A round up of what we learnt from the Apple Developer Conference

Apple’s developer conference is always a big deal and packed with product announcements and insights into new developments, launches and tools. This year’s WWDC was no different but with so much going on, it’s easy to have missed some of the more interesting reveals. Here we’ve rounded up some of the things we’ve learnt…

iOS is coming to Mac

Right at the start of the conference Apple confirmed that it was working to bring bring iOS apps to macOS . This is already in progress but the first apps to transition will be developed by Apple. After that, you should expect to be able to begin tapping into the macOS user base with your own apps sometime next year.

iOS is also getting a major overhaul

In addition to porting iOS apps to macOS, iOS itself it also getting a facelift – something Apple touched upon in the WWDC keynote. iOS 12 will likely become a public beta towards the end of June with a likely September launch. Some key changes include increased speed, with even older phones picking up the pace to the tune of 40%-70% gains.

It will have multi-player potential for games, a new measure app, changes to the camera app, an expanded, smarter photo app, iPhone like gestures on the iPad and new app shortcuts for Siri along with new languages.

Apple wants to limit phone usage

Smartphone addiction is becoming a thing and it was a recurring theme at WDDC – even as the Mary Meeker Internet Trends report confirmed that we’re actually using our mobile devices more than ever! It was a continual reference point during the keynote address with Apple saying that it will introduce new tools such as an Allowance, to allow parents to limit the time their children spend on devices.

With this comes the launch of a new Screen Time app – which will give users a report of how much time they spend on apps and set time limits for app usage. This will launch in September.

AR is within easier reach than ever

If you’re wanting to stretch your toolkit and creativity as an app developer, few things offer as much standout potential as AR. At WWDC, Apple outlined how its bringing AR much closer to its products. One of the key announcements was the creation of shared AR environments to give true multiplayer experiences but this was layered with other developments too.