iOS 14 gets rid of the app grid to help you find the app you’re looking for – ProWellTech

Apple launched the next major version of iOS a few weeks ago. I’ve been playing around with beta versions of iOS 14, and this is what you should expect when you update your iPhone to the final version of iOS 14 in the fall.

The most interesting change is something you won’t notice at first. The start screen has been revised. In a way, the iPhone now works more like Android devices. You can add widgets to the home screen, and there’s a new app launcher called App Library.

If you’ve been using a smartphone for many years, your device may be crowded with a dozen apps that you use a lot, some apps that you only need a few times a year, and a lot of apps that are no longer useful.

Maybe your home screen is organized perfectly and you think that this is not the case for you. You are probably part of the minority. A lot of people tell me that they don’t even know where the app icons are, and they just drag down to use the search function.

Changes are not immediately visible under iOS 14. If you want to continue using your phone as before, no one will stop you. The home screen is now more customizable.

Tapping and holding a home screen icon will bring up a new menu listing all the widgets you can install on your home screen. Many standard apps already support widgets such as reminders, calendars, stock, weather, music, etc. Each widget is available in several sizes if you want to display more or less information.

The most interesting thing about widgets is that you can stack and flip through them. Otherwise, they would quickly take over your entire home screen. Apple is also trying to display the widget that is more relevant to the time of day and your activities.

The second big change on the home screen is that a new page appears to the right of your last page. In the app library, all of your apps on your phone are grouped by category. Some icons are larger than others as Apple tries again to show you the most important apps.

In my experience, categories don’t work as well because they’re based on the general categories of the App Store. However, you can always tap the search bar at the top to see an alphabetical list of your apps. This can be useful if, for example, you can’t remember the name of an app.

Credit: Apple

Fight app fatigue

These changes to the home screen seem minor, but are important to change the current app paradigm. People just don’t want to download new apps. You don’t want to create a new account and don’t have another icon.

Now that you can hide pages of apps and there is the app library, downloading new apps has become less intimidating. If you combine that with Sign in to Appleyou won’t be able to switch from any app to interact with content in no time.

Apple is also introducing app clips. They are mini apps that you can start without installing an app. It’s a small part of an app that you can easily share. I haven’t had a chance to try it yet because third-party developers haven’t used app clips yet.

There are many ways to share app clips. You can launch these apps from the web, news, maps, NFC tags, or QR codes. Get ready to see stickers in cafes, on scooters, or in museums. Scan a code or tap your phone and you get an app-like experience. If you want to delve deeper, you can download the full app from the App Library.

But it will also have some big ramifications for utility apps, apps you don’t use as often, or travel apps, for example. Sure, you can keep your favorite social app on your home screen. However, you will forget apps that are only stored in the app library.

Developers will be happy that downloading apps is easier. And yet it will be more difficult to get people to return to your app after the first launch.

Credit: Apple

Some app improvements

Let me list some quality of life improvements that will make your phone work better. You can now put conversations at the top in messages. Group conversations also get an extensive update with the ability to mention people, reply to certain messages, and set a group of photos. Apple brings Messages closer to WhatsApp and Telegram again. But it’s not a bad thing.

There are many new functions in Maps, which I have already described in a separate post. I recommend you read it if you want to learn more about guides, electric vehicle routes, bike directions, and more.

The home app has been enhanced with a new set of icons that describe the status of your home. For example, you can see the temperature, see if a door is open, if lights are on, etc.

As every year, notes and reminders get some small improvements. For example, document scanning has been improved, search has been improved, you can assign reminders to others, and much more. These apps have become very powerful with these little incremental updates.

Credit: Apple

All the rest

There are many things I haven’t mentioned or tried because I can’t use these features yet. Likewise, it will take some time for developers to take over these functions. Here is a quick overview:

• Incoming calls no longer take up the entire screen. You will receive a notification at the top of the screen that is much better if you do not want to answer a call.
• Likewise, Siri doesn’t overtake the screen. Your display will disappear. I think more people will use Siri for this reason as it doesn’t feel so invasive.
• Your AirPods automatically switch between your iPhone, iPad, Mac, etc.
• When you have a FaceTime conversation or watch a video, you can switch to another app and keep the video in a corner. There is not much else to say than it is beautiful.
• Bicycle instructions in Apple Maps: I am a bicycle lover, but the function is not available in Paris. It is difficult to know whether it makes sense to get directions in San Francisco or New York, because I do not know the bicycle infrastructure in these cities very well.
• When you search down to search for something, iOS now automatically highlights the first result. You can tap Go on the keyboard to get the first result. It is so much better.
• HomeKit-compatible surveillance cameras can now identify faces using tags in photos.
• You can unlock cars with your phone using NFC if you have a compatible car.
• After taking over Dark Sky, you can see rainfall in the next hour in Apple’s weather app.
• With iOS 14, you can choose a different web browser and email client as standard apps.

What about stability?

The big problem with iOS 13 was that when it started in September 2019 it was pretty buggy. It’s hard to know if iOS 13 will do better in this regard, as it’s still a beta.

As you can see, however, Apple didn’t try to reinvent the wheel with standard apps. There are a lot of improvements across the board, but not a major redesign of photos or messages for example. And I think it’s a good thing.

Changes on the home screen as well as in app clips can have far-reaching effects on developers. This could change the way you discover and install apps today. So it will be interesting to see if the developer community accepts app clips.