Apple started rolling out the iOS 10 public beta, or second version of the developer preview, late last week. After a bit of contemplation I have decided to take the plunge and upgrade the iPhone 6s Plus to the latest version of the Apple mobile OS.
Over the next few days I will chronicle my experience with iOS 10. Below we look at the latest addition in iMessage.
The upgrade
My phone had over 50GB of data, and hadn’t been backed up after a point — my iCloud is on the free 5GB limit. So after I decided to upgrade, the first thing I had to do was a backup. As suggested by some experts, I chose to opt for the encrypted backup, this way it’s easier to recover the phone if things go wrong.
The entire beta download process on Apple is smooth and very easy to understand. Go to the page, download the profile and restart your phone. Then you will start seeing the new update in your software updates tab.
On my 8Mbps Wifi connection the 1.7GB download took close to an hour. The installation that followed lasted nearly 15 minutes.
The phone sprung back to life with my Slack and Whatsapp notifications buzzing on the lock screen. My data and apps were all untouched. I was happy.
Over the next few days I will chronicle my experience with iOS 10. Below we look at the latest addition in iMessage.
The upgrade
My phone had over 50GB of data, and hadn’t been backed up after a point — my iCloud is on the free 5GB limit. So after I decided to upgrade, the first thing I had to do was a backup. As suggested by some experts, I chose to opt for the encrypted backup, this way it’s easier to recover the phone if things go wrong.
The entire beta download process on Apple is smooth and very easy to understand. Go to the page, download the profile and restart your phone. Then you will start seeing the new update in your software updates tab.
On my 8Mbps Wifi connection the 1.7GB download took close to an hour. The installation that followed lasted nearly 15 minutes.
The phone sprung back to life with my Slack and Whatsapp notifications buzzing on the lock screen. My data and apps were all untouched. I was happy.
First Impressions
The first thing that hit me was the lock screen and notifications screen. This seems to be Apple’s answer to Google Now. Everything you need to know is here from weather to calendar and news. It’s all very easy to navigate and comprehend. The search bar is on top and the only thing missing are the Siri apps. For that, we might have wait till Fall, when the full release is rolled out.
Notifications come wherever you are, as a card that can be easily dismissed or acted on. You can pull down the notifications like before, but the cards are better sorted now.
One of the first new features I ended up using was in the clock app. There is now a Bedtime tab that sort of decides when you should sleep and sends you an alert before this time. It does this based on the time you want to wake up and the expected hours of sleep. If only life what was simple.
The first thing that hit me was the lock screen and notifications screen. This seems to be Apple’s answer to Google Now. Everything you need to know is here from weather to calendar and news. It’s all very easy to navigate and comprehend. The search bar is on top and the only thing missing are the Siri apps. For that, we might have wait till Fall, when the full release is rolled out.
Notifications come wherever you are, as a card that can be easily dismissed or acted on. You can pull down the notifications like before, but the cards are better sorted now.
One of the first new features I ended up using was in the clock app. There is now a Bedtime tab that sort of decides when you should sleep and sends you an alert before this time. It does this based on the time you want to wake up and the expected hours of sleep. If only life what was simple.
iMessage
For me the most anticipated feature was the new iMessage app. It is pure shock and awe given that the old app was basic. Now, it is the best of messaging across all third-party apps and has some cutting edge stuff on top of it.
The first new thing I tried was sharing a song with someone else on a iPhone. It went through, though the person could not reply in kind.
The App Store will give you lot of fun stuff to play with in messages, but it has limited options now.
The scribble and sketch option is what I suggest will end up being used a lot. With some practice, you can write a full message like this and pray the person on the other side understands.
The full impact of this on messaging behaviour will take some time to gauge, but it’s sure a start and one that will give some sleepless nights to third party apps like Whatsapp.
For me the most anticipated feature was the new iMessage app. It is pure shock and awe given that the old app was basic. Now, it is the best of messaging across all third-party apps and has some cutting edge stuff on top of it.
The first new thing I tried was sharing a song with someone else on a iPhone. It went through, though the person could not reply in kind.
The App Store will give you lot of fun stuff to play with in messages, but it has limited options now.
The scribble and sketch option is what I suggest will end up being used a lot. With some practice, you can write a full message like this and pray the person on the other side understands.
The full impact of this on messaging behaviour will take some time to gauge, but it’s sure a start and one that will give some sleepless nights to third party apps like Whatsapp.
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