It's iOS 11.5 really....

[neil74]

I have installed the beta and the it actually feels pretty stable but it also feels almost exactly like iOS11, it is probably so stable as it is iOS11 with a some minor tweaks and improvements rather than a full blown new OS (IMO). It is only little things like swiping up on the X to close apps (which I keep forgetting!) and the notifications that point to it being a new OS. Other than the password feature which when it lands will be awesome.

I am massively underwhelmed and it really feels like Apple do no innovate like they used to, in so many areas iOS is falling further and further behind Android and the things that still irk me in iOS12 are:


1. Still no ability to customise your home screen (icon position and size) Even allowing the icons to wrap from the bottom rather than the top would be an improvement, but no it looks like we have another 12 months of every iPhone screen looking the same

2. No always on display.

3. Other than force touch cursor swipe the keyboard still falls way behind Android. Why do apple continue to block really useful things like long press for symbols for example? Totally baffles me

4. No dark mode. This is no biggie really for me but it would look awesome if the iPhone X had it.

5. Animoji and Meemoji. Honestly they feel pointless but locking them to iMessage only just seems daft. Allowing people for example to share them via whatsapp or social networks would open them up to a wider audience and I'd bet would tempt some android users to switch too.

6. Would have liked them to reduce face unlock from a 3 or 4 stage process to 1 or 2. Currently You have to pick your phone up, wake the screen, wait for the unlock symbol and then swipe. I have found it very reliable but there is no doubt that it is significantly slower than a FPS.

7. AR??? Does anybody honestly really care about this? For me that was an embarrassing watch at WWDC


1,2 and 3 remain my biggest beefs if they fixed them I’d live with the rest but whilst I have an iPhone, Android continues to be daily driver now and looks like it will be for another 12 months at least. The longer I do this the more I move away from Apple’s services, I now use Google for contacts, Calendar and photos, I have cancelled Apple music too. 3 years ago I was a 100% apple guy all in, now I am not and if windows was not so terrible I’d also be considering other options to my Mac too.

Maybe some other stuff will land with the next iPhones? But I feel more and more like Apple is run by a bunch of uncool Dads who think they know what is cool but really don’t, and I say that as an uncool Dad myself! Definitely feels like new blood is needed in senior positions at Apple.


YMMV and thoughts welcome.

 

[SumYoungGai]

I think you're forgetting that iOS 11 was a dumpster fire for many people, for several months after it launched last year. This year apple is taking a step back to iron out the problems and make the OS more stable, so it makes sense that there are no new groundbreaking features.

 

[neil74]

I get that and maybe 12 only feels so stable as we are comparing it to 11.

Honestly though, I would not describe 1,2 and 3 on my list above as groundbreaking

 

[fjarl]

So it’s exactly like Apple said it would be? It’s a release focussing on performance and stability, probably laying the groundwork for the major changes now pushed to iOS13. A bit boring, but also, for many people, rather welcome.

 

[Mr.Blacky]

I have installed the beta and the it actually feels pretty stable but it also feels almost exactly like iOS11, it is probably so stable as it is iOS11 with a some minor tweaks and improvements rather than a full blown new OS (IMO). It is only little things like swiping up on the X to close apps (which I keep forgetting!) and the notifications that point to it being a new OS. Other than the password feature which when it lands will be awesome.

I am massively underwhelmed and it really feels like Apple do no innovate like they used to, in so many areas iOS is falling further and further behind Android and the things that still irk me in iOS12 are:


1. Still no ability to customise your home screen (icon position and size) Even allowing the icons to wrap from the bottom rather than the top would be an improvement, but no it looks like we have another 12 months of every iPhone screen looking the same

2. No always on display.

3. Other than force touch cursor swipe the keyboard still falls way behind Android. Why do apple continue to block really useful things like long press for symbols for example? Totally baffles me

4. No dark mode. This is no biggie really for me but it would look awesome if the iPhone X had it.

5. Animoji and Meemoji. Honestly they feel pointless but locking them to iMessage only just seems daft. Allowing people for example to share them via whatsapp or social networks would open them up to a wider audience and I'd bet would tempt some android users to switch too.

6. Would have liked them to reduce face unlock from a 3 or 4 stage process to 1 or 2. Currently You have to pick your phone up, wake the screen, wait for the unlock symbol and then swipe. I have found it very reliable but there is no doubt that it is significantly slower than a FPS.

