Later today, several folks from Apple are going to take the stage at a busy event, and show off a bunch of new things. This year, like every year before it, the anticipation is pretty high. As you can imagine, and as I'm sure you've seen over the past few months, the Rumor Mill has been hard pressed to keep up with the demand of the software tweaks, additions, and whatever else people can think of that should be included with the next version of Apple's mobile operating system.
Of course, WWDC has a lot in store for it. Marco put together a nice video of what he expects to see at this year's event, so check that out if you haven't already. Everything that Marco outlines has been what we've heard in the past, thanks to the rumors that have spent their time swirling around the 'net. New apps, like Text Edit and a heavy leaning on Healthbook among others.
As many times as we've seen those particular features and apps leak, I think it would be more surprising if they didn't show up in iOS 8. More than that, though, if those apps and features don't show up, it means that the newest version of iOS will be pretty thin on the "new," especially when it comes to the things that people love to talk about.
Can Apple really wow the audience, both the tech-obsessed and the average consumer, with iOS 8?
Truth be told, even only a matter of hours away from the unveil, I'm tempering my excitement as much as I can.
Don't get me wrong, I'd honestly be shocked if Apple doesn't reveal most, if not all of the things that we've seen rumored in the past few months. There really hasn't been all that much. It's not like the Rumor Mill has been spouting off rumor after rumor, essentially stacking the deck against Apple. Not this year, anyway. It's been relatively quiet, and that's why I think most of the leaks will pan out. Maybe not all of them, but most of them.
While Apple's obviously going to unveil new things for their mobile operating system, I think iOS 8 is more about refinement across the board. From surface level stuff that the consumer will see and interact with every day, all the way to the deep stuff that some people might not ever see. iOS 7 was the introduction to sweeping changes, from aesthetics to features (like Control Center), and many believe that this year at WWDC we're going to see that same kind of attention given to Mac OS.
It wouldn't surprise me in the slightest if Apple focused most of their attention on Mac OS this year, and just added a few new features here and there to iOS. iOS 8 may very well just be about refinement, especially for whatever new iPhone they announce later this year.
Which is why I think we may be waiting until iOS 9 before we get any major changes/additions to the platform that so many people out there love, and so many people out there dislike. Just another year -- that's not too bad, right? I guess it all depends on what you're expecting this year, and what you want to see from iOS 8. So, let me know what you're expecting from Apple's big event later today.
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