Apple has officially introduced the iOS 12 software update on 17th September after months of beta versions. Previously it was showcased at WWDC in June during this year. It supports on all iPhone devices ranging from latest iPhone XS to the previously launched 2013’s iPhone 5S. Apple users can now update the iOS 12 software update in their iPhone devices.

Apple iOS 12 Review

As the iOS 12 update released there is one question that arises how well it will run on the older iPhones? “Should I install the new update? Or will it slow down my phone?” It has been quite popular since decades that Apple intentionally does not offer the latest software update in older iPhone devices so that the customers must go for newly launched iPhones.

iOS 12 software comes with enticing features such as better notifications, Siri shortcuts, group FaceTime and Emoji/ Animoji than the previous iOS. In the previous operating system, the company had focused only on the appearance, but this time the company has more focused on working rather than the appearance.

Performance Improvements

One of the major changes that have been implemented by Apple in iOS 12 is that it offers better performance than the previous iOS updates. Apple is claiming that iOS 12 update provides up to 40 percent efficiency for booting the apps and 70 per cent more speed for launching the camera. So one question is arising in everyone’s mind, whether these numbers are really factual or not.

Interestingly, Apple iPad Air which is almost five-year-old gadget and not even functioning properly in iOS 11 has gained a new life with the release of the new Apple iOS 12 software. However, the Apple iPad Air is not functioning that much faster but the time was cut short while at the time of opening apps. Long-term software support is one of the highlighting features of Apple iOS software than the Android and in this league, there is a good news for older Apple iPhone users as this time the Apple has more focused on older Apple iPhones/iPad devices. It must be noted that updating the latest iOS 12 software on a five- year old gadget does not guarantee of a supper smoothness but still it is commendable.

Performance Improvements

This year Apple iOS 12 is more secure and faster than the previous iOS 11 which was well known for bugs and technical issues. Apple has solved all the technical issues in the final version of iOS 12 after months of testing in beta and development phase. After all, iOS 12 is much better than the iOS 11 in terms of performance, security and improvement.

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Apple has added more enticing features in its latest iOS 12 software which allows the iPhone users to use their device not only for the basic or particular purpose but also for the entertainment purpose by utilizing the Group FaceTime, ScreenTime, Memoji Siri Shortcuts which is available in iOS 12.

Screen Time – Productive Feature

Apple has added a new feature, titled as Screen Time in iOS 12, ‘under the Settings menu which would provide you detailed information regarding how much time you and your child spent on iPhone/ iPad devices. Apart from that, it also tells you how much time you spend on particular apps such as messages, photos, social networking, creativity and more.

Screen Time

Furthermore, you can also get how many notifications you have received on your Apple iPhone/ iPad device and how many times you have answered your phone call.

Screen time feature in iOS 12 software does not only suggests how much time you spend on your iPhone or iPad devices but also provides you to limit that usage by using “App Limit” by scheduling time under the setting menu.

Screen Time has categorized into two parts which include today and past 7 days. At the end of the week, you will get the report of a whole week of device used for the previous week.

Steps To Set App Limit By Using Screen Time in iOS 12 Mentioned Below:-

  • Go to Settings > Screen Time > App Limits.
  • After tapping on App Limits, you can set the time limit either for a particular app (single app) or entire categories of apps (such as entertainment, social media, productivity and more.
  • If you want to set the time limits only for a particular app there is a bit different way. Go to Settings > Screen Time, search the “Most Used” app in the list and click on it. At the bottom of the screen, you can see a “add limit” option. This way you can set the time limit you want to spend on a particular app or category.
  • iOS 12 would buzz you a reminder notification. Once your app usage limit is completed, you can notice that the screen turns into white with a big black hourglass icon on a screen. It asks you to either extend the time limit by 15 minutes or just ignore it for today.
  • If you want to set the time limit for an entire category of apps (like games, social networking and more) just scroll it down and tap on the circle next to each category. After then you will see a tick mark on the screen which indicates that you have selected this category (for example entertainment)
  • It allows setting a daily time limit by scheduling hours and minutes as per your feasibility. Apart from that, you can also tap on Customise Days to set a limit on a daily basis. It helps if you don’t want to get disturbed with app usage limits either on weekends or when you have more free time.

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iOS 12 Features – Downtime Feature

Downtime is another feature in iOS 12 which allow the users to limit usage for a certain period of time, if in case you are addicted to using social media apps including Instagram, Facebook etc before heading to bed. Downtime feature

in iOS 12 allows you to set the time limits to keep the phone down so that you can sleep better.

