So unlike most reviews and thought pieces you’ll probably read about this event, I actually didn’t go to WWDC. I am but a lowly Apple fan with a blog. I’ve had an iPhone since the iPhone 3. I’ve had a MacBook Pro since 2011. I’ve had an iPad before but am now the proud owner of a 2018 iPad. After watching WWDC, I’m so fired up and excited about what’s coming in the fall. I couldn’t help but document my thoughts.
For pure lack of enthusiasm and due to the fact that I don’t have access to the corresponding products I will not be covering watchOS or tvOS updates.
The moment we’ve been waiting for, Dark mode is coming to iOS. As someone who loves iOS and the apple ecosystem, this was pleasant news. I installed dark mode on my MacBook as soon as possible. My YouTube app has been on dark mode since it’s inception. Definitely feeling MKBHD vibes because I’m in love with all the dark modes.
Dark mode wasn’t the only update that caught my attention though. Apple is brining pretty cool updates and customization to Memoji. We’ll get Memoji stickers and our friends with lower level iPhones will be able to create them as well.
Maps is getting an amazing update with some awesome street views. Hopefully this will finally start to compete with Google Maps or Waze.
The last thing I’ll hit on for iOS is the Apple sign in feature. As someone who works in marketing, I understand that tracking someone though the web can be amazingly beneficial. However, I also understand that marketers ruin everything. As a professional I’m concerned about how this will affect the industry, but as a consumer I’m excited to not rely on Facebook and Google to log into things just because it’s easier.
Along with the updates to iOS, we were alerted to the death of an Apple OG, iTunes. They jokingly teased that things would be added to iTunes in what will definitely become a meme with the “nailed it” slide before revealing that iTunes would be broke out into three different apps.
iTunes is being replaced by Apple Music, Apple Podcasts and Apple TV apps. I’m not really sad or excited about this change. I’m sure that by separating these apps things will hopefully be able to flourish in their respective buckets.
For as long as the iPad has been popular, it’s been teased as the middle child of iOS and macOS. Users have had to deal with iPhone apps blown up or Mac apps shrunk down. They’ve had to deal with lazy developers and half-assed iPad apps.
Hopefully this will change with the dedication of iPadOS. This dedicated OS, along with a nice developer update that will basically help create an iPad version of apps, should be the savior and revival of the iPad.
Along with a dedicated OS comes things like desktop class browsing and some pretty helpful gestures for editing type. Updates like these are small things that will hopefully improve the iPad experience.
I keep saying hopefully because as we know, just because Apple unveils it at WWDC doesn’t always mean it comes in the Fall like the promise or that it works as promised in the beginning. But I’m keeping my fingers crossed.
Although macOS Catalina is going to be a monster update in its own right, most of the features I’m excited about are those related to the iPad. The introduction of sidecar will possibly obliterate the need for apps like Astropad on newer iPads. The ability to use your iPad as a second display without the use of third party apps will definitely be a game changer.
MacOS Catalina also comes with the separated apps I mentioned above for music, tv, and podcasts. Things will look nicer and cleaner and the overall experience should be better. They also announced that they would be bringing updated and dedicated apps to the desktop experience.
As someone who’s never owned a MacPro, you can take what I’m about to say with a grain of salt. However, on paper this thing looks like the powerhouse that every Apple fan has been waiting for.
The ability to add to this machine is something Apple desktop users have been waiting for, and man did they really pump this one up. Up to 28 cores of power, several PCI express lanes, up to 1.5 TB of memory, Radeon Pro Vega II Duo, and Apple Afterburner are only a few of the reasons potential consumers are gushing over this new machine.
The cheese grater look helps house this monster. It’s designed to have a cooling effect because one can only expect that something this powerful can put off a ton of heat. It has handles, optional wheels, and I’m sure will make any professional Apple fan very happy.
I’ll most likely take advantage of most of the things I mentioned above. I always download the latest iOS. Because I have a new iPad, I’ll definitely be downloading the new iPadOS. I love working on my Mac and you can bet that I’m going to take advantage of MacOS Catalina.
I’m not really at a point where I can come up with, let alone justify, spending the insane amount of money required to own a Mac Pro. However, I’ll watch from afar in amazement at the things people will use it for.
I’m feeling really good after the WWDC 2019 keynote. Apple stepped things up with their software, and I for one am ready for these updates.
All photos courtesy of Apple. Also for full details on the things I mentioned above visit www.apple.com
Originally published at https://larryg.co on June 5, 2019.