7. AR??? Does anybody honestly really care about this? For me that was an embarrassing watch at WWDC


1,2 and 3 remain my biggest beefs if they fixed them I’d live with the rest but whilst I have an iPhone, Android continues to be daily driver now and looks like it will be for another 12 months at least. The longer I do this the more I move away from Apple’s services, I now use Google for contacts, Calendar and photos, I have cancelled Apple music too. 3 years ago I was a 100% apple guy all in, now I am not and if windows was not so terrible I’d also be considering other options to my Mac too.

Maybe some other stuff will land with the next iPhones? But I feel more and more like Apple is run by a bunch of uncool Dads who think they know what is cool but really don’t, and I say that as an uncool Dad myself! Definitely feels like new blood is needed in senior positions at Apple.


YMMV and thoughts welcome.

I don´t know, if I would classify any of your points as "innovative". Besides, you´re completly wrong about FaceID: You just swipe up to unlock, there is no need to wait for the unlock symbol.

 

[FFR]

Weird, thought the op sold his iPhone X on ebay.

Off to test this out.

My X is on eBay right now and I am thinking of either sticking totally on android or getting the 8+

FID has worked fine for me in all scenarios but you will never convince me that it is anything but slower than a FPS. The whole motion takes several seconds even if the FID bit is really quick.

Also other than swipe up for home I dislike the gestures a lot, don’t mind the notch but hate that I cannot see battery % and the new access for control centre is just terrible. Lastly the dead space under the keyboard just feels very un-Apple like.

The screen is terrific for sure but the actual useable area is closer to the 8 than the 8+ imo.

YMMV

 

[Princejb134]

I have installed the beta and the it actually feels pretty stable but it also feels almost exactly like iOS11, it is probably so stable as it is iOS11 with a some minor tweaks and improvements rather than a full blown new OS (IMO). It is only little things like swiping up on the X to close apps (which I keep forgetting!) and the notifications that point to it being a new OS. Other than the password feature which when it lands will be awesome.

I am massively underwhelmed and it really feels like Apple do no innovate like they used to, in so many areas iOS is falling further and further behind Android and the things that still irk me in iOS12 are:


1. Still no ability to customise your home screen (icon position and size) Even allowing the icons to wrap from the bottom rather than the top would be an improvement, but no it looks like we have another 12 months of every iPhone screen looking the same

2. No always on display.

3. Other than force touch cursor swipe the keyboard still falls way behind Android. Why do apple continue to block really useful things like long press for symbols for example? Totally baffles me

4. No dark mode. This is no biggie really for me but it would look awesome if the iPhone X had it.

5. Animoji and Meemoji. Honestly they feel pointless but locking them to iMessage only just seems daft. Allowing people for example to share them via whatsapp or social networks would open them up to a wider audience and I'd bet would tempt some android users to switch too.

6. Would have liked them to reduce face unlock from a 3 or 4 stage process to 1 or 2. Currently You have to pick your phone up, wake the screen, wait for the unlock symbol and then swipe. I have found it very reliable but there is no doubt that it is significantly slower than a FPS.

7. AR??? Does anybody honestly really care about this? For me that was an embarrassing watch at WWDC


1,2 and 3 remain my biggest beefs if they fixed them I’d live with the rest but whilst I have an iPhone, Android continues to be daily driver now and looks like it will be for another 12 months at least. The longer I do this the more I move away from Apple’s services, I now use Google for contacts, Calendar and photos, I have cancelled Apple music too. 3 years ago I was a 100% apple guy all in, now I am not and if windows was not so terrible I’d also be considering other options to my Mac too.

Maybe some other stuff will land with the next iPhones? But I feel more and more like Apple is run by a bunch of uncool Dads who think they know what is cool but really don’t, and I say that as an uncool Dad myself! Definitely feels like new blood is needed in senior positions at Apple.


YMMV and thoughts welcome.

Dude just get a android if you want customization. Honestly customization is so overrated and gets boring fast. When I had my phone I changed my home screen look maybe twice and got bored both times. iPhones are fine the way they are

 

[Radon87000]

Its not iOS 12. In reality ,its iOS 11 remastered. Its a release meant to fix iOS 11.

 

[deuxani]

1. Still no ability to customise your home screen (icon position and size) Even allowing the icons to wrap from the bottom rather than the top would be an improvement, but no it looks like we have another 12 months of every iPhone screen looking the same

2. No always on display.

3. Other than force touch cursor swipe the keyboard still falls way behind Android. Why do apple continue to block really useful things like long press for symbols for example? Totally baffles me

4. No dark mode. This is no biggie really for me but it would look awesome if the iPhone X had it.

5. Animoji and Meemoji. Honestly they feel pointless but locking them to iMessage only just seems daft. Allowing people for example to share them via whatsapp or social networks would open them up to a wider audience and I'd bet would tempt some android users to switch too.