Downtime Feature

To Set up Downtime in iOS 12 follow the steps mentioned below:-

  1.  Go to Settings > Screen Time
  2. Tap on Downtime
  3. Mention the time of evening whenever you want that Downtime to start as well as the time in the next morning it should end.

Memoji/Animojis Again

Apple has not only focused on performance improvements in its latest iOS 12 software but also offered interesting and entertaining features such as Memoji and Animoji which allow the users to create animated Animoji and Memoji as per mood. To utilize Memoji and Animoji feature in iOS 12, you must require iPhone X or newly launched iPhone XS, XS Max, or XR models.

There are plenty of options available in iOS 12 mobile operating system which allows the users to create 3D animated Animoji as per their requirement by using different features such as skin color, hairstyle, headwear, eyewear, the facial feature. Apple Memoji is identical to AR Emoji, though there is also AR Emoji being offered by Samsung in its latest flagship Galaxy S9+.

It’s rightly said that you can do some fun while playing with Memoji on your iPhone X or Apple iPhone 2019 series which has been developed basically for the entertainment purpose, though it’s difficult to contemplate that they’ll have any long-lasting impact any more than the regular Animoji did.

Memoji

By using Memoji or Animoji, the users can also record a song, facial expression in a video message that can be further sent to friends, family similar to last year iOS 11. Apart from that, the users can share their 3D animated Memoji or Animoji in social platforms like Instagram, snap chat and more.

iBooks, Apple News, Stocks, and Voice Memos apps in iOS 12 comes with an improved and stylish design which suggests that Apple is now focusing on appearance and design layout. After upgrading the iOS 12, Stocks, and Voice Memos apps are also supported in iPad device for the first time in the history of Apple Tablets, for the users who have been dying to check the investment portfolio in their tablet.

The users can use their iPhone device in a smarter and safe manner by utilizing CarPlay which supports only selected cars. Apple has adopted one major change in iOS 12 by offering Third-Party Navigation Apps in CarPlay. Google Maps and Waze both are working to support CarPlay and the beta testing for this has commenced, though the release date for the update is not confirmed yet.

Password Management in iOS 12 being improved by Apple. By using Third-party password managers such as LastPass and 1Password you can directly log in to apps and web browsers which is very helpful.

The latest Apple software also gets autofill support from third-party password managers. You will get the six-digit codes from two-factor authentication services via SMS on your iPhone which automatically fills whenever you want to login thus it saves your time.

iPad users get more attention from Apple as it has offered gesture navigation feature in between swiping apps, reading notifications and allows to control the centre similar to the iPhone X. The disappointing part is that Apple has not fixed problems such as a still-complicated split-screen mode in iPad device, although moving the control centre away to a drop-down menu does help declutter the multitasking menu a bit, in addition to making the whole system more consistent across devices.

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Augmented Reality is the Next Tech

Apple has introduced support for ARKit 2 which means there is a lot of room for newer apps based on augmented reality. This way multiple users can share AR experience with one another in a very exciting way.

Augmented Reality

It is to be seen how the apps would form there way in augmented reality and how they would connect multiple users on the same platform at par with many games and messaging platform available right now.

Augmented reality has just kicked off in the tech sector and it is to be seen how well it goes with the current technology and hardware present in the market. Most of the smartphone are also trying their hands in the AR thing but time will tell the exact direction.

iOS 12 – An Update With Importance

iOS 11 was not that much straight to the line as it appeared to be only a cosmetic update to the user interface of the device. Now at the launching of iOS 12, there seems to be more than just appearing as there are a lot of features and actually productive on board.

Screen time is one such feature which was required to be on all the smartphones in the world due to the sheer requirement of acknowledgment from all the smartphones users as to how much they are using their smartphones in a day and is it excessive so one can limit it.

FaceTime video chat is now capable to add 32 people at a time for a video call and it really seems to be a live conference. Just imagine 32 people talking to each other on a video call making it a large affair.

Conclusion

Finally, the iOS 12 has arrived on the iPhones and iPads with lots of advanced features. It will take some time to be downloaded on all the iPhones but more than that for truly settle itself in the minds and usability of users.

It is still in the stage where people would judge its capabilities and try to make every argument over it its productivity. Maybe Apple have to release one or two updates on over it to clarify the issues but all these are in vain as Apple makes the most of its resource eve in the first shot.