share what I like about the direction IOS is going.
The Design
Once again Apple is focussing on the design and layout of things, making complex operations more intuitive. They put a lot of work in the design like new buttons, layouts, new animations… While this doesn’t improve the performance of the phone, it sure does make it more fun to use. I’m a big fan of the IOS 11 Design. It really makes it feel like you’re using a phone from the future.

3D touch
They basically invented another way to interact with your screen. While 3D touch has been around since the Iphone 6, I never saw the uses for it. It was annoying and not that much faster than opening an app and looking for what you need in there. With IOS11 I really enjoy the 3D touch especially in the Control Center. I find myself using it all the time.
Customizability
I don’t know if this is a trend or if Apple is planning to expand on this but I’m a fan! With there control center their introducing customizability. You can decide what you want to add to it and in what order. I only tried this on the Iphone but on the Ipad this is a game changer.
The QR code is coming back
This is a small change they made which they should have made years ago. QR codes are very easy and fast to make, I love them but I always hated opening a different app with shady adds just to scan the code. Now if you try to make a picture of a QR code, it will automatically detect it and show the link on the top of your screen. You click on it and off you go! This is big for advertising. If you want people to do something, make it easy (the number one rule in economics).
The Ipad will take over the MacBook
Apple is making the Ipad’s more and more attractive by really specking them out and making them cheaper. The new IOS update makes it almost worth it switching from my MacBook Pro to the Ipad. The multitasking features, the workflow, the design, the portability… Almost make it more attractive than this laptop. I can imagine a future with Ipads being the only device we have. No TV’s, no laptops and of course no desktops. While there will always be a market for all these other devices, I believe that market will really shrink and the Ipads will dominate. Maybe I’m wrong but time will tell.
Introducing AR
IOS 11 introduces ARKit, a new framework that allows you to easily create unparalleled augmented reality experiences for iPhone and iPad. What this means is that you can place digital objects on top of real ones. It’s difficult to explain so watch the quick video down below if you don’t know what I’m talking about. I can see this being very helpful for game developers, architects that can show a space before it’s even finished, even in the medical world…
I’m really excited about AR, way more than VR (Virtual Reality). VR is more of an escapism while AR can show us what’s possible in the world we already live in. We will see a lot of AR in the next 5 years in fields we didn’t even know it would be useful in!
Voice
Voice input is becoming more and more important. Look at Alexa from Amazon, Google Home, The Apple Homepod… But on the other hand also the demand for voice. Podcasts are becoming more and more popular and people just like communicating and having a conversation more than typing on a keyboard and looking at a screen all the time. I do voice dictations all the time to make notes, schedule something in my calendar, search the web… Now with Siri becoming smarter and smarter, now even translating, voice is taking it’s well-deserved place next to writing and video. It’s a very exciting shift where I personally should do more with.
The Apple Watch
With the IOS 11 update the watch get’s more features to like Apple pay, easier access to Siri, you can dial numbers from your watch and a lot of visual upgrades of course. Again I don’t want to dig into all the features, I recommend watching the video below from 9 to 5 Mac where he lays out all new features. The potentials with the Apple watch are pretty much endless. I see a future where this watch is your MetroCard, your ID, I even saw an article recently where a private Healthcare company is looking into making it mandatory for their customers to wear an Apple Watch for Medical Data. You can check out the TechCrunch article here.
I want to write a separate article about the Apple Watch later but I couldn’t leave it out in this one either 😅 So stay tuned!
If you liked it please give this article a big Applause! 🙌 And let me know what you love the most about IOS 11! Have a great day everyone and for more articles and more information on what I do go check out my Website www.louisdekeyser.com