6. Would have liked them to reduce face unlock from a 3 or 4 stage process to 1 or 2. Currently You have to pick your phone up, wake the screen, wait for the unlock symbol and then swipe. I have found it very reliable but there is no doubt that it is significantly slower than a FPS.

7. AR??? Does anybody honestly really care about this? For me that was an embarrassing watch at WWDC

I understand that you are underwhelmed, but we knew for months now that this was going to be a "focus on stability and performance" release. Obviously we want groundbreaking features each year, but after iOS11 Apple had to reset and get the basics right. if iOS13 has no innovation or redesign, then I will completely share your disappointment, but this year I'm happy they are looking at things that matter.

Regarding your list:

1. This is such a tiny thing most users totally don't care about. I would actually be surprised if they would introduce something like this. But a more dynamic home screen with some more info or snippets would be nice yeah.

2. On the X I definitely was expecting at least something (clock, WatchOS style complications, notifications, etc), too bad that they kept the screen off so stale.

3. Apple's keyboard needs a huge update yes. And especially in the language department! I truly don't understand how SwiftKey and the likes can support word and even grammar suggestion and be bi- or trilingual, while the Apple keyboard doesn't even support word suggestion on so many European languages. Quicktype only supports 12 languages! 12! SwiftKey, Gboard, etc basically support any language in the world. I really don't understand how they can't get this to work. The keyboard is one of the most import parts of the OS and I haven't touched Apple's keyboard in 4 or 5 years because of it not supporting my language (Dutch). I stopped caring about the Apple keyboard a long time ago.

4. I also think this is no biggie. When apps like Twitter, YouTube, Tapatalk, IMDb, etc have a dark mode, I don't really care if the OS has it.

5. You can actually use these in other apps, but it's a bit cumbersome. And the emoji are just there to lure non-tech people to upgrade to the newest version. It's all marketing, so that's why I can understand it from their side.

6. For me it's a 2 step process already. I pick op my phone and slide up, that's it. When you pick it up the screen automatically goes on, when you slide it up it automatically unlocks and goes to the home screen. No need to wait. Maybe a setting to bypass the lock screen without swiping up would be nice (or only when there are no notifications showing on your lock screen), but I don't think they will do that as this was a conscience choice (as explained by Craig Federighi)

7. It seemed that people who used the AR apps in the demo area were highly impressed. So even though it might not be for you, AR is cool for many and is the future.

 

[Rogifan]

Nothing you mentioned is earth shattering. And it’s possible some things are being saved for the new phone announcement in the fall.

 

[CaTOAGU]

For wemoji and Animoji to be used in other apps, it would require those apps to support the format. Apple can’t just make them available to be used with wherever they’d like.

 

[deuxani]

For wemoji and Animoji to be used in other apps, it would require those apps to support the format. Apple can’t just make them available to be used with wherever they’d like.

You can record an Animoji in the Messages app, save it to the camera roll and then send it through any 3rd party app you like. So the simple implementation would be to use that format in 3rd party apps directly instead of doing it indirectly like this.

 

[neil74]

Weird, thought the op sold his iPhone X on ebay.

Not that I have to justify but if you are questioning my honesty then yes I did sell my silver X, tried the 8+ but returned it and picked up a black X which is what I now have. I also have an android device, I only use one at a time but I often switch between the 2. My other comments were X related not really iOS and I still think that the usable screen on the X puts it closer to the iPhone 8 than the plus. iOS 12 does at least improve the gestures.

Other posters are quite right re the Face unlock, got that wrong assuming it recognises you ok then there is no need to wait.

Re the keyboard it is not just that the apple one is lacking but that they restrict what 3rd party ones can do also, I mentioned long press for symbols, gboard on android has this but on iOS it does not.

 

[TiggrToo]

Never ceases to amaze me the number of armchair Operating System developers we have here.

None of us here knows just how much code has changed, if Apple have a version numbering policy or anything else, yet here y'all are debating this.

It certainly has new functionality: much better performance across the line, better FaceId, updated notification handling. That alone I'd have thunked would justify a major version bump.

The biggest question though is why? What is the point and what does it matter, really?

Microsoft make some serious changes to each 'edition' of Windows 10 but still keep the 10 monicker.

