iOS 11 Wish-List : 11 features/changes we really want!

It's WWDC 2017 time folks! WWDC is the place where Apple releases it's newest software and this year the developer conference is starting from June 5th. Apple has already issued press invites for the keynote on the first day of WWDC and boy we are excited!

As the date comes closer and closer it is difficult to not wonder what new features will Apple bring to its software.



So here is a list of 11 features/changes we want Apple to include in iOS 11:

1. Design Overhaul!

The last time iOS got a new paint job was back in 2013 when iOS 7 was released. It's been 4 long years since Apple updated the overall look of its mobile operating software and the design really seems monotonous now.


It's high time Apple brought a fresh look and even minor changes such as new iconography would also make a huge difference!




2. Dark Mode


This is something that Apple fans have been asking for years now! iOS really needs a dark mode for people who don't want the super white settings menu, the calendar or even the music app.

Looking at those white backgrounds gets even more difficult during the night when there's not much light in the room.

Please Apple, we need this! :(

A dark music app would be so cool.

Using a dark themed iMessage at night would be such a breather.

3. Customizable Control Centre

Control centre brought the ability to toggle settings directly from anywhere without opening the settings app in iOS. As much as we love the control centre, our inability to change the icons and toggles available in it is a major handicap.

The ability to change the toggles in the control centre would be such a bliss (I have always wanted a mobile data toggle in it). Ability to change those default apps at the bottom of the control centre would also be a welcome addition.

4. Improved Keyboard

Even though Apple has provided the option to add a third party keyboard in iOS, I still prefer to use the default Apple keyboard just because it works so much better than the others.

A few vital additions such as a swipe keyboard and haptic feedback are important for the default Apple keyboard to come at par with the others. And imagine a dark themed Apple keyboard!😍😍

5. Place icons anywhere/More live icons

Right now we can only place icons in a perfectly rectangular grid. Ability to place icons anywhere on your home screen would be appreciated by everyone.

Also, letting third party developers add live icons to their applications would bring life to the home screen.

6. Volume HUD needs to go

We have been struggling with this for years now. Every time we decrease or increase the volume, the volume HUD obstructs the screen view for a few seconds which is highly irritating. Apple really needs to come up with a new animation for it.

7. Ability to set default apps

Here in India, Apple Maps simply sucks. It just doesn't match the functionality provided by Google Maps.

Clicking on an address and directly opening Google Maps for directions or clicking on a link to open any browser instead of the Safari app would let users to use apps they prefer without wasting their time in switching between the apps they want to use and the apps Apple wants them to use.

8. Notifications overhaul

Notifications are better on Android hands down. Apple really needs to learn a lesson or two from Android on how to manage notifications.

Learning how to group notifications from the same app should be number on the list. Remember the time when you posted a new photo on Instagram and you got 50 different notifications for 50 different people who liked your photo? Viewing so many different notifications gets so annoying. 

9. Better Siri

Siri was amazing when it was launched in 2011. It amazed all of us, including the Apple haters.

In 2017, Looking at Amazon's Alexa, Microsoft's Cortana or Google Assistant (which by the way launched on iOS yesterday) helps us realize how Apple has completely forgotten Siri.

The level of functionality that the other virtual assistants provide with their supreme machine learning and AI algorithms is simply just unmatchable for Siri in its current state.

Take a note Apple, high time you updated our beloved Siri.

10. App lock with fingerprints

This is something that everybody would love having on their phones! Handing out your phone to someone else and fearing that they don't check out your photos or your private texts is a situation which almost everyone would connect to.

Adding the ability to lock specific apps with your fingerprint would take app security and privacy to the next level. 

11. Don't let phone calls hijack the screen

Last but not the least, don't let phone calls hijack the whole screen Apple! 

Everyone goes through this: you're writing an important mail or you're going through some website or you're watching a video and suddenly the whole screen turns into an incoming call. You're forced to stop doing whatever you are doing to attend that call, no matter how important or unimportant it is.

This really needs to change. Android has taken a notification like approach to incoming calls while the phone is unlocked and we think Apple should apply it too. Let the call drop from the top of the screen, just like a notification and then let the user decide if the call is important enough to stop whatever he/she currently is doing or not.

To think that Apple would listen to us and apply all these changes in iOS 11 would be foolish but let's hope Apple takes a note or two and gives us some of these features. We won't need to wait too long to find out...June 5th is almost here. 

Until next time folks!

Thanks to YouTuber 'EverythingApplePro' and Jacek Zieba for all the amazing concept pictures that are shown in this article :)