What to Expect From iOS 12

Yes, it's that time again.

But the bigger question is whether the features that most users are clamouring for would even make it to iOS 12, a beta of which is expected to hit developers as early as next week. Plus, it also doesn't help that Android keeps getting the sort of user interface tweaks year after year (this time around, Android P completely overhauls core navigation of the phone by ditching the tried-and-tested back/home/recent buttons for a gesture-based system quite similar to iPhone X) that quite frankly make iOS look boring and stale in comparison.

Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference starts June 4 (Image: Apple WWDC)

That said, here's what I would like to see in iOS 12:

• System-wide dark mode, gesture typing on keyboard with improved emoji search, a full-fledged file manager, iMessage and Apple News for Mac/Android/Web, set default apps, grouped notifications and more - Check here for my last year's post.

• Improved Siri - Well, isn't that obvious by now? As much as I appreciate Apple's stance on privacy, the lack of updates to Siri renders it almost useless.

• Group FaceTime - I am sometimes befuddled by Apple's lack of urgency when it comes to updating its own apps. The fact that it's primarily a hardware company which makes money out of selling shiny iGadgets is not lost on me. But adding new features, like group FaceTime, wouldn't hurt either.

• Manual camera controls, and make them available within the camera app - Who in their right minds thought it was best to put the camera app's settings in Settings as opposed to making them available within the camera app?

• Improved digital well-being features that limit app usage by locking them down after a certain time - Yes, it's inspired by Android P's new App Timer feature, but hey, why not?

• A different home screen? - The home screen hasn't changed at all ever since Apple introduced its first iPhone in 2007. There is a reason why. It's simple, usable and gets the job done without any fuss. But once in a while, it's good to switch up things a little bit. Perhaps a dock-less home screen?

• Split-screen view for larger phones to handle two apps side-by-side - It is exactly what you think it is, and nothing more. After all, what's the benefit of a bigger display?

• Integrate Workflow for task automation - Apple bought the popular task automation app Workflow early last year, but so far there has been no indication of it being integrated deeply into iOS. I get it, task automation is not everyone's cup of tea and it doesn't go well with the simple/usable theme iOS is built on, but the tech giant can indeed start off with adding simple automation features like uploading last taken photos to cloud, or downloading a file from the web using a URL on the clipboard.