Does it really truly honestly matter? For all we know the policy is a simple 'bump it up every year. Period.' and if that's the case then who the heck should really care?

 

[CaTOAGU]

You can record an Animoji in the Messages app, save it to the camera roll and then send it through any 3rd party app you like. So the simple implementation would be to use that format in 3rd party apps directly instead of doing it indirectly like this.

I didn't know that, thank you! It sounds like a useful improvement.

 

[C DM]

Does it matter if it's 12 or 11.5 or anything else? People have said these kinds of things about all kinds of releases before, and it was all just as moot then as it is now.

 

[PJ.]

Does it matter if it's 12 or 11.5 or anything else? People have said these kinds of things about all kinds of releases before, and it was all just as moot then as it is now.

Exactly this. If we paid for each OS I might agree with the OP more. As long as they make the next OS smoother and less battery intensive then 11 as far as I am concerned it could be called iOS 11.5, 12 or iOS Vista.

Actually not the last one. Wouldn’t be happy then

 

[neil74]

Never ceases to amaze me the number of armchair Operating System developers we have here.

I'm not a developer, I'm a consumer. These are just things I would like and things that android offers that I'd like to see on IOS. Most of the changes are fixes not improvements or new features imo too. I read the news before that 12 would be focussed on performance I guess I was just hoping for a little more, certainly this is not a release that warranted the WWDC fanfair

While I am at it I also dislike that wireless audio is capped at 250 kbps on iOS so anything with a bitrate north of apple music is pointless or that I still cannot delete a photo or video from only from my phone but still keep it in the cloud, but that's another story......

As I said I used to be an Apple guy and would defend them to the end like people have on this post and the forum in general but over recent years I think the magic has gone. I still like and have apple devices but I have never been closer to ditching them completely, it's probably only my Mac that keeps me hanging on these days.

 

[I7guy]

I'm not a developer, I'm a consumer. These are just things I would like and things that android offers that I'd like to see on IOS. Most of the changes are fixes not improvements or new features imo too. I read the news before that 12 would be focussed on performance I guess I was just hoping for a little more, certainly this is not a release that warranted the WWDC fanfair

While I am at it I also dislike that wireless audio is capped at 250 kbps on iOS so anything with a bitrate north of apple music is pointless or that I still cannot delete a photo or video from only from my phone but still keep it in the cloud, but that's another story......

As I said I used to be an Apple guy and would defend them to the end like people have on this post and the forum in general but over recent years I think the magic has gone. I still like and have apple devices but I have never been closer to ditching them completely, it's probably only my Mac that keeps me hanging on these days.

You should do what works for you. I like apple and we have mix of devices. It's not that apple can do no wrong, it's that they get right better.

If you are feeling underwhelmed, bored, don't like ios functionality, you should be glad there are options.

Re your defending comment, as I said above, apple isn't perfect, but imo they get it right better.

 

[cmaier]

I have installed the beta and the it actually feels pretty stable but it also feels almost exactly like iOS11, it is probably so stable as it is iOS11 with a some minor tweaks and improvements rather than a full blown new OS (IMO). It is only little things like swiping up on the X to close apps (which I keep forgetting!) and the notifications that point to it being a new OS. Other than the password feature which when it lands will be awesome.

I am massively underwhelmed and it really feels like Apple do no innovate like they used to, in so many areas iOS is falling further and further behind Android and the things that still irk me in iOS12 are:


1. Still no ability to customise your home screen (icon position and size) Even allowing the icons to wrap from the bottom rather than the top would be an improvement, but no it looks like we have another 12 months of every iPhone screen looking the same

2. No always on display.

3. Other than force touch cursor swipe the keyboard still falls way behind Android. Why do apple continue to block really useful things like long press for symbols for example? Totally baffles me

4. No dark mode. This is no biggie really for me but it would look awesome if the iPhone X had it.

5. Animoji and Meemoji. Honestly they feel pointless but locking them to iMessage only just seems daft. Allowing people for example to share them via whatsapp or social networks would open them up to a wider audience and I'd bet would tempt some android users to switch too.

6. Would have liked them to reduce face unlock from a 3 or 4 stage process to 1 or 2. Currently You have to pick your phone up, wake the screen, wait for the unlock symbol and then swipe. I have found it very reliable but there is no doubt that it is significantly slower than a FPS.

7. AR??? Does anybody honestly really care about this? For me that was an embarrassing watch at WWDC


1,2 and 3 remain my biggest beefs if they fixed them I’d live with the rest but whilst I have an iPhone, Android continues to be daily driver now and looks like it will be for another 12 months at least. The longer I do this the more I move away from Apple’s services, I now use Google for contacts, Calendar and photos, I have cancelled Apple music too. 3 years ago I was a 100% apple guy all in, now I am not and if windows was not so terrible I’d also be considering other options to my Mac too.

Maybe some other stuff will land with the next iPhones? But I feel more and more like Apple is run by a bunch of uncool Dads who think they know what is cool but really don’t, and I say that as an uncool Dad myself! Definitely feels like new blood is needed in senior positions at Apple.


YMMV and thoughts welcome.

Wait until apps are updated for iOS 12 and it will feel like a new OS. THe fact that apps can expose INIntents so that you can use Siri to perform actions has many other consequences. Among them, each donated intent also becomes exposed to the shortcut app, and INIntents can be responded to in the background. This will allow apps to communicate with each other in ways that are not possible now. Plus, since major apps will want to integrate with Siri, this inter app communication will come along for the ride even for app developers who would prefer not to make their apps scriptable. In the end, this will quite substantially change the way you use your phone. It also opens the door for things like live icons/springboard tiles, etc. in the future.

 

[ghostface147]

The OP doesn't seem to know that unlocking an iPhone X is already a two step process. Pick up phone, swipe up....goes to home screen.

 

[bill-p]

OP, you're preaching to the choir here. And actually, that's just how it is, nothing negative intended, it just means: you're asking a pro-Apple community to take an objective non-biased look at Apple. That's impossible.

Regardless, I also agree that iOS 12 should be iOS 11.5, but given the "new trend" at Apple, it's no longer surprising. May be interesting to you:
https://www.theverge.com/2018/6/8/17438884/wwdc-google-io-2018

At the end of the day, as said, it doesn't matter if this release is called iOS 11.5, 12, 99 or X or XI or XII... The thing that should matter are these facts:

1. It's supposed to improve performance, which it seems to be doing.
2. It's an "update", which it also seems to be with some new changes, regardless of how few/small/diminutive/regressing those changes are.
3. It's still not properly fixing the fundamental functionality issues that came with the UI/UX shift in iOS 11 (like the new "notification center", see: https://ios.gadgethacks.com/news/people-are-pissed-about-ios-11s-new-notification-system-0177949/).
4. People will still install it and use it because they're either fed up with iOS 11 or it's a new shiny thing.
5. Life goes on.

If Android works for you, then just move over and be done.

 

[C DM]

At the end of the day, as said, it doesn't matter if this release is called iOS 11.5, 12, 99 or X or XI or XII...

And there we have it.

 

[neil74]

The OP doesn't seem to know that unlocking an iPhone X is already a two step process. Pick up phone, swipe up....goes to home screen.

Already acknowledged that I got that wrong. I think I'd like the option to remove the swipe part though i.e. raise to wake and then phone just unlocks
[doublepost=1528615553][/doublepost]

OP, you're preaching to the choir here. And actually, that's just how it is, nothing negative intended, it just means: you're asking a pro-Apple community to take an objective non-biased look at Apple. That's impossible.

Regardless, I also agree that iOS 12 should be iOS 11.5, but given the "new trend" at Apple, it's no longer surprising. May be interesting to you:
https://www.theverge.com/2018/6/8/17438884/wwdc-google-io-2018

At the end of the day, as said, it doesn't matter if this release is called iOS 11.5, 12, 99 or X or XI or XII... The thing that should matter are these facts:

1. It's supposed to improve performance, which it seems to be doing.
2. It's an "update", which it also seems to be with some new changes, regardless of how few/small/diminutive/regressing those changes are.
3. It's still not properly fixing the fundamental functionality issues that came with the UI/UX shift in iOS 11 (like the new "notification center", see: https://ios.gadgethacks.com/news/people-are-pissed-about-ios-11s-new-notification-system-0177949/).
4. People will still install it and use it because they're either fed up with iOS 11 or it's a new shiny thing.
5. Life goes on.

If Android works for you, then just move over and be done.

The verge article is interesting. I think there is no doubt that iOS 12 is better than 11 even with the first beta other than a couple of apps that won't work it feels faster and improves the experience on the X.

As I said they could also be holding some stuff back for the new iPhones.

 

[Jimpilot]

A rose by any other name.............

Who cares what they call it, seems like it's just a way to diminish the new OS. For me it's better that's all I care about.